The Mother Series/Earthbound

It's one of my favorite game franchises of all time. The Mother series is so beautiful, so touching and moving. Mother 3 is one of the few things that can get me emotional, and Mother 2/Earthbound is so nostalgic for me. It's quirky, it's fun, it's cute, it's deep, it's well-written, and it's absolutely insane.

So who else here is in love with this series? Who else mains Lucas or Ness in SSB? I like Lucas more, personally :3

I adored Earthbound for all the reasons you mentioned and more. I haven't played Mother 1 or 3 but Earthbound safely ranks in my top 10 favorite games of all time.

I feel like it's about time I play these. I keep hearing how great they are. Homestuck was inspired partly by Earthbound, and it does feel a bit weird to be a homestucker without really having played more than a few minutes of Earthbound ^^

I didn't play Earthbound, or any Mother game till roughly 2010.
And, by golly gosh, I fell in love! <3

It's such a good series, the comedy, the themes, all of it.
I'd recommend it to anyone

mother 3 had a profound effect on me the first time i played it. i started watching a let's play of it back in 2010 and before i got too far, i decided it looked fun and i wanted to play it myself without watching the videos (apart from what i'd already seen, of course). i downloaded an emulator for it, which i had been soooo vehemently against emulation back then lmfao. but yeah. i played it in the summer of 2010 and remember bawling my eyes out at the end of it. for a long time, i considered it my favorite game of all time and it's still up there on the list, just barely behind persona 5 now. everything about it is phenomenal and it had a huge impact on me.

i have played earthbound and enjoyed it, but not as much as mother 3. i would recommend, for those that have not played anything in the series, to play them in order. not for story purposes or anything (though you'll understand easter eggs in M3 better if you play EB first) but because the gameplay gets better and if you play in reverse order, it's harder to backtrack, imo. not that the first two titles are bad or anything, but i think M3 offers the best in terms of gameplay and it's a big back pedal to play it first and then try the other two.

Black said:

I adored Earthbound for all the reasons you mentioned and more. I haven't played Mother 1 or 3 but Earthbound safely ranks in my top 10 favorite games of all time.

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Ah, Magicant <3

Mother 1 still had an amazing story, but holy crap... I couldn't play it myself. I had to watch someone else do it because I couldn't stand the fighting mechanics in that game. With the difficulty of the Mother series and the randomness of basically Pokemon everywhere, it was too much for me to deal with. I much preferred the way it was done in 2 and 3.

adventure said:

I feel like it's about time I play these. I keep hearing how great they are. Homestuck was inspired partly by Earthbound, and it does feel a bit weird to be a homestucker without really having played more than a few minutes of Earthbound ^^

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Huh, I used to be a Homestucker but I didn't know that! I can see it. xD Homestuck is pretty crazy and quirky. It's fantastic inspiration :)

wanderlustmage said:

I didn't play Earthbound, or any Mother game till roughly 2010.
And, by golly gosh, I fell in love! <3

It's such a good series, the comedy, the themes, all of it.
I'd recommend it to anyone

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Same, was a little slow to get on the Mother train, but once I did, I also fell in love with it <3 Immediately played Mother 3 after Earthbound xD It had to be done and I was not even a little disappointed. I was overwhelmed, tbh. Emotionally, 'cuz damn that game can get you. xD

Sydian said:

mother 3 had a profound effect on me the first time i played it. i started watching a let's play of it back in 2010 and before i got too far, i decided it looked fun and i wanted to play it myself without watching the videos (apart from what i'd already seen, of course). i downloaded an emulator for it, which i had been soooo vehemently against emulation back then lmfao. but yeah. i played it in the summer of 2010 and remember bawling my eyes out at the end of it. for a long time, i considered it my favorite game of all time and it's still up there on the list, just barely behind persona 5 now. everything about it is phenomenal and it had a huge impact on me.

i have played earthbound and enjoyed it, but not as much as mother 3. i would recommend, for those that have not played anything in the series, to play them in order. not for story purposes or anything (though you'll understand easter eggs in M3 better if you play EB first) but because the gameplay gets better and if you play in reverse order, it's harder to backtrack, imo. not that the first two titles are bad or anything, but i think M3 offers the best in terms of gameplay and it's a big back pedal to play it first and then try the other two.

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I can absolutely agree that Mother 3 is the best of the series. And I agree that people should play the games in order as well. Even if they can't get completely through the 1st one like I didn't, then at least you'll have an appreciation for the evolution of the games (not to mention the Easter Eggs you mentioned, which are all too fun to find).

Mother 3 definitely had me the most emotional, too. You really can't beat it, especially toward the end where everything comes together so well, all the juicy secrets are revealed, doubts are answered, and, well... You know. xD Such a wild ride but worth every moment of it.

CiCi Sama said:

Ah, Magicant <3

Mother 1 still had an amazing story, but holy crap... I couldn't play it myself. I had to watch someone else do it because I couldn't stand the fighting mechanics in that game. With the difficulty of the Mother series and the randomness of basically Pokemon everywhere, it was too much for me to deal with. I much preferred the way it was done in 2 and 3.

