Earthbound Beginnings has a surprisingly good plot for being like 5 sentences long. Most of the middle game is plotless besides some world building/showing alien destruction. Beginning of game and end of game sentences somehow make a 8-9/10 plot. Impressed by it for its age

The main obvious criticism that holds this experience down so much is the old style game design. Without a guide you will be lost and directionless for most of the game (how would someone know to take an optional plane ride in a hidden oasis and watch what cactus the plane circles around on one of the 3 specific rides then go up to the cactus and use telepathy magic on it to get a mandatory tune????).

Another massive downfall is the high enemy encounter, with no buffer period, i had rooms where i was fighting enemies more than i took steps. A small 20 by 20 foot room can have like 7 enemy encounters..... its a real pain when a dungeon can be 100 times that length. This is saved by the fact that defeat doesn't reset your levels or experience, you simply go to your last save and try again. However the game is padded by massive difficulty spikes when you go to each new area. You will never be fighting a fair fight, u either dominate the enemy over time (going back to early areas) or they dominate you. I do wish enemy encounters would slow down once the enemies were no longer a threat to me.

The best game I have experienced on the NES so far. Exceptional for its time.