♫ MOTHER/EarthBound Beginnings: Game Over In my recent mission to apparently upload
for every semi-relevant holiday, I’ve prepared this video on the Queen’s Birthday. Celebrated in New Zealand for Queen Mary (er... Elizabeth II). Welcome to episode 17 of my Dark Aspects series-
where I uncover the more adult moments in the bottomless library of Nintendo’s family-friendly
games. I have a very special episode prepared today
because I’ve done it. During this period of isolation I’ve quelled
my greatest sin as a MOTHER fan and finally completed all of EarthBound Beginnings. I did buy and download the game when it first
released, but it always intimidated me… so it’s been sitting there like a Dust Ghost. Or the phantom of Miiverse haunting me... All I can say is- I’m thrilled to have made
the journey, wholly experiencing what provided the foundation for some of my favorite games
of all time. It’s inspiring that a Famicom title from
1989: (6) whole years before I was born could affect me this much. With that said, It’s about time I made a
Dark Aspect for the game. My EarthBound episode is the earliest video
you can watch on this channel- and I have a lot to thank for that first ever analytical
video. It’s admittingly a little embarrassing looking
back on, mostly my unwavering monotone, the poor quality footage and lack of polish (show
click footage) but I’ll always leave it up for memories. With the knowledge I have on the franchise
now though and having played the games several times over I wanted to not only redo the video
that helped this channel grow but cover all three of the games this time around. But the thing is… this is the Dark Aspects
of MOTHER we’re talking about. It’s going to be a big project spanning
several parts as the franchise, while it may not look it, holds some of the most mature
moments in Nintendo’s history. So let’s hop in a Phase Distorter and go
back in time to the late 80’s so I can explain myself. Wait, shoot--it’s all in Japanese. They didn’t release the game overseas at
the time... Okay, well, let’s just go forward again
to 2015 and play it on Wii U. The first official English release 26 years
later… MOTHER 1, localized as EarthBound Beginnings
stars not Ness, but Ninten! All right, the name “Ninten” is a little
silly- even though it’s cool the two characters do share a connection (“Ness” being an
anagram of SNES and who’s name comes from the OG Nintendo Entertainment System) and
Ninten... well yeah you get the idea. The novelization, written by Saori Kumi as
requested by Itoi himself, calls the character Ken, if you prefer--but it really doesn’t
matter as you can call him anything you want anyway. Inspired by The Legend of Zelda's Link, being
a "link" between the player and character on screen, I’ve just always named game protagonists
after myself. But for the purpose of discussing the series,
his name is Ninten. Getting past the naming screen I’ve always
loved how the opening sets the stage for the story, which is this game’s major selling
point and what I’ll be explaining now. In the early 1900’s, George and Maria, a
married couple living in the American countryside were abducted from their home. During this time away, Maria began raising
Giegue, an alien child destined to become a leader of the intergalactic army. While Maria started to love Giegue like her
own child, George especially took to the alien’s psionic powers, studying them without permission. Stealing this newfound information, George
somehow managed to escape back to Earth, where he continued his research in total isolation
while his wife never returned. 80 years have passed since then, when Giegue’s
presence is felt once again in strange phenomena across the country like poltergeists attacking
a boy’s house in Podunk. That boy is Nintnen--a descendent of George,
wielding PSI powers of his very own. Because of this, it’s understood that Ninten
is likely the key to saving this world from Gigue’s invasion. All of the games have supernatural horror
elements to them, but in the case of this one it’s surprising just how early on in
the game this occurs with a starting quest to find Pippi--a girl gone missing and last
seen in Podunk’s cemetery. The town’s graveyard is home to a great
many zombies, consisting of (according to the MOTHER Encyclopedia) soldiers killed in
action and martyred gangsters. Indeed, zombie gang leaders can be challenged,
but their scare factor was toned down considerably in localization. In the initial Japanese release, the mobster’s
cause of death can be discerned by what looks like several gunshot wounds. The censored enemies don’t stop there- any
hint of blood on their sprites were covered up--whether it’s dripping blood or just
a misconstrued red pixel on a lab coat. Cigarette smoking gang members and even...crows
kicked the habit, which would become a reflection of the author as Shigesato Itoi himself quit
in 2003. It was the same year the Japanese Game Boy
Advance port was released, retaining all these edits likely to appease the then new CERO
rating system. This is getting a little off topic, but Itoi
wrote a book about his experience quitting smoking, claiming to have (at most) smoked
80 cigarettes a day. That same MOTHER Encyclopedia features a somewhat
related blurb about one of the main characters too, Teddy. Teddy apparently realized his love for fighting
at age 5, switched from chocolate cigarettes to the real thing on his 10th birthday, and
found himself in a patrol car for the first time the following year. His favorite brand of cigarettes are called
“Horse Shit”, which had a real world equivalent sold in Mexico. Poor Teddy…in the game, he joins the party
to avenge his parents, killed by monsters in the mountains Giegue is attacking from. He was reportedly a gentle boy before the
incident, and we can infer that he became the leader of the Bla-Bla Gang (called Black
Blood Gang in Japanese) at the age of 14(!) as a result. I won’t go into much more detail using external
resources for backstory, but just know that he supposedly punched out the teeth of an
eyewear shop’s owner because they didn’t carry sunglasses. This “inspired” the shop owner to start
selling “TeddyGlass” named after his attacker. Anyway, getting back to the game, even the
Japanese script is a bit heavier. As an example, the ominous voice calling out
to Ninten’s party when wandering the haunted Rosemary Mansion is much more blunt. Less threatening but still worth mentioning
is a resident of Reindeer recalling a walk through the tunnel once when they were young. It was a trip made to see a dead body, which
is a clear shout-out to Stand By Me and the short story the film was based on. The reference is dropped completely in Beginnings. One exception to the Famicom version being
surprisingly less intense is the Merrysville surgeon Ben Casey. He was renamed “Old Sawbones Benny” for
the English release. And if that name didn’t deter you, the doc
(after healing everyone) tells the party to “go get hurt again and come back soon”
before giggling. If his service is refused, however, he’ll
morbidly respond with: “fine, die all on your own. I’ll phone a mortician”. What a harsh thing to tell a group of kids! Socially distancing from bitter physicians
and moving along to the desert, the party is left with little opportunity for conversation,
so they may find themselves chatting up a skeleton or two. One corpse says “I am just a pile of bones
now. I used to be a nice guy before”. It’s a quirk of all three games to be able
to converse with remains, and the associated text is usually silly but in this instance
it’s specifically a human that’s perished here. Another corpse used for a more serious matter
can be found on the railroad tracks- it warns Ninten and company to “get on the train,
or you will have a hard time like me”. Yikes! Lastly, while it’s probably not the best
time to be mentioning this, considering you know…our worldwide state of affairs…one
NPC expresses shock about someone dying from a cold before telling you there's a flu going
around. Then hacking away. A different character even outright says “Don’t
catch your death of cold”. Considering the many instances of Nintendo
writing around that word then and now, it’s surprising to see just how many times “die”
and “death” are uttered in this game. But moving past simple allusions to death,
the game treats it as a major theme, too. Getting back to Teddy when he’s recruited
near the end of the game, an unwinnable battle against a giant robot leaves the troubled
teen fatally wounded. Teddy can no longer assist the heroes in this
state, and his dialogue heavily implies that he won’t be able to survive the injuries. His doctor stays quiet, insisting Lloyd take
Teddy’s place in battle--with Teddy himself not speaking again. In the Japanese version, this was it. His story ended here, leaving his fate up
to interpretation. Only in the GBA port (which again, came out
in 2003, 11 years later) did Japanese fans receive closure in the form of an extended
ending outlying his recovery. Teddy was lucky but depending on how you play
the Flying Men won’t get a happy ending. These noble, humanoid creatures are found
within the realm of Magicant, marking their first appearance in the series as one of the
sadder aspects overall. Their supposed destiny is to offer unwavering
loyalty to Ninten, fighting alongside the cast should the player choose to recruit them. Unlike the main party, who’re always able
to be revived after falling from battle, the Flying Men can’t be brought back. Their death is permanent with each playthrough,
so carelessness on the player’s behalf--whether it's charging high level enemies or neglecting
to heal--carries an irreversible weight in guilt (unless you reset your save, but SOME
would be against the idea…). The MOTHER vocal album (which is sung in English,
a surprising choice I’m thankful for) has rather melancholic lyrics dedicated to the
Flying Men and their fleeting life. When the characters do fall in battle, they’re
buried under tombstones displaying inscriptions that range from heartfelt to horrifying. One reads “Ninten’s benevolent buddy,
The brave soldier, Flying Man, rests here in peace”. That’s quite sad, but others begin with
“to Ninten’s great sorrow'', or “To Ninten’s horror and dismay”. On the topic of Magicant, the place is a dream
land formed by the mind of Queen Mary, who is eventually revealed to be Maria--Ninten’s
Great-Grandmother and Giegue’s non biological mother. She’s a tragic figure who’s essentially
trapped herself in her own consciousness, an amnesiac in a state of limbo. She desperately tries to remember the lullaby
she used to sing to her adoptive son, but can’t--so in order to help fulfill the wish
that keeps her tethered to this land, Ninten is tasked with learning the 8 melodies that
make up the song. This is especially sad when considering the…
incomplete background music on the way to or from Magicant. If you listen carefully, the first few notes
are reminiscent of the 8 melodies Ninten’s been gathering, but it becomes dissonant and
broken up with pauses. This then, can be interpreted as Queen Mary
attempting to sing the lullaby, but falling short every time. There’s a permeating sadness that can be
felt throughout Magicant too--likely providing insight into the person who imagined it. For example, Ninten and co. can eventually
travel from their world to this one and back again at their leisure, but when the player
wants to leave for the first time, there’s a strange exchange Ninten must endure with
a man who claims to be “forgotten”. He asks Ninten to ignore him, and that the
boy’s kindness towards him is confusing. He can’t miss people, because if he starts
now, he won’t be able to continue living alone anymore and that’s all the man’s
ever known. You have to agree to ignore this man so that
he’ll vanish--allowing Ninten to pass back into the real world. It’s an ordeal that (while strange) leaves
you feeling rather empty... and considering Maria’s connection to Magicant… this is
quite probably a deep-rooted feeling inside of her. Everything from the cat swimming in the ground
to the pairs of eyes attacking make up some part of her being, so it’s interesting to
imagine what exactly he’s representing. It uh…looks like I’m starting to turn
into a forgotten man too (better check my audience retention…) so join me back in
reality by catching Dark Aspects of MOTHER part 2, where I’ll be exploring the game’s
emotional ending before diving into some more of what contributed to the higher age rating--like
getting arrested for underage drinking. Dark Aspects of Nintendo! We SHALL meet again! Dark Aspects #18 - EarthBound Beginnings/MOTHER
(Part 2): This is episode 18 of my Dark Aspects series
and the second part in my coverage of EarthBound Beginnings. Last time, I discussed the game’s fascination
with death, using it unabashedly as a means for storytelling. In this video I’ll be giving some more examples
of that sentiment as seen towards the end of the game--but first following the plot
linearly to look at even more censorship, weighty themes and few candidates for that
higher age rating. To begin, there’s a handful of censored
enemies I didn’t bring up last time but are still worth mentioning--the first being
Teddy with his confiscated knife during the one-on-one fight with Ninten (which is funny,
because he can still equip them otherwise). More interesting though are the female robots
Nancy, Kelly, and Juana. The original Japanese sprites are by no means
crude, but America is easily offended so what could be construed as nipples (I think that’s
the first time I’ve used that word in a video) are shadowed out. EarthBound Beginnings localizer Phil Sandhop
himself assures us that he personally has nothing against nipples, but says this in
regard to the change: “they are robots and carry no function other than to suggest female-ness. Smoothing down the ol' sheet metal sounded
like it would be easier and look better than having them wear a top." This is an unrelated but cool fact: these
robots were actually re-named for the English version in honor of lead staff members on
the project. One of the scarier encounters (besides this
hotel worker revealing himself to be a Starman) is that of the Fugitive accompanied by a Rope
he likely used as a means for escape from…wherever he was being held prisoner. In fact, many of these enemies look arguably
more sinister than the creatures of EarthBound do (if they aren’t the hilarious bear). Okay, I want this image on a T-shirt right
now... The surprise factor of random encounters sometimes
works to further fear as well--enemy sprites didn’t start appearing in the overworld
until the sequel, so like any JRPG of its time, you truly never know what’s coming
next. This game doesn’t feature battle backgrounds
either, settling instead on a static black screen, so in some ways (while likely an inadvertent
choice due to hardware restrictions) there’s an added sense of discomfort--paired with
the music, these trippy sequences in the later two games can be unsettling, but utter darkness
speaks for itself and until party members start joining you the game’s starting areas
feels…lonely. Speaking of loneliness, remember the Forgotten
Man I mentioned in the last video? Well, don't. He’s supposed to be forgotten. Let’s instead think of a different vanishing
act from an individual that may very well be a ghost. This girl in Spookane proposes three hints
for $1000 each. If you decline her offer like I did, the girl
disappears without explanation. Nothing too noteworthy but I wasn’t expecting
this at all so it certainly felt at least a little eerie. Getting back on track, passing back into reality
for the first time from Magicant takes Ninten to Merrysville, home of the aforementioned
Sawbones Benny, where a lady expresses her distaste in the Duncan Enterprises’ plan
to build a strip-joint in town. One other mention of a “strip-theater”
under construction in MOTHER was removed entirely, but the fact this reference wasn’t changed
into a “strip-mall” or something for Beginnings is fairly surprising. A description that was censored is that of
abuse, found in the town’s elementary school. In EarthBound Beginnings, a student says:
“The gym teacher made me do extra push-ups again. I’d rather do sit-ups though.” In MOTHER, the child says something very different
instead: “the gym teacher hit me. Maybe I should drop out and become a thug…”
this theme of writing around child abuse would be seen later in the series with EarthBound
and a certain major character... Speaking of totally innocent children, further
along in the game is the unsettling Youngtown. Since the party first met Ana back in Snowman,
it’s been rumored that her missing mother was last seen here, with other whispers of
adults traveling to Youngtown and never returning. What’s worse is that many are unaware there’s
