 Nintendo of America had planned to release this game in 1991 under  the title "Earth Bound." However, the release was canceled when the  game was deemed unprofitable (the Super NES had already been  released, and NOA didnt think gamers would pay attention to a new  NES game). In 1998, a prototype cartridge surfaced, and the ROM file  was made available (illegally) on the Internet. This version is  referred to by fans as "Earthbound Zero," a reference to its sequel  (Mazâ 2: Gîgu no gyakushû (1994) (VG) (qv)) being released in the  United States as "Earthbound."