r/earthbound Aug 13 '17

Announcement Want to get into the MOTHER series? Start here!

1.1k Upvotes

Over the past few months we've gotten a lot of new players asking where they should start with the trilogy. With this stickied thread, I'm hoping to answer any questions someone may have about getting into the series.

Note: This thread is a strictly no-spoiler zone.


What are the MOTHER games?

The MOTHER series is a group of 3 turn-based cult classic JRPGs created by Shigesato Itoi, who singlehandedly wrote every line of dialogue in the series, aside from a small area in EarthBound.


What makes them so special?

The series is known for being quirky, charming, and invoking a sense of nostalgia even to those who have not played a MOTHER game before. Each line of dialogue is expertly crafted, with a great story to go along with it.


Where do I start?

The series IS a trilogy, however each game can stand on it's own without the context of the last.

The 3 games are as followed:

MOTHER (EarthBound: Beginnings) (1989)

MOTHER 2 (EarthBound) (1994)

MOTHER 3 (???) (Not released outside of Japan) (2006)

The game order is as released, with MOTHER being the first on the timeline, and MOTHER 3 being the last.


So does that mean I should play the games in order?

This is a point of contention within the MOTHER community.

While most recommend to play EarthBound / MOTHER 2 first, some will say that if you can handle the way an older RPG plays, you should start with MOTHER 1 / EarthBound: Beginnings.

The community mostly unanimously agrees that you should play EarthBound before playing MOTHER 3.

In the end, it's up to you. MOTHER 1 is one of the most impressive, best playing and sounding RPGs on the NES, but it could potentially turn you away from the series if you aren't accustomed to or can't handle a bit of older-rpg "clunk". I do HIGHLY recommend however that you at least play EarthBound before playing MOTHER 3.


Wait, if MOTHER 3 isn't released outside of Japan, how can I play it?

I'm glad you asked! (Hopefully you did.)

Almost immediately after the release of MOTHER 3, once it became apparent Nintendo had no intention of localizing MOTHER 3, a group of very passionate fans got together to make their own localization of the game.

2 years later in late 2008, version 1.0 was released to great acclaim. This fan translation is now known to many as the best fan translation of all time. On top of just translating the game, they went out of their way to make sure certain dialogue and enemy names worked in English as they do in Japanese. They even added a hard mode option!


...That's pretty much it, I think. If any regular here on the sub wants to chime in and request something to be added, tell me! On top of that, I'd like to know what some of you think the best order to play the games in are in the comments. It'll be an interesting resource for any new players! And remember, no spoilers.


r/earthbound 2h ago

Wait, wait.. NO NO NO! BACK! BACK!

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44 Upvotes

r/earthbound 2h ago

Art Drew the iconic enemy trio from Onett

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37 Upvotes

With scented twistables


r/earthbound 10h ago

M3 Discussion I've played this game twice and have watched countless videos on this series, and I've never heard of this thing

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41 Upvotes

r/earthbound 2h ago

General Discussion EarthBound Beginnings looks so good!

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9 Upvotes

r/earthbound 1d ago

Wine... The Drink of Life

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315 Upvotes

r/earthbound 18h ago

Art EarthBound / Mother 2 (Fanart) - by @lupeco_arts

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54 Upvotes

r/earthbound 14h ago

Have somebody ever tried losing to the second encounter with Mole Cricket?

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20 Upvotes

What will happen?


r/earthbound 1d ago

Art Artwork by (kulettula)

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134 Upvotes

r/earthbound 1d ago

EB Discussion [M2j: day 1] Objective 1: done! Buy the 7500$ house BEFORE beating Frankie’s!

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182 Upvotes

There is my 2nd picture taken by the wandering photographer! Also… have you ever read the hidden story? In that drawer? I just did see it in Japanese! Goal 1 of this game achieved!

Onwards to beating Frankie & the Shark Gang

Managed to get 2 pizzas to drop from skate punk sharks! 1/128 happened twice


r/earthbound 19h ago

Merch Day 2 was stalled: no electricity for hours. BUT found my Mother2 book!