a problem at all--while those concerned have no way of knowing what’s happened. Standard visitation isn’t possible after
all, with the train indefinitely out of commission by way of the broken track. So when the party makes the dangerous trek
here by foot in hopes of a reunion, optimism soon crumbles away when it is confirmed that
all the adults have disappeared. Youngtown is the second farthest from the
others on the map, isolated more so by the travel suspension, so no one knows these kids
are suffering all on their own. Of course, in following the plot it is presumed
their parents were abducted by Gigue’s army, which is verified at the end of the game. It isn’t stated why exactly they’re being
held captive in tubes--their purpose in MOTHER 3 is specifically brainwashing, but regardless
this unsavory idea is a theme present in every game. Getting back to the kids, they’re obviously
a bit traumatized and unsure of just what to do. The town is overgrown with weeds and unkempt
foliage like the millions of abandoned Animal Crossing towns throughout the years. The kids try to appear strong in conversation
but many of them do so in between sobbing, wanting Ninten and co. to hold them, which
is sad. The party (still being kids themselves) are
the only reassurance these younger children have, but this is just a stop in their adventure. The gang has to pass through, they can’t
save them yet--so it’s anyone’s guess as to just how long these kids are left alone. Lightening the mood a bit, in the next town
over a woman offers to buy Ninten a drink (specifically a beer in Tomato’s translation)
at the Live House, because he’s cute. Answering no will have her chastise the party
for being worried about cops, while “yes” will result in said cops coming in to arrest
everyone for being underage. Though the adult that bought you the drinks
is okay? Talk about corruption--what do you know? A relevant theme present yet again in all
three games. Another music fan at the Live House warns
about the repercussions for peeking in the back room to the left of the stage. Ignoring this, the person inside will scold
you to get out of their dressing room, calling Ninten a pervert in Mato’s translation. Speaking of, it’s clearer in MOTHER that
this NPC is a peeping Tom. He can be caught looking through the window
of a house that isn’t his, claiming to be studying baths (interior architecture in EarthBound
Beginnings) for a university project. Crime is clearly rampant in the bigger cities
all throughout this game--it’s especially prominent in Reindeer, and… well where we
got arrested. Valentine, localized as Ellay. You heard that right--L.A. spelled out as
a nod to real-life Los Angeles. The secret isolated lab located past the western
Look-Out Tower has a group of scientists wanting to try out “Strawberry Tofu”. One of them will give Ninten “Swear Words”
in exchange, a usable item in battle causing the party member to “curse out” the enemy. All that’s really read is “I hate you”,
but the implication that an adult taught the children bad words is still there. A little unrelated, but when creator Shigesato
Itoi tried strawberry tofu in real life for the first time, he described the desert as
having a “profound, saddening flavor” which I find hilarious and is probably my
favorite Itoi related thing, ever. With all these lesser details out of the way
though, I am going to now start talking about major plot spoilers that finish up the game
so be warned if you’ve been a bad fan like me and have put the game off this long. Found on the journey up Mt. Itoi on route
to Giegue is a robot guardian named Eve. Now Eve was created by George to protect Ninten
and his friends when the time came, likely set as a countermeasure for when Giegue’s
race would inevitably return. Even though Eve is just a machine, her sacrifice
against an equally powerful robot is...mournful. Her scraps provide the sixth melody not far
from the summit, where the final piece of the song Ninten can collect is located. That would be George’s grave site, which
allows the boy to communicate with his ancestor. Being in contact with the spirit of Ninten’s
great-grandfather through Eve and then directly listening to his speech is heartfelt--perfectly
setting up the emotional ride that is this game’s ending. Presenting what’s gathered of the song to
Queen Mary back in Magicant, she is finally able to fully recite it. As this was what kept her spirit unable to
pass on, the country of Magicant, which essentially acted as her purgatory, begins to dissipate
with her singing until she’s able to reunite with her husband in the afterlife. That means all of Magicant’s inhabitants
(while only a mirage born from Maria’s mind were very real to Ninten)--are wiped from
existence and can never be visited again. Waking up at George’s gravesite with the
summit entrance now opened, the sole remaining task is to finally confront Giegue, now appearing
by mothership. As with every final boss in the MOTHER series,
brute force can’t be used to win (or any physical force at all for that matter). The only way to win is to sing back the melodies
that kept Maria in limbo--the song his human mother used to sing to him as a baby. Ever since George stole information that can
be used against the alien race (presumably PSI), Giegue was made to invade Earth and
eradicate the threat to his people. It can be discerned that this isn’t what
Giegue truly wants though--in a twist of fate he offers to spare Ninten, and Ninten alone
as he owes “a great deal” to the boy’s family line, but when the last link to his
beloved mother refuses to join forces, he must proceed with the plan of destroying humankind. Still gravely missing his mother however,
and overcome with feelings of sentiment and nostalgia in the form of her lullaby, Gigue
is ultimately defeated by the power of a mother’s love he’ll never be able to get back. This causes his eventual retreat…with a
vow to return once again. I shall return once again as well--that’s
it for Dark Aspects of EarthBound Beginnings, but there’s still two whole games in the
franchise to cover. I do have a few unrelated projects uploading
before then, but join me in the next Dark Aspects episode for a remake of my first video
on the SNES/Super Famicom classic, then again for the finale focusing on MOTHER 3 for GBA. Thank you all for watching, I’ll see you
when Giegue (or Giygas) strikes back. Dark Aspects #21 - EarthBound/MOTHER 2 (Part
I) It’s been a little while everyone, but welcome
to episode 21 of Dark Aspects--a series where I talk about the adult content hidden within
“family friendly” video games. This multi-part remake of my earliest video
on the channel will talk about everything scary, shocking, and suggestive in the English
localization of EarthBound, looking at all the censorship and changes made to the game
from its original Japanese release (known as MOTHER 2), with information primarily pulled
from Clyde Mandelin’s Legends of Localization book. With strict content policies and ratings board
guidelines to follow, how far was Nintendo of America able to go in preserving this game’s
mature themes, and creator Shigesato Itoi’s original script? Let’s talk about how even after a great
deal of revisions, this game we got in the west is considered to be one of the darkest
Nintendo’s ever produced. A couple of ground rules (I guess) before
we start: to make comparing the games less confusing, I won’t be using EarthBound and
MOTHER 2 interchangeably. So when I say “EarthBound,” I’m referring
specifically to the English release. When I say “MOTHER 2”, then, I’m talking
about the original Japanese version. Also, much like the name change from Giegue
to Giygas between the first and second game, “Pokey” is how “Porky” was localized
into English. They are the same character, but I will use
“Pokey” when referring to EarthBound, and “Porky” in the context of its sequel. WIth all that out of the way, let’s begin! Part I: Violence & Villainy The first topic of today is EarthBound’s
exploration of dysfunctional families. It’s no secret that Pokey, the second-hand
to Giygas and the primary antagonist of the sequel, lived in an abusive household. In MOTHER 2, Pokey’s father punishes him
and his brother off screen for coming home late, which plays a violent sound effect (revealed
after to have been spankings) when Pokey complains about his butt hurting. In EarthBound, the sound was edited to seem
less harsh—instead of physical correction, it emulates yelling. This is affirmed when Pokey whines instead
about his father telling him he can’t have dessert for the rest of the decade. That’s not the only time EarthBound censors
abuse though--later on in the game, Tony warns Jeff that if he gets caught sneaking out of
Winters Snow Wood Boarding School, he’ll “be punished big time.” This was changed from MOTHER 2’s line, where
he instead warns that “if you get caught, you’ll get a paddling.” So after getting smacked or yelled at (depending
on the version), Pokey’s mother Lardna claims her husband is “much too lenient with the
children”, wishing she’d punish the kids more and becomes “fed up with how generous
to a fault” he is, in reference to their lending the protagonist (Ness’) family money. Lardna continues to insult Pokey until the
very end of the game, calling him a pig of a son when he goes missing. In MOTHER 2, his father even verbally abuses
him, spending his time drinking at the bar without his wife knowing, and instead of looking
for his son. Their family fractures even further when Lardna
starts seeing a new man—in MOTHER 2, his name can figuratively mean lover-boy or stud,
so in EarthBound he’s known as Mr. Prettyman. And according to the Japanese script, his
parents are still married at this point. Lardna is cheating on her husband, and Aloysius
is off somewhere getting wasted. It’s worth mentioning that all alcohol in
MOTHER 2 was either removed (like these human enemies “grumbling about today’s youth”
instead of “blathering drunkenly”), or replaced with coffee and coffee-related beverages
(like espressos) to lessen EarthBound’s age rating. But it’s in name only as anyone with a “caffeine
buzz” is holding what still clearly looks like a mug of beer, complete with flushed
faces and dialogue-interrupting hiccups. Compared to Pokey’s home life, Ness’ is
much tamer, though it’s far from ideal. His mom is great but from what we’re shown,
she’s raising Ness and his sister all on her own. While his dad sends money his way (a LOT of
money)--he’s simply not there. It’s a joke in the fandom that Ness’ dad
is a phone (which the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate team is clearly aware of), because
like Ninten’s father, the only way to communicate with him is by calling. Though in EarthBound Beginnings, he at least
makes an appearance after the credits! As we’ll see another example of in a bit,
and all throughout my Dark Aspects videos, neglectful or absent fathers is a common theme
throughout the MOTHER series--which was partially inspired by Itoi’s deep personal regret
of not being entirely present throughout his daughter’s childhood. Moving south of Winters, we’re eventually
introduced to Jeff’s father, Dr. Andonuts, who (as you can guess) is a neglectful and
very...aloof parent to say the least. He hasn’t seen Jeff in about 10 years, and
when they first meet, he seems to have forgotten all about him. It’s obvious that he is a scientist before
he is a father. Towards the end of the game, when Ness is
asked to activate the Phase Distorter required to confront Giygas, the player can refuse
which will have Andonuts ask his son instead. When Jeff says no, his father will be disappointed
that he’s lost his “nerve.” in MOTHER 2, he’ll outright call Jeff a
wuss instead! Keep in mind, this is immediately following
a major display of braveness when the party has their “brain programs” surgically
transferred to the shells of robots because their bodies would’ve been destroyed in
the time traveling process. I’m getting ahead of myself though, so going
back in time ourselves from this point, I’d like to speak about the early game again with
the Onett police force. After Ness “trespasses” to confront the
first Your Sanctuary boss, and requests access to the next town over, Captain Strong orders
his team to face off against the boy. These cops aren’t implied to have been brainwashed,
they just want to fight a kid. They also love to complain and are useless
in general--Ness is the one to take care of the local gang problem while they simply block
off roads. I’m not going to say too much more about
this, but corrupt cops are unfortunately entirely relevant in our world today, as they are in
Eagleland. While speaking about the abuse of power, the
boss of Burglin Park, Everdred informs Ness that Paula, the second party member and girl
he’s been looking for has been kidnapped by cultists as a planned sacrifice. But why does this crime lord care so much
about a little girl’s safe return? In MOTHER 2, it’s made much more obvious
that he’s actually tied to the crime, revealing that he lent out the cabin Paula’s being
held at to the kidnappers. When she is eventually saved, Everdred will
be relieved, giving the two of them a $10,000 wad of cash. In EarthBound, it isn’t clearly explained
why he gives them 10 grand, but it makes much more sense in MOTHER 2. The stack of bills is implied to have been
the money he was paid for renting out his cabin in the first place. So this was likely done out of remorse--he
gifted them the money to clear his conscience. As for the cultists themselves practicing
“Happy Happyism”, they were modified because the localizers were concerned they looked
too similar to the Ku Klux Klan’s robes and hoods. There was further concern that the H’s featured
on their foreheads could be mistaken as K’s due to the small sprite size. While on the topic, it was confirmed by head
localizer Marcus Lindblom that “Threek” was changed to “Threed” because again,
there was fear that the name could be misconstrued as Three K when spelled out, giving a KKK
acronym. If human sacrifices weren’t enough, let’s
continue this theme of violence with the game’s combat. One of the funny things about EarthBound is
that back in 1995 when it first released, reviewers were hounding the game for how utterly
non-violent it was. But in battle, while these are static sprites
and everything happening is explained through text, Ness is still made to bash animals and
people turned hostile by Giygas’ influence with a baseball bat. Nothing is killed, mind you, they are either
tamed or reverted back to normal, but imagining these fights playing out in real time is certainly
no “romp in a McDonald’s playland.” One part of the game that still relies on
imagination but more directly depicts a brutal exchange is that of Prince Poo--the fourth
and final party member’s--Mu training (inspired by The Chinese Tale of a Prodigal Young Man
and the Hermit). Meditating upon a high cliff and ignoring
all worldly distractions will activate a sequence in which the spirit of Poo’s ancient lineage
appears as an apparition. It will ask to tear off the boy’s limbs
(starting with his arms and legs) so they can be fed to the crows. The player must answer “yes” for each,
taking away Poo’s total health with each body part that’s removed. And to make this scene even more immersive
(and disturbing), when the spirit rips off Poo’s ears, the audio cuts out completely. The music and selection sound FX gone. His eyes are taken next, which causes the
screen to fade to black. The only thing that’s left is his mind,
but even that’s surrendered as the final test. While this training seems terrifying, it is
all illusionary and it isn’t senseless mind torture. There are several interpretations as to why
Poo must endure this--perhaps it’s for absolute clarity. To prove his devotion, and to focus on his
goal with zero distractions. Maybe it's preparation--the need to persist
through pain for his long journey ahead. A trial to transcend his earthly tethers? Whatever the case may be, it’s an unforgettable
introduction to his unbreakable character. My other favorite segment of the game comes
from the sprawling city of Fourside. Along with the children a certain recurring
artifact arrives in this grandiose place: The Evil Mani Mani statue (or, as it’s called
in Japan, the Mani Mani Devil). It’s implied to be endued with some of Giygas’s
powers, harboring a hypnotizing allure that causes those susceptible (such as Mr. Carpainter)
to become malevolent and act out in strange ways (like establishing the Happy Happyist
cult). The statue is passed along throughout the
adventure--its strong influence guiding many of the situations Ness and co. must resolve. One of which being the entrapment of Ness
