EarthBound Alternatives and Similar Games

Undertale is an outstanding EarthBound-like RPG that has surprised and impressed many with its memorable characters and gameplay that affects the narrative. You play as a genderless character exploring and solving puzzles in a charming underground world inhabited by monsters. Some you get to converse with, some can only be faced in battle, while with others you get to do both. The combat in Undertale is a major highlight that makes the title truly unique. You can choose whether you want to kill the monster that is interrupting you on your adventure, or you can deal with him in a pacifist manner. How you treat every single character in Undertale shapes your character and how everyone around you reacts to them. Playing as a pacifist is not boring either, as battles turn you into a heart dodging enemy attacks, like a bullet-hell game. The sa

To the Moon is a story-driven 2D RPG with no combat. The narrative revolves around an old man named Johnny, whose wish is to go to the moon. Two doctors are experts at making people’s wishes come true, but only in the patient’s minds, before their life is done for. To make something that didn’t happen come real will require you to go deep into Johnny’s life, solving puzzles to move from one memory to the next, reaching closer to fulfilling his wish. This game’s puzzle-based gameplay may not impress you, but its story certainly will, and is in fact the integral core of this otherwise detailed pixel title. If you’re looking for a story-focused game with wonderful music, then To the Moon is for you. Also, if you happen to play it or have played it already, but are also into movies, then be sure to keep an eye out for the animated

Also known as Lisa: The Painful, LISA is a great 2D side-scrolling post-apocalyptic RPG where you explore a wasteland packed with weirdness and dark humor. Throughout the game you’ll get to recruit a ton of different characters to your party, characters that may or may not die depending on your choices. In fact, you can even sacrifice yourself and possibly lose limbs in order to save someone. Combat is the turn-based style of EarthBound, and while the writing remains comedic throughout the game, the overall tone is quite dark. So if you don’t mind that shift in themes, then LISA is a possibly underrated game that is well-written from start to finish and is surely worth checking out.

OFF puts you in the shoes of a guy named The Batter who is on a glorious journey to purify the world of, well, Off. It features old-school-like gameplay as EarthBound, even though the developer hadn’t played EarthBound until years after releasing their own game. Crazy environments and characters will stick with you throughout the equally crazy, mysterious, dark story. Solve puzzles, acquire party members, use the auto button when you don’t feel like handling battles yourself and more. Originally released in French, English fan translations have later been released and declared official by the developer. If you want more EarthBound, albeit one that is not as up-beat as the old title, then this totally free game is absolutely worth a look.

Contact is a 2D RPG with a mixture of hand-drawn and pixel graphics present throughout an adventure where a scientist named the Professor directly refers to you while you control a boy named Terry who explores a diverse planet in search of cells the Professor needs to get his crashed spaceship back up to speed. Instead of being taken to a battle screen whenever you encounter an enemy, Contact features real-time combat where you simply have to be close enough to an enemy to fight. Fights are somewhat automatic, with only activating certain abilities being the key influence you have while Terry takes on the enemies standing in his way. Choices you make affect how NPCs, including enemies, react to Terry. If you’re looking for another good adventure RPG, then you may like Contact.

Citizens of Earth is a comedic 2D RPG where you play as the world’s new vice president tasked with saving Earth. It’s a charming Earthbound-like game with 40 different recruitable characters and varied enemies such as protesters standing in your way. If you want a fun, cartoonish, politics-themed game, then this funny game is well worth a look.

In this creepy 2D mystery RPG you play as a ghost trying to find out who killed you on a ship. Throughout the game you get to possess various different characters, and use them to talk to others. Don’t expect any combat, but do expect a lot of dialogue, which is the main focus as each character has a different relationship with one another. Choices actually matter as there are a number of different endings, overall making Why Am I Dead At Sea an interesting mystery game that you might enjoy.

OneShot puts you in control of a child exploring a strange world where the sun no longer emits light, and it is up to the child to bring it back to life. The unique-looking top-down world knows you exist, and its puzzle-based gameplay as well its narrative are unique. It is an immersive adventure like no other that is best not to be spoiled. If you’re looking for an amazing story with well-written characters and a superb, atmospheric soundtrack, then you don’t want to miss out on OneShot.