Andrew / Q has recently created a bunch of hacks for EarthBound Zero that update the game in several ways:
Demiforce hack – The patch will turn an clean copy of the Earth Bound prototype ROM into the most recent Demiforce version (Demiforce v1.01 Hack-2). This adds the word “Zero” to the title screen, fixes a few spelling/grammar mistakes, and, if my memory is correct, it’s also necessary to complete the game without setting off the copy protection if you’re using other hacks.
Graphics restoration hack – When Mother was localized into Earth Bound, several sprites were altered in order to censor depictions of blood/gore, smoking, religious iconography, knives, and, of course, robotic nipples. A few other sprites were changed for reasons that are not entirely clear. This hack replaces all the altered sprites with the originals.
Gameplay balance hack – EarthBound Zero is known for being somewhat tedious to play due to the high rate of random encounters and the large amount of level grinding the player must do. This hack attempts to remedy this by quadrupling experience, doubling money, and reducing the random encounter rate by approximately half. Using this hack is like using the “Easy Ring” mod that was created for the Mother 1 GBA fan translation.
Font hack – This replaces the font with the font designed for the Mother 1 GBA fan translation for an improved presentation.
Text tweaks hack – This makes a number of minor alterations to the game’s text. The character Giegue is now named Giygas for consistency with EarthBound for SNES. The menu option “State” is now “Stats.” I thought this was a more logical abbreviation for “Status.” Menu commands (e.g., Use) and stats (e.g., Offense) are no longer written in all capital letters because it looks ugly.
You can get individual patches for each one of these, or you can get an all-in-one patch here!