and Jeff in a seemingly alternate dimension: a warped reality known as Moonside. It’s essentially a brain-melting, mirrored
version of Fourside forever in the veil of night, made up of these flashing neon colors. The music is dissonant and twisted, the inhabitants
speak in incoherent, disconcerting ways--it’s an unsettling place to escape from, which
is only possible by destroying the source. When the devil statue is dispatched, it’s
revealed that Moonside was a hallucination--all of its events taking place in the storage
room of Boris’ Bar, err… Jackie’s Cafe. The Mani Mani statue isn’t the only allusion
to demons in this game, but I’ll be continuing the discussion in the next episode on Dark
Aspects of EarthBound. We’ll go over the many ways death and dying
have been censored for the English release, along with a look at the more suggestive themes--all
leading to the final confrontation with Giygas. Thank you all for watching, I’ll see you
then! Welcome all to the next episode in my Dark
Aspects of MOTHER series, and the second video comparing the English localization of EarthBound
to its original Japanese release (MOTHER 2). If you haven’t seen the previous episode
yet--delving into the game’s depictions of violence--I recommend watching that first. For everyone else though, make sure to grab
a Hawk Eye from the Scaraba Pyramid gift shop so we can delve a little deeper into the darkness. Part II: Death & Demons It’s time to get a little macabre--as today
I’m going to be exploring all references to dying, death, and demons in MOTHER 2, and
how much of that was retained in the English release. Early on in the game, we’re introduced to
Buzz Buzz (the bee that’s...not a bee), sent from the future to warn Ness of a timeline
in which Giygas succeeds in plunging all into the darkness of Hell (rephrased as eternal
darkness for EarthBound). Despite his appearance, the flying insect
is actually very adept in PSI, protecting the party from this Starman Junior--a hired
assassin sent by Giygas. But while Buzz Buzz survives this attempt
on his life, imminent demise is inevitable when Pokey’s mom, Lardna, mistakes him for
a toilet fly or dung beetle. “Die and go to hell!” She screams in MOTHER 2 as she smashes his
guts out. In EarthBound, any references to his dying
is replaced with euphemisms like “passing on,” but nevertheless, he leaves this world--existing
now as just another memory in Ness’ mind. Which is a place we can actually visit! Buzz Buzz’s tombstone can be spotted later
in Magicant--a realm created inside Ness’ head he’s able to access, having stood in
each of the eight power spots of the Earth. Everything we see here is a reflection of
Ness’ own past memories and self, which is why it looks so different to the Magicant
explored in MOTHER 1. According to series creator Shigesato Itoi,
everyone has their own Magicant--Ness’ just happens to be especially scary. Itoi then suggests that’s perhaps that’s
what it’s like inside his own head: “I mean, I’m a pretty cheerful guy myself on
the outside, but who knows what I’m like on the inside.” So how messed up is Ness’ Magicant exactly? Honestly, not very, at least when compared
to the likes of The Place of Emptiness (Mu), Moonside, and even Threed (which we’ll get
to in a bit)--but there are some unsettling occurrences to find here. In general, the dramatic shifts in color are
very...surreal with a geometry consisting of abstract shapes and objects. There’s talking snowmen who’ve long since
melted away in reality but thrive in Ness’ subconscious. We can also speak with a younger Ness we no
longer have time to play with, secondary antagonist Pokey in a more vulnerable state of mind,
and defeated enemies expressing the pain they still feel from Ness wounding them (likely
representing a sort of repressed guilt). Things get more dangerous when venturing deeper
into Ness’ headspace, but thankfully assistance is available in the form of the Flying Men
(these bird-like creatures representing our protagonist’s courage) returning from MOTHER
1. They are optional but can be recruited to
fight alongside Ness in battle, with the morally gray catch that once they perish in combat,
they can’t be revived. There are five Flying Men in total, all optimistic
and eager in aiding Ness on his quest...at first. When their numbers start dwindling, the Flying
Men will warn Ness (and by extension, the player) to be more careful, telling him not
to treat their kind like trash. When there’s only one remaining, he’ll
scold Ness--telling him that what he’s doing isn’t courageous, it’s desperation. The first two gravestones properly honor the
felled Flying Men buried there, but the last three feature lazier and lazier inscriptions
to the point where the final tombstone simply reads “tombstone.” It’s a different approach to the remorse
Ninten so clearly felt for all who were lost in EarthBound Beginnings, but this is effective
in that it’s sad to imagine Ness having a harder time remembering the Flying Men individually,
and the importance of their sacrifice as they die out one-by-one. Buzz Buzz and the Flying Men, then, are the
only cases in which a character indisputably dies on screen--any other instance is merely
implied. Such is the case with Everdred, that crime
boss I mentioned in the last video, who also has a place in Ness’ memory. Well before his final appearance, but after
he sends the kids off with a stack of cash as repentance, he’s seen keeled over in
a back alley of Fourside surrounded by a crowd of concerned civilians. They all comment on him as if he’s about
to die, which seems to be confirmed when he recites what’s known in Japanese culture
as a “death poem.” Everyone is mortified, stepping aside in shock
when he simply gets up and walks away following his speech. Fun fact: this sequence actually left the
biggest impression on Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto when he played through MOTHER 2--he
claimed the NPC’s reactions in this scene felt very natural and he praised the game’s
obvious expressiveness. It’s hinted that Everdred staggered away
to die off screen, but in both versions it’s left vague as to whether or not he actually
did. There’s a couple of townsfolk in Twoson
that will gossip about what happened to him, but their dialogue doesn’t exactly clear
things up. In MOTHER 2, one of the two colorfully reassures
us that even if he is dead, “he’ll always be watching over us from hell.” Everdred does have an unused ghost sprite
found within the game’s data, so if you aren’t convinced he was a planned fifth
party member at one point, this sprite could support those in favor of his grim fate. Staying in Fourside but shuffling over to
the Monotoli building, we learn that the sneaky and selfish Pokey actually selflessly gave
a gift to his maid, Electra. That’s “selflessly” with an asterisk,
as unsurprisingly, this exchange wasn’t entirely innocent--in MOTHER 2, she explains
that when Pokey handed it over, he said “meido no miyage”, which (according to Clyde Mandelin’s
Legends of Localization book) can potentially mean “a gift for a maid”, but is also
an old phrase meaning something like “this will be a good memory for when you die and
go to hell.” Electra recognizes the dual interpretation
and shrugs it off as a joke mixing Japanese proverbs with English. It’s a dark “joke” for sure, that was
unfortunately but understandably lost in EarthBound’s localization, as was any mention of Hell (if
you couldn’t already tell). As a last example, slumping over to the department
store with Jeff’s soul in tow, one of Giygas’ lackeys suddenly abducts Paula and seizes
control of the building. In MOTHER 2, this alien tells the boys to
“Die, and go to hell… No, go to heaven!” Even though this same line in EarthBound was
censored to remove the mention, I personally prefer the phrasing: “You will be gone,
and you’ll be burning in… Well, you’ll go to heaven!” One example of this type of censorship not
working, however, is a Happy Happyist Cultist that tells Ness “there’s no salvation
for non-believers! Die and go to hell!” In EarthBound, like “eternal darkness”
but less cool, the cultist’s words are replaced with “to eternity with you.” There is a seperate cultist who tells Ness
“don’t go to heaven!” as a roundabout way of saying go to hell, but this interestingly
isn’t a case of censorship--the line is exactly the same between both versions. Taking a Grey Hand Bus back to Onett, the
town’s hospital is named “Yabu'' in MOTHER 2, which is the Japanese word for “bush”,
but is also slang for “quack doctor,” implying that all the staff inside are frauds. The name was translated literally in EarthBound,
so the initial joke was lost, but this is a prime example of why I love the writing
of the MOTHER series--a particular name or line of dialogue may seem nonsensical but
Itoi is careful with his words so it likely has some sort of greater purpose. That joke is innocent on its own, but things
get morbid with one sign inside reading “‘Tombstone Blow-out Sale’ We have a special discount
for those who have passed on in this hospital. What would you like written on your tombstone? Onett Hospital Surgery Team.” The line was similar in MOTHER 2, but has
actually been revised in every Japanese rerelease of the game. Clyde (or Mato) suggests that this text was
either a problem for Japan’s new rating board (the Computer Entertainment Rating Organization,
CERO), or that Itoi himself thought the original line was in poor taste. In the last video, I mentioned MOTHER 2’s
Mani Mani Devil boss becoming the Evil Mani Mani for EarthBound, but there are a few other
instances of the word “devil” in the script being changed, because the localization team
was made to remove them. In MOTHER 2, Fourside’s mayor Monotoli suddenly
rose to power by deliberately making a deal with the devil. In EarthBound, he instead made an exchange
with a “pure evil entity.” Strangely enough, in the case of enemy names
“demon” seems to be a suitable replacement for devil--the Hermit Devil for example became
the Squatter Demon, while the Devil Rafflesia was changed to Demonic Petunia. Then there’s “Devil Kiss”, and its stronger
variant, “Deep Devil Kiss” renamed to “Kiss of Death”, and “French Kiss of
Death' respectively. I think the localization choice was really
clever, but isn’t it at least a little suggestive to have a big pair of lips with this naming
scheme? One apparent exception to the accepted use
of “demon” though is the Magicant boss “Ness’ Demon”, having been changed to
“Ness’ Nightmare”. This censorship is all the more surprising
when considering one very important mention of “devil” that remained untouched in
English: the Devil Machine containing Giygas himself. We’re getting ahead of ourselves though,
so backtracking to the not-quite-as-scary Threed (acting as an equivalent to the original
MOTHER’s town of Halloween), we have a literal ghost town filled with ghouls, ghasts, and
goons alike. There’s zombies called zombies and ghosts
called zombies (for some reason) featuring horrifying artwork from the official manuals. The color palette of this haunted circus town
incorporates stark purples and greens paired with vivid shades of pinks and reds. Like Happy Happy Village, it works to paint
a grim atmosphere...escalated when Ness and Paula find themselves captured, knocked unconscious
and imprisoned beneath the graveyard. How did they find themselves in this predicament? Well, after having their souls stared into
by a pair of zombies, a scantily clad woman being ogled by a local can be found loitering
outside Threed’s hotel. When followed inside, the music becomes distorted
and this apparent lady of the night leads the kids into an upstairs bedroom, where they’re
ambushed by these creatures of the night. It’s an odd and slightly provocative sequence,
but it serves as the perfect segway into Dark Aspects of EarthBound’s finale, where I’ll
look at the more sensual themes this game snuck in before confronting the violent, fearful,
and sexual inspiration behind Giygas as one of the darkest villains from Nintendo’s
history. Thank you all, and I’ll see you then! This is the third and final part in my analysis
for Dark Aspects of EarthBound. Each episode so far has centered on a different
way the game explores mature themes. Violence & Villainy, Death & Demons--now,
I’m going to briefly discuss a few examples of sexual themes, before wrapping up this
series with the amalgamation of all three topics: the evocative, evil & erotic inspiration
behind Giygas. Part III: Suggestive & Sensual When it comes to overall differences between
the English localization of EarthBound and the original Japanese version (MOTHER 2),
the most well known change is that of Ness when he’s exploring Magicant. In western releases, he wears pajamas, but
in MOTHER 2, he’s completely nude. Why the cover-up censorship? Well, it can be chalked up to cultural differences--this
isn’t very shocking in Japan, where nudity is accepted in family-friendly media as it’s
commonly used to portray and is associated with purity. As Magicant is a personal journey--a world
created inside Ness’ mind he must conquer to unlock his greatest potential, it makes
sense he’s fully exposed both figuratively and literally. In MOTHER 2, his naked-Ness is used once for
comedic effect though: one of the female NPCs calls him a pervert, a line which was of course
changed for EarthBound since his sprite’s been changed from a birthday suit to jammies. Funnily enough, the official EarthBound strategy
guide still has him talking to his family au naturel, suggesting this pajama censorship
happened further along in development. On the topic of nudity but putting our backpack
back on, let’s head outside of our head and over to Twoson. At the end of EarthBound, Ness can visit the
mother of Venus (that famous singer who performed in Fourside, for some very over-enthused fans). Her mom will explain that a book of photographs
featuring her daughter is coming out soon, so she hopes Venus will keep her clothes on
for it. In MOTHER 2 however, it’s not just a worry--her
mom explicitly states that “apparently they’re going to publish a photo book of her...in
the nude.” That’s hard to Top...olla, but one of my
favorite adult jokes in the game has an easily missable line given by the Hint Man when visiting
Summers for the first time. He’ll point Ness and Co. in the right direction
by telling them (quote) “try placing a call to the Strip...ooops! Sorry, I mean the Stoic Club.” This blatant reference to strip clubs left
in both EarthBound Beginnings and EarthBound was always really surprising to me. The line is essentially the same in Japanese,
but it was revised in rereleases where the word isn’t quite finished though still implied. Funnily enough, instead of “ooops!” he
stops himself with another linguistic filler: “errr…”. So now he doesn’t outright say strip, but
this verbal trickery sounds really close to “stripper” so it was a great way to save
the joke without removing it. There are many more risqué references to
be found in the script (so many they could honestly fill out the rest of this video),
but I’m going to stop there as I think I got the point across and there’s still a
lot to cover with Giygas. So if you are interested in the rest of the
crude and lewd humor this game slips past the radar, I will be reserving it all for
a separate video as a sort of spin-off. So please look out for that in the future. Meanwhile in the present, the...past calls...so
let’s not keep Giygas waiting. Part IV: Giygas With everything I’ve looked at so far, it’s
obvious the game has pushed boundaries in many different ways--thoroughly tackling these
adult topics. EarthBound is a mature game that appears innocuous. It manages to be accessible to anyone of any
age while harboring many intense undertones. Giygas is the embodiment of evil, but also
of that sentiment--he’s a fearful final encounter as is, made even more disturbing
when factoring in the deeper connotations (CAH-NAH-TAY-SHUNS). Throughout EarthBound, Giygas is mentioned
by name only. His evil influence (helped spread by means
of the Mani Mani statue) is what causes the animals and people of the game world to become
hostile. He attacks indirectly from an unspecified
time in the past, which is where the chosen four must now go. However, like I started mentioning in the
first video, the kids must have their “brain programs” or “spirits” transferred into
the shells of robots, so that their bodies won’t be demolished in the process of time
travel. Threed was a unique location in that during
the zombie invasion, the party could not leave until the threat was resolved. It’s the same case here, but once the Phase
Distorter is entered it’s truly a point of no return. Ness and co. cannot go back to the present unless Giygas
is defeated, and even then it’s not guaranteed. The entire scene is chilling, when even Dr.
