Mother 3
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| Mother 3 | |
| Developer | HAL Laboratory, Brownie Brown |
| Publisher | Nintendo |
| System | Game Boy Advance, Wii U Virtual Console |
| Release Date | Game Boy Advance JP April 20, 2006 Wii U Virtual Console December 17, 2015 |
| Rating | CERO: All Ages |
Mother 3 is a RPG that acts as a sequel to Mother and Eartbound, and it is the final installment in the trilogy. Like the original Mother, it was only released in Japan. The demand for the game was large in Japan, remaining on Famitsu's Top Ten for it' entire development. Much of the scenario work originated from the ill-fated Earthbound 64.
Story[edit]
A group called the Pig Mask Army is invading the Nowhere Islands. The group begins performing experiments on local plants and animals, making them monsters. The islands become a police state, with new technology and infrastructure.
The game follows Lucas. With his mother dead and his brother missing, he starts his journey to battle the Pig Mask Army.
Gameplay[edit]
Unlike previous games in the series, Mother 3 does not focus completely on a single group of characters. Instead, the game is broken into eight chapters with various characters being the chapter's main character.
The battle system remains largely the same as in previous games. The biggest difference is the combo system. By pressing buttons in time with the game's music, players can score combos of up to sixteen for more damage.The HP meter rolls slower than it did in Earthbound. Players can no longer instantly defeat enemies, but can run into them to stun them before entering battle.
The previous system of using phones to save has been abandoned in favor of using frogs to save. The frogs also take the place of ATM machines. In addition, this games currency is dragon points (DP) rather than dollars.
Legacy[edit]
Mother 3 acts as the final installment of the Mother/EarthBound series. The creator has stated that he does not intend to continue the series.
The game was never released outside of Japan and despite a massive petition and other efforts by Starmen.net, Nintendo of America has no plans to ever release the game. A fan translation was eventually made for emulated versions of the game.
Despite its lack of an international release, it has received representation in the Super Smash Bros. series, in which Lucas has been playable for several games. There has also been a stage, a boss and music derived from this game.
Ports/Remakes[edit]
- In 2015, it was released for download on the Wii U's eShop as part of the Wii U Virtual Console in Japan.