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29 Upvotes

It was a festival of lightning storm/high winds causing multiple downtime for the electrical grid today. Went for my groceries when it wasn’t yet raining but the wind had cut the current.

Gladly was not playing… losing the recording & compromising the whole DVD-r ain’t worth rushing into it!

So i looked around the new apartment in boxes and piles of unsorted stuff and found that amazing 1994 strategy guide for the game i had got for about 60% of street value back then (tipped the seller 10$ when i got it with low tarifs/import fees on reception)

This is a gem: try and find one if you can’t get the USA strategy guide

Being a dragon ball manga collector since 1994-95 this was a natural addition to my Fly (dragon quest) / Db / DB super / Berserk mangas


r/earthbound 1d ago

EB Spoilers Ness Already Befriended Reimu Hakurei LOL Spoiler

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68 Upvotes

LOL Imagine How KRIS BECOME A BIOLOGICAL CHILD OF REIMU HAKUREI (a.k.a. The Hakurei Shrine Maiden), and Ness (A.K.A. Sans).


r/earthbound 14h ago

Why does the threed tent glitch cause so much damage?

5 Upvotes

Just checking outside the map can cause pretty much ANYTHINF to happen


r/earthbound 9h ago

Help/Advice what do i do here?

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3 Upvotes

r/earthbound 1d ago

General Discussion Earthbound - All Creatures from the Series (Ranked by Design\Whackiness)

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44 Upvotes

Subjective take.


r/earthbound 1d ago

General Discussion I just found this out and I feel SO dumb

77 Upvotes

I've been playing Mother 3 and was kind of stuck on a boss, so I looked at some advice to beat it online.

I kept seeing everyone say "Just spam PK Love" and I was really confused because I didn't unlock that skill and couldn't find it anywhere, until it hit me.

I put "Music" as my favourite thing both in Mother 2 and 3, and i thought the PK Music I was using so much was the actual skill name, I even cheered when I unlocked it with Lucas and said "Oh, finally, PK Music!"

I feel really dumb


r/earthbound 17h ago

Miracle fassad is such a potential man of bosses

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8 Upvotes

Dude wasn’t that hard at all and i beat him without ever taking mortal damage


r/earthbound 1d ago

EB Discussion What's your favorite enemy from all games?

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158 Upvotes

Mine is ranboob hes so cuteeeeeeeeeeeeeee


r/earthbound 22h ago

EB:B Discussion Flashdark: Anyone else spamming it?

8 Upvotes

I've been playing the Earthbound Beginnings Remake; tons of fun.

Ever since I the Flash Dark, I constantly spam it. I've used it in nearly every single battle since finding it. I do my best to make all enemies "blind", so help dodge their attacks.

Does anyone else do the same?


r/earthbound 1d ago

General Discussion Played EarthBound: 20 times since release year… Mother 2 (super famicom) : 1st ever try!

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113 Upvotes

So this is the cartridge i could afford.

I beat it again on the SNES Mini in 2022 after beating it 12-15 times between release year and 2015. Now i am doing my 1st playthrough on superfamicom before i then so MOTHER on Famicom

Pic 4 "i got smaaaaashed by a mouse”


r/earthbound 1d ago

EB:B Discussion EBB piracy video is finished!!

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6 Upvotes

Finished making my mini-documentary on how EarthBound Beginnings’ piracy works. Give it a watch if you’re interested.


r/earthbound 7h ago

Bruh

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0 Upvotes

I’m stuck help!!


r/earthbound 1d ago

Tell me this is not true

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84 Upvotes

r/earthbound 1d ago

EB Discussion Mother2: 1st time playing it in japanese! (Take2: erased my save.)

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27 Upvotes

So i have played EarthBound 20 times almost since release but never in japanese. I bought a super famicom cartridge and during my summer vacation week inam playing it! Once i am done it will be MOTHER on my famicom!

POLA is now officially quirky as the rest of the team.


r/earthbound 22h ago

Help/Advice Una Ventura más

1 Upvotes

Voy a jugar Mother 3 con traducción de fans. He escuchado que el juego es bastante lineal en la historia. ¿Me recomiendan usar una guía o explorar todo el juego por mi cuenta, ya que no creo que llegue a perderme?