Andonuts struggles to relay this information, but things become truly bleak when first stepping
out into the Cave of the Past. Walking as mechanical husks through desolate
caverns, to the sound of a foreboding background track at arms with the strongest enemies of
the game is a perfectly haunting buildup to Giygas’ lair. Everything seems so cold and lifeless here,
which makes it all the more surprising when the palette of greys is suddenly made up of
fleshy colors, as the party walks across what seems like organic, pulsating tubes. They all lead to The Devil’s Machine, an
indeterminate instrument housing Giygas in his now unruly state of being. According to Pokey, Giygas can no longer think
rationally, and he isn’t aware of what he’s doing anymore. It seems that along with Giygas’ mind, his
body has destroyed itself too--distorting greatly from his original appearance in EarthBound
Beginnings...into this. It’s when The Devil’s Machine (interestingly
displaying the face of Ness or perhaps Ninten) is turned off, that all Hell breaks loose. Giygas’ incomprehensible form encompasses
the entirety of the screen. It terrifies even Pokey, describing what he’s
unleashed as a “bizarre dimension”. During the fight, Giygas will begin spouting
what seems like nonsense. He’ll repeat Ness’ name again and again
and again. “I feel… g… o… o… d...” he’ll say immediately after telling
you he’s sad. It’s contradictory, it’s frenetic, and
like Itoi when he wrote these lines, they never fail to genuinely send a chill down
my spine. But is it really all just unintelligible? Giygas’ mind did de-rail, but is there a
greater meaning behind what he’s saying? Yes, absolutely. And thankfully, while there has been a lot
of misinformation on the topic spreading across the internet in the past, Itoi’s inspiration
and intention for Giygas is well documented. It’s pretty well known in the fandom that
once when Itoi was a child, he accidentally walked into the wrong showing of a movie theater. He happened to witness a scene from the end
of “Kempei to Barabara Shibijin” (KEM-PAY TOE BARA-BARA SHI-BEE-ZJEAN, translating into
something like The Military Policeman and the Dismembered Beauty) where a woman is strangled
to death by her fiancé, while making love to him. This combination of atrocity and eroticism
side-by-side greatly disturbed Itoi...he was so distraught he hardly spoke for the rest
of that night. It even worried his parents! So when writing the lines for this harrowing
final encounter, Itoi pulled from that personal trauma because he wanted players to experience
that same twisted confusing combination of pleasure and pain he was exposed to at a young
age. That was always the incident to explain where
the concept of Giygas came from, but it actually isn’t the only one. According to Mato’s Legends of Localization
book on EarthBound, Itoi recalls witnessing a traffic accident firsthand a long time ago. He saw a young woman lying on the ground,
but instead of saying “I can’t breathe!” or “Help!”, she just cried out, “It
hurts!”. While none of Giygas’ spoken lines were
directly inspired by the film that traumatized him, Itoi did take “It hurts” from this
memory. Adding to the overall distress, he wanted
players to feel reluctance in attacking Giygas, even though he’s the enemy. Itoi explains that the line “It’s not
right… not right… not right...” means “What you’re doing isn’t right, and
what I’m doing isn’t right.” To make something truly upsetting, Itoi had
to dig like an average-strength mole into the darkest depths of his mind. It’s clear a lot of thought was put into
what Giygas says and how he says it--confirmed doubly by the intimate writing process that
ensured these intense emotions hit their mark. What do I mean? Well, at the time MOTHER 2’s script was
written, Itoi didn’t know how to use computers so he’d state all the text he wanted typed
out loud. For Giygas’ dialogue, with just him and
his typist in the room, Itoi would speak one character at a time--even every dot-dot-dot. A slow process for sure, but having an extra
pair of hands meant Itoi could focus entirely on thinking--and it allowed him to gauge his
coworker’s reaction to what was just typed out. If there was an effective piece of dialogue,
the typist’s expression would clearly change. So Itoi knew he had a really good line when
they would turn to him and say, “Mr. Itoi...” while on the verge of tears. It all makes for an unforgettable finale unlike
anything else you can experience in gaming. It shouldn’t be too much of a surprise to
learn then (especially when considering the previous game) that the method to defeating
Giygas once and for all is unconventional--and innovative. After Pokey’s final threat, it seems appropriate
for the player to continue launching their most powerful attacks--but after exhausting
all PSI, bottle rockets, bazookas and bombs, it starts to become hopeless when all that’s
left is hand to...cosmic horror combat. It is in this moment of desperation that Itoi
wanted players to realize they’ve grown stronger than what’s displayed on their
status screen. Money, experience points, weapons--it’s
all irrelevant now because the way to escape this nightmare is by...praying. That low-key, random-effect-in-battle ability
you probably used once and forgot about. Praying during this fight allows Paula’s
pleas for help to be heard, subconsciously motivating characters we’ve met throughout
the journey to pray for the children’s safety too. As more and more prayers are cast, Giygas
is weakened--but things seem dismal when eventually, Paula’s call is absorbed by the darkness. At this point, it’s likely the player--the
person holding the controller is also praying so that they’ll win--which is what ultimately
deals the final blow. The game’s been storing your real name (back
when it broke the fourth wall by asking) for this very moment--so you will be credited
for dissolving Giygas into static, until he dissipates into nothingness. As this is happening, Pokey, rather unphased,
mentions sneaking into another era to think about his next plan. The game ends with Pokey sending a letter
to Ness, challenging the hero to come and find him, but nobody seems to know where he’s
gone off to. It’s a cliffhanger that was left unresolved
for a little over a decade, which is coincidentally when Pokey’s punishment in EarthBound is
supposed to be over. Not that he deserves any kind of dessert for
his abysmal actions in the next game... ...But with that, I want to end things by
saying I have a lot to thank for EarthBound. Giygas and the crazy conspiracy theories surrounding
him inspired me to create and upload my first ever analytical video on April 10th, 2014. It started performing better than anything
I had ever put out on YouTube, so about a year later in March of 2015--I decided to
really pursue this, and I’ve been uploading content regularly ever since. Like every Nintendo kid, I knew about Ness
and Lucas from Super Smash Bros., but seeing Giygas at the top of every “most disturbing
boss battles” list was the reason I finally decided to give the game a try. EarthBound is so much more than its dark aspects,
but it is because of those dark aspects that I found my niche here. So it won’t take me 10 years to make Dark
Aspects of MOTHER 3, but it is going to be a big project. I’m seriously expecting it to be split into
4 parts. Until then...thank you for watching! To be continued.... Welcome to Dark Aspects--an ongoing analytical
series shining light on the more mature moments of my favorite Nintendo games. This time, I have an episode that’s very
special for a number of reasons: it’s MOTHER 3! The game that gave Dark Aspects its name. Perhaps more importantly though is the fact
that at the very least, it’d be a nominee for the category of darkest (non mature-rated)
games Nintendo’s ever published. When compared to its own series (and to use
a metaphor) if MOTHER 1 and MOTHER 2 are both rickety bridges providing somewhat safe passage
across a dark undercurrent, then MOTHER 3 is a sinking boat you’ll have to take instead. So however you choose to cross, you’re going
to get wet. From the river yes--but mostly from your own
tears. Series creator Shigesato Itoi summed up this
dichotomy best when he said his games all work at different ages. “You can play Mother when you’re young,
Mother 2 is better when you know a bit more about the world, and then Mother 3 is best
played when you’re older.” Heavy themes like death and human cruelty
aren’t just implied this time around after all, they’re a major part of the core story
told through many diverse characters spread across 8 chapters. This game is a different beast than its predecessors,
and because of the sheer volume of topics to discuss, I wasn’t sure where to start--but
I realized I could easily take a page from the book of MOTHER 3 and go through the game
chronologically...one chapter at a time. And that’s exactly what I’ll be starting
today--this is Dark Aspects of MOTHER 3: Chapter 1 (Night of the Funeral). Let’s begin with one of the very first things
the player sees: the title screen. MOTHER 3’s logo is a combination of metal
and wood Mr. Itoi describes as “mentally unsettling.” In an interview with Nintendo Dream, he elaborated
by explaining that when things that don’t match at all are attached to one another (like
a hearse, which has a casket of both metal and wood) it makes you feel a little weird
thinking about how they connect. But forcibly coordinating incompatible things--like
a wooden table placed in a reinforced concrete building--is just a part of modern living. Feeling this discomfort, while understanding
that it makes up this world we all live in, is represented in the logo as the first major
theme MOTHER 3 presents. This concept is further explored in-game by
the many enemies you’ll encounter throughout the journey--most of them were once innocent
creatures Frankensteind into hostile chimeras as multi-animal and/or machine hybrids. Itoi states that Porky, the antagonist responsible
for this madness is also a symbol of humankind--so he wanted to incorporate these horribly unpleasant
things into the logo. ...Okay, how long are we into the video? We can hit the start button now. All of the MOTHER games allow you to name
the main characters, but this time, you’ll get to name the protagonist’s family members
too. Be warned though--if you choose to name any
or all of them after your own family, you’ll be in for a real shock as the first character
subject to tragedy is Lucas. Both his mother Hinawa, and his twin brother
Claus die in front of him at separate points in the story at the hands of the aforementioned
antagonist (along with his army of Pigmask soldiers). Hinawa is savagely murdered by one of their
chimera experiments, and Claus sort of...becomes one. We’ll get to that--believe me--but for now,
just know that for most of the game Lucas’ brother is presumed dead. Slain by the same monster that killed their
mother. Itoi believes there’s a depth in attaching
a name to something, explaining how it can be a big deal giving your characters names
of their own. After all, “It’s hard to feel a deep emotion
behind the words ‘What’s wrong, Peepee?’” When Itoi first heard about the impressions
people got from Hinawa’s death, what really stood out to him were the players who had
named her after their own mothers and then mentioned how much they appreciate their moms
afterward. Female players who named Hinawa after themselves
were in for a surprise--especially if they had children of their own. Some of these players reportedly accepted
the character’s passing with a feeling of warmth--people who’re “living their own
lives to the fullest”, says Itoi. My personal experience? Well, I can certainly relate--in my first
playthrough, I kept most of the default names...except for Lucas and Claus. I named the twins after myself and my brother
respectively--we aren’t twins, and we’re definitely different in plenty of ways but
we are two sides of the same coin. We grew up in the same environment, and host
similar mental afflictions as adults so I feel that we can help and understand each
other completely. I’ve always loved the option of naming game
characters after yourself and the people you know because it’s a kind of immersion that
allows you to really step into the shoes of these characters. I think that’s so important--reading my
name in place of Lucas’ during these moments helped me establish an unforgettable connection
to his character. The “Don’t Care” option is always available
to you if his story hits a little too close to home, but whatever the case, you’ll find
yourself with a newfound reverence for this timid kid; especially if you were introduced
to Lucas through Super Smash Bros. Brawl and then played MOTHER 3. That’s what happened to me--believe it or
not Lucas was one of my least played characters when Brawl was the newest entry in that series,
but as soon as I finished his game, I thought I owed it to Lucas to go back through The
Subspace Emissary, and beat up Porky to pay my respects. He’s...been my main fighter ever since. Getting back to Hinawa, her death doesn’t
take place at the end of the story--it happens about an hour into this first chapter. Just enough time to introduce her as a caring
mother and an invaluable friend to the citizens of Tazmily village. She also loves her husband Flint very much,
and is last shown sending a letter out to him before making the trek from her father’s
place beyond the forest with the kids in tow. It’s supposed to be a safe walk, but that
all changes when Pig-like soldiers suddenly set it ablaze overnight. Mass panic ensues back in town, and Flint
is recruited for a rescue mission--to brave the brush fire and save a family whose home
is nestled deep in the woods. Explosives may have started this firestorm,
but the Pigmasks are keeping it burning with the first of the chimeras Flint has to face:
literal fireflies as the supposed fusion of a small bug and a cheap lighter. Inside the combusted house is yet another
changed critter: a “Flying Mouse” with its arms disturbingly swapped out for wings. Upon escaping the wreckage, the now soot-covered
duo meets back up with young Fuel’s injured father when it miraculously starts to rain,
snuffing out the inferno. That’s one crisis resolved but there’s
still a feeling of apprehension hanging in the air, as Flint’s own wife and kids haven’t
returned yet. Issac is the first to suggest the worst, mentioning
how he thought he could hear screams coming from the mountains. This stomach-churning sentence implies that
Issac heard Hinawa’s death throes. The entire town soon gets involved, and after
more bad omens, along with another run-in with the Pigmasks revealing their heinous
plans to reconstruct all of Tazmily’s wildlife, Lucas and Claus are found by the riverside. Though it’s just the two of them. The revelation that Hinawa was killed is delivered
by Tazmily’s ironworker, Bronson, in a way that many players deem heartless. But there is a reason for his tactless wording,
as there’s something...different about Tazmily and its residents. Just know that for reasons we’ll eventually
