Mother
 

So, I started playing through it again, as I am writing a review of it for my site, and I can't believe I didn't notice so much stuff earlier... God. I gained a lot more respect for the subtle things at the beginning of Mother.

Who has lost his tail? The forgotten one of the ship that sails the cosmos.

The pink seashell that leads to Magicant being Maria's grave.

So yeah, this thread is to talk about your thought on Mother, and if you noticed any other examples of great storytelling that I missed, go ahead and let mention it!

I've been playing Mother off and on myself--NES version (first time for me). Y'know, even with the patch, the game still constantly finds new ways to murder Ninten. It doesn't help that I tend to get lost a lot :sweatdrop . Also, the goddamned bats, man. Even so, I find it very charming. It's a hell of a game that can make me say that even as it regularly hands me my ass.

Love the game's story, but goddamn does it make you grind a lot. I actually like the bats. They get confused and that makes things a bit easier.

I'm positive if I actually sat down to play original Mother I would have to tear my hair out in frustration. Earthbound - ah fuck it, it's Mother 2, let's call it that - Mother 2 got me really close to that point a few times with some of the more challenging fights and tougher normal monsters, I can't even imagine how tough the predecessor would be, especially on NES.

It's not that it's hard, persay, it's just that you have to do a ton of leveling. Make sure you get the Franklin Badge to, or Starmen will rock your shit. Snowman is frustrating as all hell though.

Well, yes, they do make grinding easier by being easy to pick off, but I'm just sayin', out of every ten fights I get into, approximately 760% of those will be with bats.

On the bright side, I still get to bash hippies. And a suspiciously redneck-looking fellow called "Wally". I get to play both sides of the culture war :D !

Oh man, good memories of Mother 2.

Getting into fights with New Age Retro Hippies with 32-bit renditions of Johnny Be Good.

Times. They were, at one point, good.

I actually think of Earthbound as not being a Mother game while still taking place in the same universe, if that makes any sense.

Essentially, Mother makes sense as the name for the first game. Everything towards the end revolves around the idea and concept of "Mother." In Mother 3, you have Hinawa's major influence on the plot, with a similar "Mother" vibe. Earthbound, while taking place in the same universe, and even having the villain from the first game, is less centric on the whole "Mother" thing and more on friends and love in general.

Even though it's still in the series, the name doesn't apply in the same sense as the other two games. That is why I consider the series going Mother, Earthbound, Mother 3, rather than having a Mother 2.

Thanks for reminding me that I still have to play MOTHER, you jerks. As if I didn't already have enough NES-era JRPG grinding bullshit to go through with Final Fantasy III.

(clock chiming)

Mother, you had me, but I never had you.
I wanted you, but you didn't want me,
So I got to tell you,
Goodbye, goodbye.

Father, you left me, but I never left you.
I needed you, but you didn't need me,
So I got to tell you,
Goodbye, goodbye.

Children, don't do what I have done.
I couldn't walk and I tried to run,
So I got to tell you,
Goodbye, goodbye.

Mama don't go,
Daddy come home.
Mama don't go,
Daddy come home.
Mama don't go,
Daddy come home.
Mama don't go,
Daddy come home.
Mama don't go,
Daddy come home.
Mama don't go,
Daddy come home.
Mama don't go,
Daddy come home...

I'd say "Mother" fits Earthbound perfectly...

Fair enough. I can't really argue with a John Lennon song. Nobody can.

EDIT: My review of the game...

The Mother series. When it comes to this series, most either think it’s the best thing ever, or they think it’s over hyped. In truth, it falls somewhere in between. The first Mother game is amazing. Some fan boys can turn people off of the game. Others will look for flaws to spite said fan boys, but even with it’s flaws, the first Mother game is truly great.

When you first start the game, you are greeted with a soft, gentle melody, that, even if you haven’t beaten the game yet, you still feel a touch of sadness listening to it. Mother is the least funny game of the series. Compared to Earthbound, it is much sadder, and carries that sadness as you play through it.

This is not to say there isn’t humor in the game, it just doesn’t stick out nearly as much as in Earthbound. You still get your money from your never home Dad who roots for you from the sidelines. You still fight hippies and various other silly enemies. Your favorite food is still steak.

Then you have the villain, not truly evil, just doing his duty, even though it all but destroyed him inside. Magicant is tragic in its own way. Loid, the nerd, is a wimp that everyone picks on and nobody likes, he hides in trash cans so people can’t find him while he cries. Teddy’s parents were murdered, something you’d never see mentioned in Earthbound.

Music, one of the most important aspects of a video game, is even plot important in this game. Many RPG’s at the time, and even some today, have you questing across the lands to collect eight magic McGuffins. In Mother, you are searching for eight melodies. At the time, you don’t know what they are, but you eventually learn that they come together to form a song forgotten by Queen Mary of Magicant. When you find out what the song is, and actually use it, you will cry. You might not cry actual tears, but you will cry on the inside if nothing else.

What’s bad about the game? Interaction with the environment should be a one button thing in my opinion. You have to grind your ass off. Combat is rather simple. Those are the biggest problems. Very few things are actually wrong with the game, but it’s not perfect. However, I’d argue that, when compared to most NES games at the time, Mother has the best plot, and the most emotional ending out of all of them, and could put quite a few modern games to shame.