“Snowman,” the tune that has carried the Mother/Earthbound games through its wintry spots since the first title on the Famicom, is one of my favourite pieces of game music. I actually heard the song in Super Smash Bros Brawl some months before I played Earthbound and had a name for the it. It's a peaceful bit of music, if not a little melancholy—again, my first encounter with Snowman was the background music of the Abandoned Zoo level in the Subspace Emissary, and it wasn't a cheerful visit (If someone were to make a list of the least joyous places on Earth, I imagine an “Abandoned Zoo” would be close up there with a broken-down Disneyland inhabited only by snaggle-toothed hobos and sick dogs).
I rough out five months of the year in a harsh, dead climate, so the sleepy warmth of the Winters boarding school in Earthbound, accompanied by a soft version of “Snowman,” produced an atmosphere I appreciated. My brother believes winter exists to make snowboarders happy, my dad believes winter exists to swear at, but I believe winter exists to wind us down, bring us closer to our friends and family in warm, happy gatherings.
Until the cabin fever sets in and we kill each other.
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