get to, these people have never known anguish or trauma. Tazmily of the Nowhere Islands is supposed
to be a utopia, so Bronson’s being entirely literal when he admits he’s not sure what
to say. None of the villagers have experienced anything
like this before, so their innate lack of empathy causes a rift that only grows deeper
when they start to judge Flint and Lucas’ continued grieving later on. Nevertheless, in this moment, Bronson is clearly
hesitant and worked up about how to drop the delicate news--eventually landing on this: “I have good news, and I have bad news. Which do you want to hear first...? No... Let me start with the good news first. I picked up a giant "Drago Fang". It'll make for a great weapon. I figured you could probably use it. ...... As for the bad news… ...... The bad news is... ............ ...It's where I found the Drago
Fang. It was...... in your... It was pierced through your wife's heart… That final line is so raw, it gives me chills
every time I read it. Flint’s reaction is...less than calm as
he grabs a log from the still-burning flames and starts swinging in a vengeful frenzy,
while his children watch. He attacks any of his peers that come close,
felling a few of them until he’s knocked out from a blow to the back of the head. Flint is thrown into Tazmily’s prison as
the first among their people to ever be incarcerated. His eldest son is the first to visit--vowing
to get stronger so that he can avenge Hinawa. But behind bars, Flint is powerless to stop
him--Lucas tries to go with his brother but he insists on acting alone, so Lucas (likely
feeling too helpless to interfere) must similarly watch Claus leave his side. Claus isn’t totally alone though--for better
or worse, he is assisted along the way by a group of magical human-esque entities known
as Magypsies. Perhaps recognizing the psychokinetic potential
within the boy, they teach him a powerful PSI technique instead of stopping his reckless
abandon. Some of the Magypsies in their ensemble are
entirely apathetic towards humans, at least at first--showing little concern in the fact
that they essentially sent the child to his death. Magypsies live thousands of years, so why
should they (or anyone) worry about the comparatively fleeting life of a human? Aeolia thinks that having taught him the PSI
move was an act of goodwill, and while it may have given the boy a fighting chance,
the ability was supposed to have been difficult for him to handle. An unmanageable power that likely worked only
to strengthen his resolve. Eventually, Flint and his father-in-law get
their retribution by scaling the Drago Plateau, and taming the mechanized beast (yes, Alec
did help). Upon victory, Flint re-brandishes the weaponized
Drago fang that took his wife’s life to prepare a final blow, but before that happens,
Alec talks him down when the cyborg’s baby enters the fray. Flint lowers his weapon and approaches the
mother, but is knocked back--and the lot of them halt to watch a teardrop fall from the
Mecha-Drago, as its labored-breathing ceases. Even after being spared, the once-friendly
creature in all probability dies here. Within the game’s data, there exists an
unused animation of Flint stabbing with his spear. Now this could’ve easily just been meant
for an earlier version of the cutscene preceding the boss (imagine Flint lunging forth to start
the battle, piercing the Drago’s hide automatically instead of requiring the player to select
it in battle), but it’s cool to think of some other possibilities, even if they are
purely speculative. So what if the player was given a choice after
the monster’s defeat; to show mercy or give in to the ultimate revenge? And what if the game tracked all of the player’s
critical moral decisions throughout the game, affecting the outcome of the story? I thought of these questions because there’s
plenty of seemingly related cut content. According to The Cutting Room Floor, there
exists an unused battle option called “consider.” As of now, it seems its data has been removed,
and nothing happens when using the command so it’s anyone’s guess as to how it would’ve
functioned. But if we’re considering the enemy, could
that translate to taking pity on it? Paired with the mysterious “kindness stat”
that is technically present in the final game but left unmentioned and underutilized--I’m
left to believe that at one point, player actions mattered a little more. As far as influencing the game’s conclusion--additional
unused graphics (specifically this text reading “happy end” and an animation of what looks
like the antagonist dying...) could suggest that alternate endings were planned. Or not, and it’s all just one big coincidence. Theories aside, chapter 1 ends with the mother
Drago shutting its eyes, as the camera pans away and up to reveal an unconscious Claus,
facedown on the cliffs below. Flint doesn’t see his son, who (like the
Drago, is probably also dead…) but he’ll never give up the desperate search. This tale begins as a tragedy, but things
start to look...up? Sort of? Not really…we get to see an old man do a
funny dance in the next chapter though! Until then, thank you everyone for joining
me to watch this first chapter in Dark Aspects of MOTHER 3. When it comes to Dark Aspects, this game’s
second chapter may just be the lightest. That’s light as in the opposite of dark,
but also light in terms of weight because there isn’t a ton here when compared to
the other chapters. But even still, you can liken it to the mass
of this big metal ball that’s able to crush Duster for a non-standard game over. Welcome to Dark Aspects of MOTHER 3 (Chapter
2): Thief Adventure. The story last left off on a solemn note with
the dramatic irony of Flint so close to finding his missing son Claus, but never discovering
the body. We (the audience) are shown that the boy was
likely killed from the same reconstructed creature that murdered his mom, but the unfounded
hope that Claus might still be alive carries Flint into an obsessive, inexorable (IN-EX-OR-UH-BULL)
search. As the cowboy shepherd's preoccupied with
his mission, the role of protagonist now shifts over to Duster--an ally who helped Flint take
down another one of the Pigmask army’s chimera experiments. Duster lives as a “thief of justice” under
the strict discipline of his father and mentor, Wess. What are “thieves of justice”, exactly? Well, you can think of them as vigilantes
(VIH-JIL-ANT-EES)--trained in the art of stealth to protect Tazmily village in lieu (IN-LOO)
of an official police force. However, despite the family being a force
for good, their shadowy skillset and concealed nature has bestowed them a seedy reputation. Sure, they’ve never taken anything from
their neighbors, but the fact that they easily could is a reality some are uncomfortable
with. This is important to remember for later--as
it also means that in this idealistic/crimeless society, their protectors are the perfect
scapegoats for when a theft does occur. Chapter 2 begins with Wess sending Duster
on a mission to retrieve an inexplicable object said to be disastrous if discovered by the
enemy. Wess hid this imperative item somewhere in
the neighboring Osohe Castle, keeping every detail vague as an ultimate test of skill. To Wess’ successor in stealth, what needs
to be recovered and where it’s hiding should be obvious! So when Duster brings back the wrong thing,
his dad explodes with rage by shattering the pilfered pot and berating Duster--calling
him a moron throughout the rest of the chapter. Wess is shown later on in the game to genuinely
care for his son. And that’s great—he loves Duster deep
down—but the old fogey certainly doesn’t show it in this chapter. And while I do believe Wess to be a good person,
this outburst makes the revelation that he may have been responsible for Duster’s leg
handicap considerably less surprising. We never actually see or get complete confirmation
on what happened, but if the player has Duster initially refuse this mission, Wess at least
admits that he blames himself for physically pushing Duster too hard as a young child with
excessive training. And the understanding that his own father
may’ve crippled him is implied to torment Duster psychologically--a likelihood that’s
revealed when he and his (human) companions mistakenly ingest psychedelic mushrooms that
“tear at the weaknesses and the scars” of their hearts. Because of Chapter 7’s non-linearity, the
player may opt to leave Duster involuntarily hanging out in Saturn Valley during the trip
to (and trip on) Tanetane Island. So if (and only if) Duster’s a part of the
group during this hallucinogenic sequence, an apparition of Wess appears to reiterate
his confession directly to Duster. This is getting off topic but if Duster isn’t
present, the hallucination of Wess is actually replaced with a disturbing sequence involving
Alec (Lucas’ grandfather). He’ll ask if you’ve seen his deceased
daughter (aka Lucas’ mother), telling you to bring her here right away before the screen
darkens, as he turns to the camera (breaking the fourth wall just like he did in the prologue)
to tell the player that he knows they’ve seen her. We’ll explore more of that later in this
series, but for now Duster’s solo mission and its resulting failure must be undertaken
by following Sunset Cemetery’s undertaker Nippolyte. Inside his shack is a secret passageway to
Osohe Castle, but before Duster can use it, zombies suddenly attack...because this is
a MOTHER game. Since these are fairly generic interpretations
of zombies (which are very much accepted in children’s pop culture as a fun kind of
scary...maybe except for this Dog Zombie with its drooping eye and exposed innards), I normally
wouldn’t be commenting about them being enemies. But the Zombie Man and the Zombie Lady have
something…darkly familiar about them. Their appearance is reminiscent of Claus and
Hinawa respectively--the two characters who’ve just recently passed away! There’s the red hair, the striped shirt,
the red dress--I’m not suggesting that they’re supposed to be these characters or anything
(trust me when I say that wouldn’t make sense plot-wise), but I think this morbid
resemblance could have been intentional for the surprise factor. And while Hinawa may’ve been the first traumatic
death the denizens of Tazmily have experienced, the concept isn’t foreign to them—Sunset
Cemetery is filled with plenty of headstones after all. Sure, they could have already been here when
these people first arrived on the Nowhere Islands, but at least one of them was erected
for a woman who was acquainted with Duster in life--since she comments on how much he’s
grown when she first pops out of the ground. These underworld inhabitants are no match
for our underhanded hero though--so after sending them back from whence they came, the
castle (and its prize) beckons. Osohe Castle itself is an interesting place—it’s
a timepiece. A historical relic haunted by more members
of the afterlife. There are possessed suits of armor, ghost
paintings, and demonic doors but not all are unfriendly. The sheet ghosts’ eyes that aren’t bloodshot
are welcoming—the most memorable of which being a wine-loving spirit letting each sip
pass through itself and onto the floor. In an official localization, Nintendo would
probably change any mention of wine to juice, though perhaps they’d poke fun at their
own censorship policy like they did recently with Paper Mario: The Origami King’s “family-friendly
glasses of fruit juice”. There’s not much more to talk about here
with Duster alone; you do fight this Pazuzu maestro to acquire the “Noble Spittoon''...but
we all know how that goes. Not all of Wess’ hope in Duster is lost
though, as he seems to have swiped something unrelated that belongs to the castle’s princess. Wanting to investigate (and to make sure he
retrieves the right artifact this time), the master thief tags along armed with Duster’s
dirty socks. However, with the veil of nighttime gone and
the Pigmasks now pillaging the place, the plan has become even more perilous. Poor Nippolyte’s already been made an example
of--he’s left busted and blue while his precious garden was trampled by a Pork Tank. Luckily, the PSI-powered princess Kumatora
is found inside, introducing herself by offhandedly commenting about how she’s planning to cut
off her leg with a knife to escape the bear trap she’s caught in. Wess is more than prepared to help the rough-and-tough
princess escape without resorting to mutilation, so after learning that her goal is the same
as theirs--reaching the apparent all-important heirloom before the Pigmasks--Kumatora joins
the party. Don’t worry, just a little spit on that
flesh wound and it’ll be as good as new. The Egg of Light, or The Hummingbird Egg perched
at the top of the tower is the real treasure Wess was after--a vessel that’s supposed
to contain all of the world’s secrets. But however this information may have protected
Tazmily against the pigs doesn’t matter, because in a panic to evade them, Kumatora
sets off a trapdoor and the lot of them fall to what could have been their collective doom
had they not been so capable in the face of danger. Unlike whoever’s skulls these were in the
nest of a giant water snake! But after subduing the serpent likely responsible,
a sudden current sweeps everyone away—Wess and the princess wind up okay, but Duster
(along with the Egg) is nowhere to be found. Therefore, Chapter 2 ends with yet another
misfortune, made worse when Duster is accused of robbing a civilian of something they newly
cherish--this thing called “money”, gifted to (and then sneakily stolen back) by a shifty
peddler we’ll come to know as Fassad. True to his name, this seemingly-unassuming
man is planting the seeds of distrust and discontentment in the amenable minds of Tazmily’s
residents. The themes of malevolent manipulation and
mistreatment are only multiplied from here, so if you thought Wess’ verbal and insinuated
physical abuse of Duster was bad, you’ll be in for a shock as Salsa the monkey is literally
shocked again and again and again. So I’ll see you all (and probably PETA)
for the next Dark Aspects of MOTHER 3! MOTHER 3’s Chapter 3: The Suspicious Peddler
plays very differently to the two chapters that came before it, and the rest that follow. Rather than stepping into the boots of a rowdy
cowboy or slipping on the shoes of a thief protégé, we ditch the footwear altogether
and assume the role of Salsa, a helpless monkey following the orders of his abuser, Fassad. We as players technically control Salsa but
we’re mostly being controlled by this detestable stranger. Fassad electrocutes Salsa (who is bound by
a shock collar) unabatedly and without hesitation. Not following a direct order, being too slow,
going the wrong way, or attempting escape will all result in an electric jolt. Salsa’s subconsciously zapped in his dreams
until he’s legitimately zapped awake, and he can be punished in battle--or for no reason
at all. Because his abuse is inevitable in many situations,
it can leave us feeling powerless as players (which is kind of the point). However, there are opportunities to prevent
Fassad from pushing that button, which is when our actions are able to make a difference. Whenever I’m given a branching choice in
