Mother 3 Review

Info
Title:      Mother 3
System: Game Boy Advance (Nintendo)
Rating:  ?

Requirements
-Proficiency with the Japanese language
                       OR
-Fan translation (found here)

Story
Mother 3 is the sequel to the classic RPG "Earthbound". Mother 3 follows a young boy named Lucas, his brother Claus, and many others. The story begins on the Nowhere Islands. The islands know little of technology, and have no form of currency. However, tragedy strikes for Lucas, and soon the island is invaded by the mysterious Pigmask Army. It falls to Lucas and his allies to, of course, save the world.


Characters
The characters of Mother 3 are, not only well written, but subject to development and awesomeness. However, lets focus on the main party, and the main antagonist. Lucas begins the game as a timid child, yet as the years pass his trials force him to become braver. The Princess Kumatora is a tomboy with the tendency to act nothing like a princess. Duster is the oldest in the group, he is a trained thief, and limps on one leg. The last member of this ragtag group is Boney, Lucas' pet dog. Going up against these heroes, is a man named Fassad. Fassad is a cruel man, with a silly laugh ("Nwehehehe!"). He leads the Pigmask Army on the Nowhere Islands, and generally makes life difficult for everyone. Also notable is Fassad's love for eating bananas. 

Graphics
Mother 3 boasts the simple graphics of a simpler era. This is to be expect though, as it's an old game. However, as far as 16-bit graphics go, these look really good. Hal Laboratories seems to have put a lot of effort into creating a really vibrant world, and the backgrounds are proof of that. The character sprites are very minimalistic though (perhaps too much so for some people). However, even with these "archaic" graphics, the game does a very good job of creating memorable moments and beautiful scenes.

Sound
Being an older game, the music had it's limits, right? Wrong. This game's soundtrack is far more than a bunch of bleeps and bloops. The composition in Mother 3 is both wonderful, and strange. The tracks can be full of sorrow, adding to the emotion of a situation. It can be curious, as is the player as they encounter weird new things. The styles range from classically inspired, to jazzy, to something that wouldn't sound out of place at a Spanish dance festival.

Gameplay 
Like many role-playing games, Mother 3 uses an overhead camera as the players run around and fight enemies. Unlike most role-playing games, Mother 3 uses a turn based combat system that utilizes musical combo attacks. Sounds cool right? The way it works, is that each enemy has it's own "heartbeat". This is based on the beat of the combat music playing. If you do a melee attack, you are able to continuously beat on that enemy up to sixteen times in a single turn. However, you have to figure out it's heartbeat first, and even then it's difficult to get the full sixteen hit combo. This helps keep the player involved in combat, as well as making you feel like a musical virtuoso when you get that supreme combo. 

Conclusion
This is easily one of the best games I've ever had the luck to experience. Why luck? This game was sadly never released outside of Japan. However, through the use of the fan translation (linked above) the rest of the world gets a chance to play as well! Now, the wonderful translators did the really hard work for you. The other hard part, is finding a way to play it. I have faith that you can find a LEGAL way to get the game and play it though. It may be a little work to get the game ready to play, but it is WORTH IT. Mother 3 has a knack for toying with your emotions. One moment, you'll feel depressed as you watch the pain that the story puts these characters though. Next thing you know, you'll be filled with a feeling of triumph as you put it to those bad guys! Not to mention the quirky sense of humor interlaced within the story. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys a classic game, RPG lovers, and those who can't resist a truly masterful story.