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Yeah I've heard that the first Mother had a pretty unforgiving difficulty. I'd still happily give 1 & 3 a shot though if they ever got official releases in the west. You and Sydian aren't the first people I've seen claim that the third game is the best so I'm eager to try that one in particular.

Wait, guys. Do you think that there will ever be a new Mother/Earthbound video game developed without Shigesato Itoi's involvement, whether a sequel, a prequel, a midquel, a spiritual successor, or a reboot, or absolutely not, huh?

Black said:

Yeah I've heard that the first Mother had a pretty unforgiving difficulty. I'd still happily give 1 & 3 a shot though if they ever got official releases in the west. You and Sydian aren't the first people I've seen claim that the third game is the best so I'm eager to try that one in particular.

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Absolutely. I don't know if they ever will get released in the West, though. I've heard a few rumors over the years but nothing's ever come to fruition. I personally don't have a problem consuming the media via an emulator in this case, though I suppose you could wait to see if it'll come out on the Switch. That thing's getting all kinds of games on it.

Thomas Wiencek said:

Wait, guys. Do you think that there will ever be a new Mother/Earthbound video game developed without Shigesato Itoi's involvement, whether a sequel, a prequel, a midquel, a spiritual successor, or a reboot, or absolutely not, huh?

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Hmm... I feel like there could be from fans within the industry, but without Itoi I dunno if it'll stand up to the original trilogy. Though I would wish with all my might that it could. Maybe someday someone as creative as Itoi could give us Mother 4.

I've finished all three and plan on playing Earthbound Beginnings again soon.

Oh man. This series is the best. Top 3 of all time, behind Pokémon and Kingdom Hearts.

Mother 3 is still one of my favorite games of all time. E3 needs to have Mother 3 revealed as Earthbound Endings, seriously.

adventure said:

I feel like it's about time I play these. I keep hearing how great they are. Homestuck was inspired partly by Earthbound, and it does feel a bit weird to be a homestucker without really having played more than a few minutes of Earthbound ^^

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Please please please please play it!!!!! The series as a whole is so good, it works really well.

Thomas Wiencek said:

Wait, guys. Do you think that there will ever be a new Mother/Earthbound video game developed without Shigesato Itoi's involvement, whether a sequel, a prequel, a midquel, a spiritual successor, or a reboot, or absolutely not, huh?

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I would hope so and considering what has been made again as of late, this could be more plausible than we think!

I watched a let's play of Earthbound (Mother2) and it was amazing so i got it on virtual console and started playing itmyself! I got pretty far before i got distracted by the glitch tent for a while and then ended up not progressing anymore i should really pick it up and play it and finish it sometime and maybe even see about playing mother 3 after since i've heard so many good things about it.

I've played Earthbound and Mother 3, at least twice, and tried playing the first Mother but it kinda bored me ngl, but I think I could give it a try once more (once I'm done with this semester ffs) because I loved the other two games of the franchise especially Mother 3.

I've watched bits and pieces of the first couple games and played Mother 3. Mother 3 is a heck of a masterpiece imo, and if it were ever localised (not holding my breath) it would be an insta-buy for me. Great soundtrack too!

You know what would be a great strategy? Introduce either Porky Minch or Duster as a new Smash Ultimate DLC character and announce Earthbound Endings for the Switch at the same time. That way, more sales for both!

I'd seriously buy a Switch, Smash Ultimate, Earthbound Endings, and the Earthbound DLC Pack in one fell swoop.

Earthbound is one of those games that has left it's mark on me ever since I first played it back in the late 90s. I was never lucky enough to own one of those now-rare player's guides back then but I vividly remember my best friend at the time had one and let me rip a page out because I liked the art of Ness so much I wanted to tape it on my wall. I played Mother 3 once I got older and figured out a way to get my hands on it. The visuals are something that continue to impress me. The games have aged pretty well. I can't speak on Mother 1 though, as I've never actually played it

It's a game I still haven't gotten around to playing - when Undertale first came out everyone was saying it was inspired by Mother/Earthbound and that got me interested in it. I've never heard a bad thing about the series, plus it looks a bit off-beat and quirky, which I always like in games.

No E3 showing for Mother 3, sadly. That and it got overshadowed by my sheer hype for a different franchise.

My favorite video game franchises as of E3 2019:
1. Pokémon
2. Kingdom Hearts
3. Mana
4. EarthBound
5. Mario

Still at a solid #4, though! Hope they don't forget about that EarthBound sequel-- the only internationally unreleased title of the series.

I used to be obsessed with these games. They touch the heart.

The mother fandom is a little toxic, though. Thats what probably made me lose intrest a bit over time.....but i still listen to the music/songs every so often even now lol

And the child hero characters are adorable and innocent :) I can't help but love that. Innocent characters are wonderful in my eyes.