games with an obviously correct answer, I love to select the wrong one first because
you’ll likely get a funny reaction--but when I make Salsa purposely do the wrong trick,
I can’t help but feel a little bad knowing I’m the reason he’s being shocked this
time. Granted, that didn’t stop me from doing
it, but it did get me thinking. This unorthodox relationship between Fassad,
Salsa, and the player is explored even further in battle--because Salsa is so weak as a protagonist,
he (and we) rely on the much stronger Fassad to save us from enemies. So in this light, the person who hurts Salsa
the most can appear to be a reliable ally. MOTHER 3’s creator Shigesato Itoi explains
that this all evokes complex emotions that another storytelling medium (like a novel)
wouldn’t be able to portray in the same way. And I agree! Playing as Salsa may not be the most fun you’ll
have in the world of MOTHER 3, but it’s a fascinating, working example of the potential
unique to interactive media. Fassad himself is a high-ranking, incognito
member of the Pigmask army who’s been busy trying to gradually exploit the more impulsive,
status-seeking villagers (like Tazmily’s mayor) by acting with a false kindness and
promise for grandeur . Under the guise of a benefactor, he’s pitching Tazmily’s
recent disasters not as inflicted attacks by his army, but as inexplicable happenings--bad
omens that warn of an evil beyond their understanding. If the villagers don’t listen to him now,
things will only get worse--and besides, why pass on the prospect of true happiness? In order to sell his B.S., Fassad needs Salsa
to accompany his preaching as an example of the “benevolent bliss” he’s trying to
bestow. After all, how can one argue with the sheer
joy of a monkey dancing happily to this man’s tune? The pair have to first travel back to the
village though, so after kicking Salsa out into the expanse of the aptly named Death
Desert, he makes the monkey lead him through a treacherous trek to a secret tunnel that
allows them undetected passage into Tazmily. Refusal makes for fried Salsa of course, but
it also puts his captured girlfriend’s life in peril. So when a Cactus Wolf blocks the entrance
to the underpass, Salsa has no choice but to try and dispatch it. The creature looks like a chimera, but it
interestingly won’t stand down to Fassad--so if it is one of the Pigmask’s experiments,
then it may just be the first to have gone rogue, foreshadowing the fact that these soldiers
are in way over their heads with more unruly creations to come like the Almost-Mecha Lion
and the Ultimate Chimera. Once the deranged dingo disappears the door
to the underground tunnel can be entered, where a futuristic vehicle called the “Pork
Bean'' waits to be driven. There’s an entire transportation system
leading directly to the primitive Tazmily from here, suggesting that the pigs’ plan
to infiltrate has been a long time coming. Fast forwarding to the next day in the town’s
plaza, Fassad’s all-important speech is able to convince some that their “perfect”
world is in jeopardy and that the solution lies with him. He sermonizes that “happiness” is not
just an intangible concept--it’s an attainable thing in the form of a glowing pink object
known as a Happy Box. Just look at its effect on Salsa! The “benevolent” Fassad is giving them
away for free, but what do these things even do, and what is their real (no-doubt nefarious)
purpose? Happy Boxes--despite how they look--are absolutely
not televisions. Itoi deliberately had their designs changed
countless times to try and make them not look like TV sets. It seems that they do have screens, but the
boxes aren’t displaying anything so Itoi says they could even be fish tanks. Because of that, I’ve always just taken
them at face value--they’re small pink boxes that effuse a mesmerizing green glow. An inconspicuous thing like a lava lamp but
much more alluring because people look forward to watching them after a long day of work,
and can become so engrossed that they don’t even notice the presence of others while staring
at it. There’s a good chance that some sort of
subtle brainwashing is in effect here--if you can believe this theory, it would mean
Fassad’s spiel has a dark truth to it, since these people can achieve happiness in ignorance,
if they opt to numb themselves and mindlessly obey while their peaceful way of life is twisted
to the will of a dastardly dictator. Speculation aside, the Happy Boxes serve as
markers for compliance, used later to denote which houses are exempt from the military’s
manufactured lightning strikes. So after convincing a few impressionable villagers
with the superficially smiling Salsa (try checking in a mirror for some seriously depressing
flavor text about how he actually feels), Fassad forces the animal to be a parcel monkey--and
deliver the Happy Box...boxes to all who’ve requested them in a timely manner. He promises a reward for a job well done--a
special treat--since he “feels terrible” the monkey hasn’t been allowed to eat or
drink anything yet, having wolfed down the last banana they found. Just as pitifully as Salsa was able to slip
on that very peel though, he’ll be cruelly zapped as recompense no matter how fast the
task was finished. Fassad’s in an even worse mood than usual,
and it’s because the story is now caught up to the moment in which Duster and his gang
are closing in on the treasure in Osohe Castle that the Pigmasks have been hunting for (by
order of Fassad). This is the last chapter in the game to run
concurrently with another, so all previous plot threads that haven’t yet intertwined
do so now--with oddities like the sudden torrent from chapter 2 revealed to have been Fassad’s
doing all along. He’s the reason Duster (and the precious
Hummingbird Egg) are now missing. Furious that his plan to secure the item has
failed, but using Duster’s absence to fortify his web of lies, the man and monkey head back
to the inn--passing by a very skeptical Princess Kumatora. Having likely used telepathy to read Salsa’s
mind, her and Wess appear that night to free him from the trigger-happy man, and hopefully
get the last (non-forced) laugh. A “nwehehe” in the distance dispels that
optimism though as the trio finds themselves cornered by Fassad’s cronies. But just when it seems that there’s no escaping
the incoming fleet of Pork Tanks, Lucas arrives--accompanied by a Drago family (which is most likely the
Mecha Drago’s kin from chapter 1). Lucas orders this non-robotosized creature
to kill...just kidding, but the swine all take quite the beating--which surely means
Fassad’s learned his lesson...right? Join me next time for Dark Aspects of MOTHER
3: Chapter 4 to see why that is very much not the case. It’s unfortunate, although this incident
was integral in awakening the fighting spirit inside Lucas--the main character we’ll be
sticking with from this point in the game up until its conclusion. I’ll see you in 3 years, everyone. The first three chapters of MOTHER 3 are distinctive
from the rest of the game because they all explore the same timeframe through the lens
of many different characters. It gave us the opportunity to see new sides
of Tazmily’s residents, as their mannerisms change depending on who’s in the party. When Alec accompanied his son-in-law on his
journey to the Drago Plateau, he worked to lighten the mood by cracking dumb jokes--but
when we approach him as Salsa the Monkey, we’re able to see a more solemn side to
the man as he grieves for his daughter in solitude. In the time that Flint is out searching for
Claus in the mountains, Duster can check in on Lucas--who is understandably no longer
able to sleep peacefully at night following his mother’s death and his brother’s disappearance. Like a great tapestry, these extra details
and plot threads are intertwining to create the huge, beautiful image that is MOTHER 3. Now, as we switch protagonists one final time,
the story does nothing but move forward chronologically. We play as Lucas for the first time since
the prologue, after a 3-year time skip as Tazmily’s revealed to have changed drastically
(for the better, and for the worse). Back when this game was canceled for release
on the Nintendo 64, Shigesato Itoi described the Nowhere Islands (pre-time skip) as a strange
place you can’t quite decipher between the middle ages or the old west. It was a stark change of a main setting from
the first two games--which took place in urban, modern day (at the time), cities like this
new Tazmily. So for a lot of MOTHER fans that went into
3 expecting a similar kind of atmosphere, this is where the game really begins. What was once a rustic, primitive little village
is now a sprawling, technologically advanced town--there are transportation systems in
place, with paved roads and a railway--along with plenty of expanding business, like Jackie’s
grandiose hotel in place of a cozy inn. That's because Tazmily now uses currency, replacing the residents' old system of bartering (or simply taking what they needed for free). Fassad has essentially won...with Duster missing, he's been able to silence Wess. So with no real threat to his rule the man’s convinced
nearly everyone to accept a Happy Box, and the few who haven’t yet converted (like
poor Reggie here) have had their homes bombarded by MOTHER fans...I mean lightning strikes. This means that Alec’s log cabin in the
mountains (where the game originally started us off) has been reduced to rubble. And Lucas’ home has become a frequented
tourist spot--Tazmily’s “famous lightning house”. While the sheep don’t seem to mind for some
reason, their fur’s been scorched and the barn’s been burned down. The Pigmasks (through manipulation, or delusion)
use the remnants of these recalcitrants’ homes as an example of what happens when you
refuse their reign. Villagers like Isaac have really embraced
the Pigmasks and what they’re doing--to the extreme that he’s now convinced the
“plain” animals that once populated the forest years ago were boring. You like these Slitherhens better? Really? And you’re going to admit that to Lucas
of all people, who lost his mother to a chimera? Not all hope is lost though--when Lucas interrupts
a conversation between Jackie and Bronson concerning Duster’s whereabouts, he gets
clued in about a Duster lookalike--Lucky, a legendary bass player part of the rock group
DCMC, who perform live at the...interestingly named Club Titiboo. This entertainment venue is exclusive to factory
workers employed by the Pigmasks, who’re enlisting diggers here for two major reasons. The first is to unearth clay as material to
make more soulless soldiers that are “brought to life” by a jolt of electricity. The second reason though is a secret objective--to
try and uncover a rumored underground dragon that’s unbelievably huge--as big as the
Nowhere Islands… That will be important later, so for now,
let’s just discuss their growing army of servants that never complain. Shigesato Itoi mentioned that the inspiration
behind the Claymen is actually mythological tales and folklore about the creation of humans. One could argue that these Claymen are people
too--forced into slave labor the moment they’re born and ordered to continue on without breaks
until they run out of energy. It’s only when they are no longer physically
able to exert themselves, that they get a recharge. And even then, it’s back to the workforce
right away. Whatever Itoi’s intention, he hoped that
players would get a taste of the Claymen’s “sadness and endless sorrow when they look
at them.” How depressing...to be honest, I didn’t
really reflect on the Claymen in a profound way when I first reached this point in the
game (I suppose I thought of them more as a type of brainless robot), but Itoi seems
to have implied here that they have feelings too. Pair that with the agonizing-sounding moans
despite drudging along for their heartless masters, and you’ve got a disturbing existence
that deserves our pity. This all makes the game’s ending even sadder
than it already is; watching this abandoned Clayman breaking its back for nobody while
marching diligently to its doom. As for the human factory workers, they all
appear to be fine with their positions, but everyone seems to only be doing it for the
tickets to Club Titiboo. One of several “distractions” from a menial,
monotonous job the Pigmasks implement likely as a way to keep themselves (and their laborers)
just content enough to not revolt. While some workers like the aforementioned
Issac have become fully dedicated to working hard and climbing that corporate ladder. I can see the factory being an allegory for the grueling job conditions of real-world big business juggernauts like Amazon. The goal of this chapter is to reach said
factory, then work part time there to gain access to Club Titiboo and see if the bum-looking
musician really is Duster. But both buildings are quite a ways from Tazmily--its
workers travel there by train at a heavily reduced rate. Lucas is not yet employed though, so in order
to make it there he has to traverse the tracks by foot. It’s a dangerous departure, even when dismissing
the increasingly deadly chimeras that lurk in the tunnel and beyond. The biggest threat to Lucas’ life? The train itself. In fact, it’d be so half-witted to enter
unprepared that a pair of brothers stop Lucas repeatedly (“saving his life”) if he tries
to run through at the wrong time. It’s darkly funny to me that they’re convinced
Lucas won’t stop trying due to a sheer, self-destructive urge--made a little disturbing
if you know about Lucas’ actions in The Third Lie. The character of the same name MOTHER 3’s
Lucas was inspired by. If you don’t know what I’m talking about,
I’ll link my video series (along with an updated write-up I did for Mother Forever)
so you can see the many ways in which Ágota Kristóf’s depressing book trilogy relates
to this game. You are legitimately able to be hit by a train
(which sends you all the way back to Tazmily), so the Mr. T-lookalike twins’ warnings do
have merit. Nevertheless, Lucas is eventually able to
convince the first one of his own capability. And he’ll discover even more of that potential
as a result of what he finds within the tunnel. I should probably have saved the next topic
for another episode of Nintendo Innuendo, but I thought it was worth addressing here
on Dark Aspects anyway because of how unforgettable a moment it is. You might remember Ionia--a powerful Magypsy
last seen with Aeolia--the one who recognized Claus’ potential and taught him an unmanageable
psychic technique. Three years later, Ionia is seen again in...different
circumstances. Foreshadowed by a pile of traditionally-feminine
looking clothes lay strewn on the ground below a cliffside hotspring. Naturally, climbing the ladder and entering
the bath reveals a startled Magypsy, who is currently “stark naked.” Despite interrupting a private soak, Ionia
offers to enlighten Lucas and awaken his budding magical potential. The scene that follows is questionable, as
the nude, longevous (LONG-JIV-ES) human-like entity approaches the boy and the screen fades
to black. Our imagination is left to fill in the blanks,
