Mother 3

SNES-era rpg aficionados will remember Earthbound, the quirky modern-day semi-parody rpg with an advertising campaign that focused on gross-out humor. Earthbound was actually the second game in the Mother series, the first being the NES game that was eventually fan-translated as "Earthbound Zero." After several failed attempts at another sequel, Mother 3 finally came out for the Game Boy Advance, at the end of the system’s lifespan. It, too, was never officially translated, but fan translators came to the rescue again. (Also noteworthy: The game was made by Brownie Brown, who also did Sword of Mana and Magical Starsign.)

( A breakdown of systems and game elements without plot spoilers. )

Overall: If you liked Earthbound, if you don’t mind old-school jrpg conventions (limited inventory, RNG abuse, annoying difficulty if you don’t use cheat codes), and you want a story you can really get into, give this a go. And seriously, the fan translation really is excellent, among the best I’ve seen.

Mother 3 Plot Synopsis and Discussion

Mother 3 is a story about innocence lost. Also a story about a father spiraling into depression and his sons being forced to grow up too fast. And a story about sibling rivalry. And a commentary on modern society and rural versus urban life. And a condemnation of living in the past. And a Lovecraftian horror story. And a grand quest to retrieve the seven macguffins before the evil empire does. And a story about stories in general.

( But primarily, Mother 3 is a story about the end of the world. )