Mother 3 has long been praised as one of the best experiences on the Game Boy Advance, despite only ever being released in Japan. The Mother series even has such a dedicated western following that one group of devoted individuals buckled down and translated the entire game for other English-speaking fans. After years of being teased again and again, it appears that Mother 3 may finally be getting an official English launch through the Wii U Virtual Console.
NE: "EarthBound fans got lots of news in 2024, but a Mother 3 localization wasn't part of it. We talk whether it's possible with pros and cons."
Pro: More people getting to experience a game they weren't able to before.
Con: Hearing either Lucas or Ness yell "PK fire" ever again.
IGN writes: Mother 3 is one of the most hotly-desired RPGs ever, having never received an official translation in North America despite the cult popularity of its predecessor, Earthbound. But over all these years, series creator Shigesato Itoi has never weighed in on the discussion - at least until now."
A translated version of this game on Switch Online would be nice, and it would add a lot value to the Expansion Pak service.
I would love to see an Earthbound game just redone with 3D-ish models and characters. Just having a remaster for Switch Online would be awesome!
Did you ever see the Earthbound 64 concept/materials? That actually looked really good, but I'd also take a HD-2D remake as well.
Nintendo seems very whimsical about what they give they're fans, sometimes they'll give them a bone (e.g. Mario RPG, Thousand Year Door for the Switch), and other times, they just give them little to nothing (agh, the Zelda anniversary).
When you consider the cost of gaming back then and even now, no excuses when costs are involved.
From VGC: "Former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé has cautioned fans not to expect further releases in the Earthbound series in the near future.
Mother – or Earthbound, as it’s known in the West – saw its third instalment released on the Game Boy Advance in Japan over 15 years ago, but despite persistent requests from fan groups it has never received an official English release.
The Earthbound series received renewed attention in February after Nintendo announced that both Earthbound and its predecessor Earthbound Beginnings (aka Mother) would be added to Switch Online’s SNES and NES apps."
He would happily suggest buying a NFT of Ness though. Thank God he is a semi-retired mouthpiece.
Hopefully it comes with a name change.
Please make this happen Nintendo.
Already beat it. It's a really good game, but EB2 is better still.
One of the most underrated RPGs ever. This game is a true masterpiece and every gamer needs to experience it.
That thumbnail picture reminds me of how Fire Emblem: Rekka no Ken eventually got localized after Marth and Roy appeared in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Now Fire Emblem is a big hit for Nintendo in North America.
It would be a pretty cruel move by Nintendo to get Lucas in Brawl AND have an Mother/Earthbound announcement Miiverse community, only to have nothing come out of it.