as uncomfortable dialogue telling him not to struggle is all we have to work with. Then, the picture comes back and Lucas emerges
from underneath the water with a wealth of new talents. So what happened here? And why is it so suggestive? The answer is that absolutely nothing obscene
took place during this sequence. I’ve heard some fans explain it as a sort
of baptism, a spiritual ritual that unlocks powers of the psyche. And I like that! But my interpretation is that his powers awakened
as a “fight or flight” defense mechanism. Having nearly drowned, his body was pushed
to its absolute limit. Perhaps in the world of MOTHER 3, it takes
a near-death experience or an intense physical stress to be able to realize these psychic
powers--that does fall in line with all the other times PSI is learned in this game. My point is that it’s clear nothing provocative
occurred here, but the implications were intentional. Itoi made it this way to raise eyebrows--a
story development he says only a grown-up could’ve created. He goes on to explain how he did not write
this encounter with a child’s heart in mind--rather, he wanted to approach things from an “older
man’s perspective”. “In the future, if I happen to live to be
90 years old, I want one of those kids to come to me as a grownup and say, "A long time
ago, in third grade, I played MOTHER 3. I was really nervous and confused about what
was going on in the hot spring in that tunnel... And that's what led me to the place I am today." The interviewer follows this up by asing “What
place would that be?” Before laughing about how the conversation
is getting iffy. It’s worth noting that this is the first
time Lucas and Claus have their identities confused in the story by an outsider. When Ionia first meets Lucas, the boy is mistaken
for his twin. This will also be important to remember later,
as we’ll discuss in the next chapter. With exception to PK Starstorm and Teleport
from the previous MOTHER games, new PSI abilities typically came with higher levels of experience. In MOTHER 3 though, there are several more
PSI moves realized in all kinds of crazy ways (beyond Lucas’ awakening). Like the second game’s Prince Poo, Kumatora
is taught the mystical PK Starstorm but this time (instead of mastering it off screen)
we’re shown a brutal way in which it’s learned. Lucas learns PK Flash in a similar manner,
but by (un)lucky coincidence when he’s struck by a bolt of lightning in an unmissable cutscene. I suppose these methods are faster than training..? And even though there are still plenty of
techniques locked behind levels like the previous games, they aren’t learned instantaneously. This time, they don’t come easy--the process
of learning a new or more powerful move now hits the PSI user as a sickness to overcome. A fever that causes them to move slower and
start sweating. Itoi, (as the eccentric visionary he is),
specifically equates this concept to that of menstruation. One of Itoi’s themes with MOTHER 3 (and
really, the MOTHER series as a whole, like with Ninten’s asthma causing him to miss
in battle) is representing the physiology of the human body. Itoi thinks that whenever a human being develops
or learns a new ability, the body really takes a beating. So whenever he’s feeling sluggish and exhausted,
he’s absolutely certain that good things will follow. “When you're given an overwhelming problem
you just can't deal with, the only way to cope with it is to completely mobilize your
heart and your mind and make a strenuous effort to get through it.” This quote really resonated with me when I
first read it, because ever since I was a child, I’ve suffered from migraines. Intense headaches that leave me completely
at the mercy of the agony I’m experiencing. I can’t tell you how many sleepless nights
I’ve had curled up on the bathroom floor or pulled over in my car somewhere waiting
for it to pass. Itoi’s positive interpretation of what it
means to make it through the pain has given me an optimistic outlook, when it’s far
easier to dwell on the negative and think, “why is this happening to me”. To get real for a moment, I’ve been able
to use this as motivation for mental illness as well. Back in high school, I was diagnosed with
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, but I’ve had it for much longer (about 14 years now). For those that aren’t familiar, it basically
means that for most of the day, every day, I’m having some kind of irrational, intrusive
thought (which gives me varying degrees of anxiety) that will not dispel until an action
(a compulsion) is performed to get rid of it. Doing so offers temporary relief but fuels
an endless cycle when another unwanted fear enters my brain. It’s like an internal alarm going off 24/7
telling me that something is seriously very wrong. OCD is a draining, chronic illness that takes
a lot away from me, but in many ways I genuinely believe that it has made me a better person. To try and quell its symptoms, I make an effort
to take care of myself and I’m always looking into wellness options. I’m also very empathetic and patient with
other people because you never know what they’re going through on the inside--I certainly keep
my struggles masked out in public. This philosophy of growing stronger through
pain Itoi’s integrated into his games has given me a fresh perspective. It helps me remember that not all turmoil
is needless suffering--in some situations, great things can follow. For Lucas, there’s an actual light at the
end of the tunnel (or not, the factory is kind of sad) but he reaches it nevertheless. After performing dull tasks he finally earns
a ticket to the nightclub, but because he’s underage (and because of a strict no-dog policy),
Lucas and Boney are denied access. Or they would have been, if Kumatora hadn’t
vouched for them simply being mistaken for a kid and a dog. Yes, Boney (aka Wuuf, the dog-like dude) thankfully
keeps up this ridiculous disguise for a good while longer. Kumatora herself has been working undercover
as a waitress at Club Titiboo for the same reason Lucas is here--to try and talk to Duster. So now that they’re all here, they have
to seize the opportunity tonight. Once they are able to meet with him, it’s
learned that Duster’s become an amnesiac (perhaps due to accidentally activating the
Hummingbird Egg’s power to contain a person’s memories), meaning he’s not sure what his
life was like before he joined the DCMC. Destiny calls though, so he’s willing to
travel with the pack of misfits anyway--leaving behind his bandmates as an emotional farewell
sends the heroes off to yet again try and retrieve this mysterious egg. Lucas, Duster, Kumatora, and Boney. These are the four main characters that will
see the game through to its end, finally altogether in one party. I hope you’ll join me for Dark Aspects of
MOTHER 3: Chapter 5--where I’ll discuss the Masked Man, as we disguise ourselves yet
again and eventually face off against Fassad. Thank you all for watching! From a gameplay perspective, MOTHER 3’s
Chapter 5 is special in that it is the only chapter in which the main cast stays together
for its entire duration. They don’t get separated and have to reunite
like in chapter 7, nor does Boney run off ahead of the group as we’ll see in chapter
8. Just 4 misfit heroes, tasked with finding
that infamously elusive Hummingbird Egg and then destroying the Pigmask army’s Tower
of Thunder responsible for destroying the homes of military recalcitrants (which is
what our protagonists are--yes, even the dog) with lightning. The titanic turret at the top (which can be
seen as early as chapter 4) reveals the way in which the enemy is targeting those opposed
to their reign, but how exactly are they generating that much energy to begin with? The answer lies with these enslaved Electric
Catfish--they’re poor creatures worked to exhaustion much like the unfortunate Clayman
puppets as introduced in the last chapter. But while the Claymen do their bidding without
question (because they don't know any better), these catfish must be provoked in order to
be useful to their pig masters. The catfish have to feel fear specifically,
so the soldiers managing their output try and utilize new scare tactics to elicit surprise
(which in turn, equates to a higher rate of kilozaps per hour). In other words, they have to receive a shock
in order to produce one. It’s yet another way the opposition demonstrates
abuse--these forlorn fishes are captives made to live in terror, relentlessly agitated and
exploited for their power. Perhaps one positive to come from this is
the fact that the Pigmasks have to make themselves look like fools as they invent different ways
to startle their victims, who’re all adapting to their increasingly predictable methods. Not that these blundering boars needed any
help in making themselves look bad…but still. The catfishes’ predicament is all the more
motivation to put this place out of commission. And even though what their fabricated lightning
is being used for isn’t really a concern for the majority of Tazmily’s residents
(who proudly display their acceptance of the army’s rule, so they aren’t affected and
fail to see a problem), we must trek on to liberate the few who still resist. As heartless as the oppressors are in general
though, they are still human. And while it’s most certainly a little too
late, some of them are even beginning to realize that what they’re doing is bad. Recognizing and admitting your wrongdoing
is the first step towards change, and while this line here is made out to be more of a
joke than a profound statement, MOTHER 3 (from here on out) will continue stirring where
it’s most comfortable--in the morally gray. ...While unreluctantly dipping into the vantablack
of course. While on the topic of the Pigmask army, the
existence of a clear hierarchy is starting to become more obvious. There are the pink-uniformed foot soldiers,
blue-donned Pigmask captains, green-wearing majors, and cloaked-in-white colonels. Following this chapter, we’ll even see underwater
patrols amusingly called “Navy-SQUEALS''. Besides color (and size, in the case of the
“Fierce Pork Trooper”), there are differences in their ensemble like the colonel’s capes--and
while it’s only a couple of pixels--you can tell that the captains have a kind of
service medal pinned to their chests, while the majors have two, denoting a higher rank. Fassad’s position is of course a type of
commander, but there are others like him high up on the ladder. Such as a mysterious character many refer
to as “THE commander”. This Masked Man is unintentionally integral
to the party’s success in chapter 5, because Lucas is conveniently mistaken for him and
granted complete access to his adversaries confidential sectors because of it. Lots of players (myself included) might not
question this first “coincidence” at the parent Clayman factory. I know that the reason for the mix-up is obvious
in hindsight, but do keep in mind it wasn’t very long ago that we passed Boney off as
a human by giving him a shirt and a hat. These are just army grunts who aren’t shown
to be the brightest bunch, so mistaking this random kid for their commanding officer--they
may have never actually met in person--is a bit strange but it shouldn’t be too surprising. When I first played this game I remember adopting
a “just roll with it” mentality. I also couldn’t put the USB controller (I
mean the Game Boy Advance) down so I didn’t really spend time guessing what happens next. However, it is at this point in the game that
keen players familiar with certain storytelling tropes can start to recognize which direction
the plot is taking. Because this commander, the Masked Man, is
Lucas’ twin brother Claus. And let me just say: I really like how the
game handles this reveal. The last time we were shown Claus he was presumed
dead, and so much has happened since then that he’s likely not on the player’s mind
at this point. But all it takes is the right hint to establish
the connection, so the game drops clues that the Masked Man might be a revived Claus with
vague indications that become increasingly pronounced--so many in fact that I’m convinced
Shigesato Itoi intended for players to reach this conclusion (or at least have a suspicion)
before the game outright spells it out for them. Think about it--in chapter 5 there’s this
case of mistaken identity, supported by the prominent orange color of his outfit and the
scrolling text at the end calling his profile “youthful”. Then in chapter 7, whenever Lucas encounters
him the screen flashes in a notable way. It’s similar to when Kumatora read Salsa’s
mind with telepathy back in chapter 3, but when that happened the screen flashed white. This time, a sort of teal-colored tint is
applied that’s only ever used in particular flashbacks involving his family, like when
Lucas remembered his mom and how she’d help him get ready for the day. Lucas (and even Claus) likely sense a strange
familiarity here, but the feeling isn’t powerful enough for them to recognize each
other. The strongest piece of evidence in my opinion
though comes when it’s time to actually face the Masked Man in battle for the first
time, as the instrument linked to his attack sound is that of a sitar--which was heard
only once before when we briefly fought by Claus’ side in the prologue. It seems that Kumatora is the first of your
party to catch on…(research, she may mention it before on Snowcap mountain). This is all important to mention because it
shows that the subtleties are here if you’re looking for them. So if you know someone who was maybe interested
in experiencing MOTHER 3 for themselves but never did because they were spoiled about
the Masked Man--I’d reassure them that it doesn’t really matter. Besides, there are plenty more mind-blowing
surprises in store that aren’t as often spoken about, and simply knowing who the Masked
Man is will in no way prepare you for what happens during the finale anyway. As for why Claus is working for the Pigmasks,
and how he’s alive...these are questions that the player can actually solve early on
too! As incompetent and bungling as these swine
soldiers are, their technology is no joke--I’ve already discussed how their Happy Boxes are
most likely tools for mind control (with more explicit examples introduced later on in the
story) so Claus’ memories were likely forcibly repressed using a similar means. As far as how he’s alive...animals fused
with machine parts that give them new abilities make up a good majority of the enemy’s devilish
chimeras, so with technology that advanced, surely they could use it to save a nearly-deceased
human (or to totally resurrect one who’s already passed on). Resuscitating Claus, in whatever state he
was found in then, was probably the pigs’ first experiment of this caliber--and it was
a success, so they repeated the process to rebuild Fassad. Wait a minute...rebuild Fassad? I’m getting ahead of myself here but we
may as well keep this train going--so do Lucas and company end him in this chapter? No, that’s actually all Fassad’s doing...he
sort of (probably) kills himself by slipping on a peel from one of the bananas the glutton’s
always gorging on. Fassad may not be a human (that’s right,
