Mother 3 (2006)

Alright, so there is gonna be a little preamble before I actually talk about this game. I was probably a Mother hater and that is because I have had a friend in my life tell me nonstop how great Earthbound was for over a decade. Sadly it was one of those situations where the more he talked about it, the less I was interested in. It really just put a bad taste in my mouth whenever I thought about this series in general and even went into me disliking Ness in Super Smash Bros. So what changed and what got me to get into the Mother series? Well I read someone’s review on here and it just kind of clicked in my brain that I need to play this. It helps that I have met other fans who have been more encouraging about playing Mother and a friend who suggested I start with Mother 3. Long story short, this game is literally amazing and one of the best JRPGs and best games I have ever played. I think in a similar vein to my 1000xResist review, this review might contain some spoilers but I will try my hardest not to.

I think I will talk about gameplay first before I go into any story, themes and surprises. Gameplay works similarly to other turn based JRPGs where players take a turn and use an action in a turn order. I think one of the things that I loved in this game is that someone can take mortal damage but still be in the fight. So it is very possible to squeeze a couple rounds out if someone took mortal damage. I like that you can plan around it and play with it when you heal someone and when you even press the button to have an enemy attack you. I know that this is weird to explain but basically you just get a degree of flexibility in this combat system without having to expend items or healing like in a Final Fantasy game. The other thing that this game does that just was different for me was the rhythm based battle mechanics. I loved being able to hit a 16 hit combo with any of the characters. It can really turn the tides of battle when you rip one of these off. Otherwise you do a lot of overworld exploration with enemies that are visible on the map which is really cool so there aren’t any random encounters. It doesn’t change that the enemies will be attracted to you like a magnet. You get a fun sprint mechanic that can charge through enemies once you are high enough level too so that is neat when you don’t want to grind.

I think this is where I try to talk around the story of Mother 3 because I think the best thing that can happen is to go into this game blind. Overall the story is about the Island of Tazmily and what happens on that island. You go from a simple village strong man to a world saving hero as is typical of these kinds of games. Environments in this game are always beautiful and colorful to travel through and are never dull. I love the last environment specifically and I am sure that I am not alone in that segment. The music in this game is phenomenal and every single track is a certified banger. All of the battle tracks are a joy and the environmental and atmospheric are no slouches either. I think one of the best things about this game and about all games I love is that they capture something about being human. This game just has it all for me. There is a bunch of levity and a bunch of joy. A bunch of sorrow and anger. It just runs the gambit and I think that it just represents me and all of us. We are not perfect, we are the makers of our own destiny and we can give into our darker sides. Does this show its head throughout the whole game, no but it is something that I latched onto.

The largest theme that I can grasp from this game is the critique of capitalism and consumerism. It really just snuck up on me watching this town be swindled of their joy by a salesman who is claiming to sell that very thing. It shows how the life of excess truly makes us more empty as we think we need more, when in reality we just need connection to each other and our community. I know capitalist critiques are not so rare nowadays but there is something about this being made in 2006. It reminds me of when I saw the film Giants and Toys which was made in Japan in 1958. I was as shocked to see that these critiques and criticisms have been echoing throughout history. I think one of the many moments that made me cry was watching a village make an old folks home and how they basically discarded the elderly and that just stung. I think the other theme of this game is how fascists rise in capitalist systems and we can see this because of all the pigmen who exploit others for their own profit and greed. I feel like I can go on and on about examples from this game that got some kind of reaction from me. It was just heartbreaking to observe.

Is the game perfect? By all means no. There is no such thing as a perfect game and there are some pain points that exist where the only solution is you have to grind. Other than that there are some things culturally that just haven't aged as well but otherwise the game is just so phenomenal and I do think it can be easy to overlook. So after a lot of debate I think I will be putting this on my ranking as my all time favorite JRPG. I just think that this game is just deserving of it. I didn’t think I would play anything that would ever top Final Fantasy 10 but I suppose that is no longer the case. Please play this game and get the fan translation. It was so worth it and easily available. I am so excited to play Earthbound now. Oh how the tables...

The first 8-10 hours of disorganized & poorly integrated backstory really set a poor tone. It was a 1-star game at that point and I only continued out of respect for its predecessor.

The latter half turned out to be much better, but honestly I was expecting a massive payoff at that point but instead got just a good game that could never really decide if it was trying to ride Earthbound's coattails or be something unique of its own.

If they condensed all the ridiculous backstory chapters and/or inserted the content more fluidly where it belonged, this would be the must-play that so many people claim it is. As-is, I can't recommend it to anyone unless you're desperate for more Earthbound-like content but don't feel like replaying it through for the sixth time.

