Mother 3
Review
Eleven years in the making. Was it worth the wait?
by JSnake
reviewed on NDS
Mother 3 is Earthbound
In April of last year, Mother 3 was released for the Game Boy Advance. Mother 3 is the long-awaited sequel to Mother 2 (EarthBound in the USA). EarthBound was a cult classic from the very beginning. With a dreadful marketing campaign (this game stinks!), poor graphics for the time, and a less than desirable time of release (it came out the same time Final Fantasy 3 did), EarthBound sold extremely poorly. Thus, when Mother 3 came out after eleven years of development, it was stuck with a Japan only release. This didn't stop tons of American fans from importing, and locals of Japan scooped the game up without hesitation. Does Mother 3 deserve the success it has enjoyed? Keep reading if you wish to know!
Mother 3 takes place in a land called Nowhere Island. One day, the Pig Mask Army invades the peaceful land. When they arrive in one of the villages, they set up a false comfort state with their new technology. They introduce devices such as televisions, computers, and other things that are used to make life easier. While the villagers are in this fake sense of security, the Pig Army conducts strange experiments on the surrounding flora and fauna.
While doing this, the Pig Army punishes anyone that dares go against them. However, some locals are bothered by the fact that their beautiful nature-driven life is being tainted by new technology and that their animals and plants are being mutated and experimented on. It is then when the adventure is spun into motion.
Crazy humor
The story isn't great in that it has tons of plot twists and 'wow' moments (although, it does have quite a few), it's great in that it has an actual theme. Nature against technology. Man versus machine. It shows what could happen if we let technology keep ruling our lives. The story is also very tear-jerky. I won't spoil anything, but some scenes will definitely make even the toughest of players shed a tear.
Another thing that the Mother series is known for is its humor and craziness. Evil hippies, cross-dressing, magical beings, and angry Bat Gorillas (a gorilla's face with bat wings) are just some of the bizarre things you will see in Mother 3. The game definitely has a style and charm of its own, and it has no trouble putting a smile on your face or just plain freaking you out.
I think I'm going Japanese
While Mother 3 may be in Japanese, the game is still very easy to understand by just observing. There is a great amount of detail and animation strewn throughout the game, and it is possible to get the gist of what is going on by watching the expressions on the character's faces. The game is able to portray a wide variety of emotions not through text, but through expressions and animation.
The rest of the visuals are quite good. The Mother franchise has always had its own cartoony graphic style. The developers were able to make the most out of the GBA while being careful not to stray away from the series' unique style. If compared to the previous two games in the franchise, Mother 3 is definitely the prettiest. Character sprites, the trademark psychedelic battle backgrounds, and environments all have a clean and detailed look to them, but still look something out of a cartoon or an artist's scrap book.
9.0
fun score
No Pros and Cons at this time
