One of EarthBound’s most striking differences from other RPGs is that it heavily features modern-day locations. The game features various regions: Eagleland is both a satirical and romanticized view of America; FoggyLand is more European in nature; and Chommo is inspired by Asia and Africa. While EarthBound aimed for a more international feel and never canonically ties any of its regions to their real-world counterparts, Mother’s opening scene explicitly states the game takes place in America.
Each town is designed to be distinct, with earlier destinations feeling “closer to actual society” before reaching more fantastical areas where the threat of Giygas is more pronounced.
Onett
EarthBound’s starting area is called Onett. Ness’s home is nestled away in the idealistic suburbs just outside of town, similar to the town of Podunk in the original Mother. The first several subsequent areas are all named after the order in which the player visits them: Twoson, Threed, etc.
Moonside
Moonside is an inversed illusion of the game’s fourth town, Fourside, created by an evil statue. The town’s visuals are heavily distorted, as is the dialogue spoken by the townsfolk. The black streets and neon-outlined buildings are reminiscent of the graphics from early console games.
Winters
The snow-covered land of Winters provides a stark contrast to other locations untouched by the elements. The Sky Runner machine, which resembles a UFO, is introduced here and is used by Jeff to quickly travel to Threed to rescue his fellow party members. Another method of transportation can be found in Winters in the form of Tessie, a mythical sea creature who lives in a lake.
Stonehenge
The Stonehenge Base lies underneath this wonder of the world, and is filled with the series’ prevalent enemy, the Starmen. The Stonehenge Base is home to the Starman Supers, which have a 1 in 128 chance of dropping Poo’s ultra-rare Sword of Kings weapon.
Magicant
After gathering the power necessary to defeat Gigyas from around the world, Ness enters his mind in order to face his own subconscious evil. Here he encounters memories of friends, family members, enemies, and even his former selves. In Mother 2, Ness ventured into Magicant naked, as nudity is a sign of purity in Japan. For the Western release, Ness appears in his pajamas.
The Cave of the Past
In order to confront the time-traveling Gigyas, the party transfers their souls into robotic bodies and journeys to the past via a Mr. Saturn-shaped device. Even as the game reaches the “point of no return” (a common event in RPGs where backtracking is no longer possible), it still has exciting—and terrifying—surprises in store for the player.
