Mother 3 is a game from 2006, headed by Shigesato Itoi, that is a loose sequel to Earthbound. One of its main themes is traumatic loss, and how people deal or don't deal with it. It has a storyline that is arguably critical of modernity, and uses money as the keystone for that critique. And it has a set of mysterious guardians of the plot tokens who are actually gender-ambiguous immortal people who look suspiciously like men in drag - which everyone is perfectly fine with. (There's actually a brief period where one of them ends up in your party. You can take them around to the townspeople, who are generally bemused but supportive.) It was only ever released in Japan, but a group of ridiculously dedicated fans translated it to English. You can find this translation patch and full instructions here. Strictly speaking, you don't actually need to know about Earthbound to play this game, but knowledge of Earthbound is useful for understanding a few bits of the lategame/endgame plot. My hands are not cooperating tonight, so I won't expand on this for now, but do any of you also like it?
although, I'm due for a replay, which probably my laptop will balk at, bluh. plus Mother 3 doesn't lend itself well to LPs, I find, so there's only 2 off the top of my head that I liked Spoiler: overly serious personal, as well as spoilers also I'd feel kind of uncomfortable playing it right now? it's very silly to say, but Porky feels too Trump-ish, and I'm kind of noping over it
OK, there's something I've observed from watching several people LP the game: Chapter 1 might not make sense to some people. Let me explain a bit (mild spoilers for chapter 1, although I've tried to minimize the amount of spoilering present): Spoiler The thing to know about Tazmily is that the townspeople had never suffered a loss before the death in chapter 1. Therefore, none of them have any coping mechanisms at all. Bronson is trying to soften the blow but has no idea how to do so, nobody else in that campfire scene has any experience in how to be present for someone who is grieving, Alec is trying to cover up his feelings by telling bad jokes, and Flint... well, Flint is of course beating up random animals in the woods.
Spoiler: personal headcanons and spoilers a headcanon that I am 1000% here for all time, forever is: the Masked Man being bros with all the chimera including the Ultimate Chimera, but really all of them especially the Dogfish, because it fucking hurts to think that he loves them but doesn't know why
BURSTS INTO THREAD yes hello Mother 3 is one of my favorite games I did a liveblog some years ago and I can't think of a lot of parts of the game without getting misty Friggin' Tanetane Island, man and the sunflower field and Hinawa I... I need a tissue. *sniffle*
ALSO. Has anyone else read The Notebook, by Agota Kristof? It's a tough read (lot of war themes, very disturbing), but Itoi definitely took inspiration from it for Mother 3. The Notebook is actually the first part of three, but from what I remember, the other two parts (The Proof and The Third Lie) have some connections as well. I'm probably due for a reread, I imagine I'll be able to handle it better emotionally, now that I'm a little older? College sophomore me had a rough time with it. There's a brief mention of it, here Also here (What have you done, @Vacuum Energy I'm all excitable now and want to talk too much.)
I read through my liveblog this afternoon and almost starting weeping at the last installment. Claus. :(
There is exactly one reason why this game isn't at the top if the list of 'fictional things that made me cry like a baby,' and the reason is Revolutionary Girl Utena. Other than that I can't remember anything other than personal tragedy making me cry so. Fucking. Hard. I'll discuss this more when at home and not poking at a iphone keypad but fucking Claus, man. I am not over that and literally never will be. My heart broke ten times when playing that game. I went through two separate areas (tanetane and the final dungeon) full sobbing. Spoiler: Final encounter Because battle isn't the right word. I remember the flavor text "Lucas doesn't know what to do" scrolling onto the screen and me, already weeping, shrieking "oh, LUCAS doesn't know what to do??? I'M SO FUCKING TERRIFIED" at a laptop in a dorm room with zero sound dampening and then weeping some more. Because I was so terrified of fucking up because I COULD NOT hurt Claus but he couldn't hear me and I was running out of psi power and wtf was I supposed to do???? This wasn't this fucking hard in the last game!!! Last game was heartwarming and I literally want to die right now!!!!
My favorite character is The Forgotten Man from Mother 1. Just because of how fucking eerie and distressing his whole deal is. In an NES game. They managed to make me feel awful about talking someone into suicide in an NES game.
