EarthBound, known in Japan as Mother 2, is a role-playing game directed and written by Shigesato Itoi and co-developed by Ape and HAL Laboratory, with Satoru Iwata as lead programmer on the HAL side. Nintendo released it for the Super Famicom in Japan on 27 August 1994, with the catchphrase 「大人も子供も、おねーさんも。」, and in North America as EarthBound on 5 June 1995.
For the American launch Nintendo spent about $2 million on a campaign built around the slogan "This game stinks", including scratch-and-sniff ads. The localization also changed the game itself: religious imagery, alcohol and real-world brands were edited out, and the script was rewritten with an American tone. Worldwide sales of the original release came to about 658,000 copies. The SNES game never came out in Europe; Europeans could first buy it on the Wii U Virtual Console in July 2013.
In Japan the game was re-released on the Game Boy Advance in 2003 in the compilation MOTHER1+2. It later appeared on the Wii U and New Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console and the Super NES Classic Edition, and in February 2022 it joined Nintendo Switch Online together with EarthBound Beginnings.12
Names and releases
| Region | Title on the box | Platform | Date | Publisher | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NA | EarthBoundNot released in Europe on the SNES | SNES | Jun 5, 1995 | Nintendo | 1 |
| NA | EarthBoundVirtual Console | Wii U | Jul 18, 2013 | Nintendo | 2 |
| NA | EarthBoundIncluded on Super NES Classic Edition (not on the Japanese Super Famicom mini) | Other | September 2017 | Nintendo | 1 |
| JP | MOTHER2 ギーグの逆襲Mazā Tsū: Gīgu no GyakushūSuper Famicom | SNES | Aug 27, 1994 | Nintendo | 2 |
| JP | MOTHER1+2Compilation with Mother (1989), ported by Pax Softnica; Japan only | Game Boy Advance | Jun 20, 2003 | Nintendo | 2 |
| JP | MOTHER2 ギーグの逆襲Virtual Console | Wii U | March 2013 | Nintendo | 1 |
| EU | EarthBoundVirtual Console; first official release in Europe | Wii U | Jul 18, 2013 | Nintendo | 2 |
| WW | EarthBoundNew Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console | Nintendo 3DS | March 2016 | Nintendo | 1 |
| WW | EarthBoundSuper Nintendo Entertainment System – Nintendo Switch Online | Switch | Feb 9, 2022 | Nintendo | 3 |
| JP | MOTHER2 ギーグの逆襲スーパーファミコン Nintendo Switch Online | Switch | Feb 10, 2022 | Nintendo | 2 |
Also known as: MOTHER2 ギーグの逆襲 JP2Mother 2: Gīgu no Gyakushū JP1MOTHER2 Gyiyg Strikes Back! JP2マザー2 JP2Mother 2 WW1
Box art by region
NA EarthBound 
JP MOTHER2 ギーグの逆襲
Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: libretro-thumbnails.
Version differences
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TitleSNES (NA)
Nintendo renamed Mother 2 to EarthBound for North America, since the first Mother had not been released outside Japan and a '2' could confuse buyers.1
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CensorshipSNES (NA)
Religious imagery was removed for the American release: the red crosses on hospitals and the crosses on tombstones were edited out.1
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CensorshipSNES (NA)
References to alcohol were replaced with coffee or cappuccino.1
Translations
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English Official
Nintendo of America (Marcus Lindblom)1995SNES · Japanese versionReleased · complete
The official English localization by Nintendo of America in 1995, led by Marcus Lindblom after Dan Owsen had translated about 10% of the script.1
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Japanese Official
Nintendo1994SNESReleased · complete
The original Japanese release by Nintendo in 1994.2
Where to play legally today
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Nintendo Switch Online Subscription
EarthBound (Super Nintendo Entertainment System – Nintendo Switch Online)
North American SNES version in Western libraries; Japan's service lists MOTHER2 ギーグの逆襲 separately (added 2022-02-10)
Checked: 2026-10-134nintendo.com
Reception
EarthBound sold about 518,000 copies in Japan, where it was the tenth best-selling game of 1994, but only about 140,000 in the United States. Retrospective reviews are much warmer, with a GameRankings average of 88%.1
In lists
Sources
Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13
Spotted a mistake? Write to atlas@old-games.net.