So as many friends of mine know, I loved EarthBound or Mother 2 as it is known in Japan. What was first an obligation due to maining Ness in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate turned into an unforgettable experience. I grew to love the characters of Ness, Paula, Poo, and Jeff. Their journey was such an awesome thing to see. It was unlike any RPG I played. Rather than being dungeons and fantasy. It was the bizarreness of suburbia that made it so cool. After beating EarthBound, I wanted to get right into Mother 3 (As for Mother 1 or EarthBound Beginnings as it is known here... maybe some other time. But I never got around to it. Until around a month ago. And I have a lot to say

If you have been playing video games long enough, you probably know all about Mother 3's crazy development and legacy. This game took around 10 years to make. Originally for the N64 and then canceled altogether. Until being revived for the Game Boy Advance.

That's one thing. But what you definitely know is that this game has never been translated. Due to poor sales of EarthBound in the US and some material in this game not aging very well. The only way to officially play Mother 3 is to learn Japanese and play it on a Japanese GBA. But thanks to Tomato (as he goes by) and his team, this game has been fully translated into English and can be played via emulator.

And damn. It broke my heart. But also left such a great impression on me.

I played this entire game with my girlfriend. And we laughed, yelled, and overall was very engaged.

At its core, Mother 3 is about a family. It is about overcoming grief and letting go. It's about the evilness of fascism, consumerism, and capitalism, and how they can corrupt lives. It's about a boy named Lucas. A shy and timid young kid who is often called a crybaby. Overshadowed by his cooler and more outgoing twin brother Claus. Their quiet and stoic father, Flint. And their loving mother, Hinawa.

I'm not gonna spoil this game. But seeing Lucas' journey to learning to let go of sadness and become stronger is very empowering. This game is really sad. REALLY SAD. I cried. My girlfriend cried. I knew it was sad but I thought... I'll be fine... I wasn't.

But as tragic and sad as this game is... It also has made me laugh and smile. The translation did a great job... You can feel the emotion just by pauses in the text. You can feel the reluctance in some of the lines. But you can feel the happiness and overall very funny writing as well.

The game looks beautiful and Rolling Combat System has never worked any better.

And my god the music. It is so powerful sometimes. Able to convey the tone of an enemy or boss, or the emotion of a story moment.

I hope that we get this game localized. But I doubt it will ever happen.

Mother 3 is such a beautiful game. It tells us, the players. That even if life can be a piece of shit. Things will be ok. And that only we can influence that. So I hope everything in your life is going well. And if it isn't... I hope it gets better. That's what Mother 3 taught me.

5/5

Would Recommend

Mother 3 Translation ROM

Visual Boy Advance Emulator

Shigesato Itoi's ending to the Mother series leaves off on its strongest messages to take home. I'm of a family of brothers and sisters, but most importantly I have a twin brother of my own. That made the story around Lucas and Claus that much stronger and poignant to me, not to discredit that the writing in general isn't already incredible.

From the slow corruption of Tazmily village as it conforms into a capitalist society that comes with less pros than it does take away familial strengths and bonds within the community, to the surrealist hero's journey of the seven needles, Mother 3 fantastically paces itself out and keeps the core message of family ever so strung through the whole thing.

The characters, while not so much riveting examples of three dimensional characterization, each found their way into my heart as I played through. This is a game where, though it has its lows, had a profound effect on my life for a very long time. Even when you dig to its core, to where you find that it's simple in scope and works off of a fine tightrope of emotional beats, I still think it's a shining example of video games I've ever played. I can hum most of the soundtrack to this day.

The combat may not be riveting, it taking up a huge percentage of the time playing the game and just barely good enough thanks to some great boss design, some solid enemy encounters, and the cohesive rhythm system. But still, I never lost my engagement for a single moment. I was gripped until the credits rolled and the game came up and told me that it wants the very best of my life as I did the characters at the end. And I think, I wish everyone here the best too, and that maybe if these words find you that you also play Mother 3. (10/10)

I used to think that games were merely a form of entertainment. But, after playing Mother 3, my eyes were opened to the fact that games can be art, too.

This game is absolutely fantastic. The world is beautiful and vibrant, the characters are full of emotion, the music makes masterful use of the GBA's limited hardware. My praise for this game has no bounds.

By far the best aspect of the game is its writing. The game makes the player feel a wide variety of emotions through its writing, and it excels at each one. When the game is funny, it's hilarious. When it's sad, it's heartbreaking. When it's thoughtful, it's philosophical. Never before had a game made me feel such an intense spectrum of emotions.

What's more, the game has quite a bit of attention to detail, and rewards those that wish to thoroughly explore its world with fun new dialogue and fearsome hidden enemies. Playing through this game a second time to reach 100% completion, I was amazed at all of the unique things that I had missed during my first playthrough, and was even more amazed at how dialogue I had heard once before someone made me feel emotion twice as hard.

Mother 3 isn't just a game. It's a piece of art. It's a story that needs to be experienced by all. To me, it will always be nothing short of a masterpiece.