he’s secretly the last Magypsy Locria, a traitor to their kind) but even so, it’s
hard to believe that he could have survived that far fall from Thunder Tower. The state of his reconstruction when we do
see him again is disturbing too...horns have been implanted into his face, so he now requires
a robot translator to speak on his behalf. And Fassad’s not just reassembled once,
but twice--he “dies” again when he plummets into the lava of Fire Mountain’s volcano. Better give him more horns then! Much like Darth Vadar questioning if Darth
Sidious purposely designed his obsolete, uncomfortable suit to restrict him, I’m thinking that
Porky just cruelly toyed with Fassad here like all of the other chimeras he’s carelessly
mixed and matched. Fassad’s final words to Lucas preceding
his true demise in chapter 8 is that this is all just Master Porky’s game, afterall. And speaking of Porky, if his dangerously
immature frame of mind wasn’t evident enough already, His Highness' playroom should be
a fine indication of where he’s at mentally. MOTHER 3 doesn’t reveal that King P is Ness’
neighbor from the second MOTHER game until much later, so if this room doesn’t tip
you off on a first run-through, it’s fantastic in hindsight. I’ll talk about this in much greater detail
in my final episode for Dark Aspects of MOTHER 3, but when we do eventually encounter Porky,
he looks a...little different than he did in EarthBound. Because he’s now become decrepit, with the
appearance of an old man housed in the body of a child. We learn that this is due to him abusing time
travel--he hasn’t aged like a normal person, so not even Porky himself knows how old he
is now. What is clear is that he still possesses the
mind of a child too, as he surrounds himself with infantile things (while indulging in
all this sickeningly naïve violence). It’s pretty sad to think about--Porky had
an awful childhood that he ran away from, but despite that he’s desperately nostalgic
and obsessively clings on to his past. MOTHER 3 develops and expands upon Porky’s
character pretty substantially here; it is in this very room that we first learn Porky
may still consider Ness as a friend, which supports certain subtext from the previous
game. In MOTHER 3, he keeps what’s called the
“Friend’s Yo-Yo” protected and heavily guarded in a special case--trying to swipe
it as Lucas is punishable by death. It’s never confirmed that this Friend’s
Yo-Yo did indeed belong to Ness, but Itoi’s stated that Porky didn’t have any other
friends. Ness, his ultimate rival, was the closest
person he ever had to a friend. Itoi then goes on to suggest that “perhaps
he’d always just been playing with Ness that whole time”. Paired with the fact that Yo-Yos were Ness’
secondary weapon to baseball bats--both of which appeared frequently in MOTHER 2 but
not 3--along with all the other obvious homages to Ness’ adventure in this room (then later
on in New Pork City), and I have little reason to doubt this theory. In different circumstances, maybe the two
of them could’ve been good friends, but the time for that has long since passed (both
metaphorically and literally) so it seems Porky just can’t let go. The Masked Man, Fassad, Porky and his army--this
video has been all about the villains of this game and the rush to obstruct their plans. After a fateful fight inside the tower’s
generator room, Lucas and his friends manage to escape to (and then from) the top of the
tower before it detonates, but they all fail to hang on to the Mother Porkship that’s
carrying them, and (perhaps unbeknownst to them) the Masked Man too. Chapter 5 has been an exciting challenge fraught
with risk all throughout, and it ended in an equally extreme way. Chapters 7 and 8? Longer and even more intense. However, Chapter 6: Sunflower Fields, slows
things down. Considerably. And it’s needed as a brilliant break in
the action--it stands as yet another reason this game shines brighter than most in my
opinion. That’s next time on Dark Aspects of MOTHER
3, thank you all for joining me. Chapter 6 of MOTHER 3 is by far the game’s
shortest. You can finish it effortlessly in under 6
minutes, as all you physically have to do to make it through is make Lucas walk. The only challenge then comes emotionally,
since there are no enemies to fight back here besides your own tears. Before I start gushing about why this chapter
deserves its own video though, I should quickly summarize what happens. So after our heroes fall off of the PIgmask’s
Mother Porkship, Kumatora and Duster are separated from each other and from Lucas and Boney,
who both drop to safety in a field of sunflowers--Lucas’ deceased mother’s signature favorite flower. As Lucas wanders alone aimlessly against the
backdrop of a wavy, refracting blue sky, the voice of Hinawa calls out to her son in an
effectively minimalist, sentimental cutscene set in the memory of a room he was once cradled
in as an infant. As Lucas returns from his daydream, the boy
and his dog reunite and continue along the ill-defined path until the ghost of his mom
begins fading into existence further ahead. In an attempt to catch up to her, the two
carry on (with Boney running ahead of him) until it’s just mother and son, alone in
a grass clearing where the cliff ends. Her ephemeral form no longer falters as she
waits for Lucas just out of reach--but he leaps for her anyway. The desire to embrace the loved one he prematurely
lost is so strong here that he jumped without regard for his own life. He was likely caught in a trance he couldn’t
(or didn’t think about) breaking free from--this location feels phantasmagorical (FAN-TAZ-MA-GORE-ICULL)
(which certainly isn’t out of place for the MOTHER series) so perhaps he figured that
this was all a dream and that he’d truly wake up soon? Because of its surreal nature, it seems that
Lucas did imagine the field of sunflowers on his descent from the airship (could it
have been his own Magicant?), but I think that it was a tangible place the spirit of
Hinawa guided him and Boney through, because directly below the precipice (PREH-SUH-PISS)
she stops at is a soft landing prepared by her father--after she visited him in a dream
and told him to pile hay in this specific spot. It’s clear that this wasn’t a lucky coincidence--Hinawa
has a limited ability to communicate with her family and their friends from the afterlife. This is supported by the fact that Kumatora
was saved by her too--when Lucas eventually finds her she mentions that “a pretty woman
dressed in red” appeared in Doria’s dreams and foretold that Kumatora would fall into
the pond near the Magypsy’s house. Doria claims that Duster’s all right too,
which is a reassuring piece of information Hinawa could’ve passed along as well. This power to reach out in a transient state
from beyond the grave, to directly commune with the living foreshadows her role during
the game’s climax--when her restless soul tries to mend the pieces of her broken family. But that all comes later! In Chapter 6 itself, there’s no dialogue
at all. And (like Flint’s breakdown from Chapter
1) it’s surprising for a game series in which the player characters don’t often
emote--a game series in which its words do the heavy lifting. However, in true Shigesato Itoi fashion, the
unconventional choice to have a textless, short-lived chapter is an effective one--it’s
perhaps MOTHER 3’s most iconic moment, and I don’t think anyone who’s played this
game can forget how the trip through Sunflower Fields resonated with them. The almost-reunion between Lucas and his late
mother, chasing an apparition of what was the most important person in his life is heartrending. The music is utterly poignant too, really
kicking in when she appears for the first time. Listening to these two tracks by Shogo Sakai
outside of the game is enough to transport me right back into the shoes of Lucas, to
re-envision what it must be like for him during this sequence. Being a (mostly) silent protagonist, he’s
a character that we can all project a bit of ourselves into, playing into Itoi’s goal
of making “Mother 3 like a mirror. One that reflects the heart of the player
off of the screen.” I can only sympathize with those players who’ve
lost their own mothers and can empathize personally with Lucas. I debated merging this bite-sized episode
of Dark Aspects with the previous one, but I decided against it because I really wanted
to highlight how significant the segment is on its own. I know that this is more akin to “sad aspects”
than “dark aspects,” but I feel that the game’s heavy theme of losing a parent and
the associated grief culminates to this moment. It’s bittersweet--yes, Hinawa can no longer
somatically comfort Lucas, but she’ll always be a part of his life and she’ll continue
to look out for him from above. We are sadly nearing the end of this journey
through the Dark Aspects of MOTHER 3, but the final two episodes will be the biggest
yet. I’ll see you all then! Shigesato Itoi’s vision for the original
MOTHER was to create a counterpoint to another game series he really enjoyed but had one
minor problem with--Dragon Quest. Why was it that all role-playing games that
were popular at the time had swords and magic? In Itoi’s words: “RPGs in a medieval Europe setting are definitely
flourishing these days. But I don’t know anything about medieval
Europe. And I suspect no one else does either, if
you want to know the truth. It seems that everyone just bases their ideas
off famous works like The Lord of the Rings. So I thought, if I'm going to make something,
then a modern story would be far more interesting.” Itoi started thinking about what kinds of
things he would do if he made the same sort of game, and MOTHER was born as a result. MOTHER 3 still very much follows in this idea
of a “modern story”, but it embraces its inspiration much more than the games that
preceded it. Do you remember that strange comment in chapter
5 about a giant dragon sleeping underneath the Nowhere Islands? That wasn’t just a local legend--the insignia
etched into the Forest Prayer Sanctuary signifies the Island’s very real protector, dubbed
the “Dark Dragon''. According to Ionia, the dragon’s power was
too great for humans to control, so the Magypsies’ ancestors put it to sleep with seven magical
needles, one for each of the Magypsies to guard. A Magypsy’s millennia-long life is bound
to the needle they protect too, so once theirs is finally released, they cease to be--a reality
their kind reveres, rather than resents. Lucas (and by extension, his twin brother
Claus) are the so-called chosen boys capable of pulling these needles and freeing the dragon
because they harness an exclusive PSI ability that not even Magypsies can use--PK Love. It is said that if the person who pulls the
needles possesses an evil heart, then that evil will be passed on to the dragon, who’ll
fulfill their ambitions no matter how wicked. However, the opposite is also true--if the
dragon is awakened by a person with a heart of good, then the “fate of all evil will
be washed away, and all life as we know it will shine brightly.” Master Porky somehow heard about the wish-granting
dragon and its needles (likely directly from Fassad/Locria, the fallen Magypsy) before
learning that Claus, his newly reconstructed slave, is able to pull them. So MOTHER 3’s final chapters, 7 & 8 become
a race between Lucas and his roboticized brother to see who can pull the majority of these
needles and become the dragon’s master. It’s a classic fight for the fate of the
world. What’s very interesting though, is that
this isn’t necessarily a battle between good and evil. Because while Porky himself is evil, Claus
isn’t. As the Masked Man, he’s no longer capable
of feeling and knows nothing but to follow Porky’s orders. The Masked Man has no heart of his own, both
figuratively (and literally) as neither Ionia or Mixolydia can sense it from him and his
battle theme is the only one in the game without a heartbeat. Thankfully, Itoi has revealed what he imagines
would’ve happened if the heartless Masked Man won. In his words, “everything--even the breath
of life itself--would go extinct. Even the dragon too.” That is a horrifying thought. It’s an ending Itoi says he couldn’t write
because it would mean that he himself would no longer be alive. Reality would cease to be, forever. It’s possible that Porky could have known
this, but I don’t think so because the Magypsies didn’t even consider the possibility of
one without a heart pulling their needles, and during Porky’s battle he correctly asserts
that “if the dragon wakes up, it might end up destroying everything and extinguishing
all life” before incorrectly claiming that he and the dragon would still survive as the
last two living things in the world. He’s supposedly more than willing to spend
eternity with the Dark Dragon and nothing else (because he’s stubborn and childish
enough to want that), but is he okay with utterly blipping out of existence? Whatever it is you think Locria told Pokry,
Lucas is informed here by Ionia, who’s found bound and gagged at the beginning of Chapter
7, after being attacked by the opposition. Most people here likely make a beeline for
where they’re supposed to be headed next to get help--the game gives you an obvious
way to fast travel to Aeolia’s house after all--but wandering around Tazmily and speaking
to others yields hilarious results as why would you be taking your time talking to them
when there’s someone behind you bound in rope? Poor Ionia’s hopping around trying to keep
up with Lucas’ sprinting. Even funnier is the fact that Lucas could’ve
untied them but nobody thought about it until they’ve reached their destination. Anyway, after getting Aeolia up to speed (and
to Ionia’s great surprise) the Magypsy begins to vanish when the Masked Man pulls the needle
they guard (not well enough, clearly) in Osohe Castle. Considering how unexpected this was, Aeolia’s
genuine acceptance of their fate is nothing short of admirable. Finding peace in “death”, along with turning
the otherwise “macho” world of the game on its head, are themes Itoi wanted to portray
with these characters. Before disappearing for good, Aeolia offers
an underground passageway leading directly to the castle’s courtyard so Lucas and Ionia
can investigate. It is here (after an explanation from the
Magypsy and upon discovering the Masked Man’s transceiver) that the Nowhere Islands almost
completely opens up to the player--as the next 4 needles can be visited in any order. There is a clear linear path as you are heavily
encouraged to go to the Chimera Lab and reunite with Kumatora first, but you can head to Saturn
Valley and save Duster before that if you don’t mind facing the stronger enemies. If you’re a glutton for punishment (or just
very, very patient) you can even skip them both and head straight to Tanetane Island
as just a boy and his dog. If you’re interested, I recently uploaded
a video detailing the changes that occur when tackling Tanetane with different party members! For now though, I’m just going to go with
the flow without “sequence breaking”. Don’t worry--I will talk about Tanetane
towards the end… Besides that nightmare, and certain floors
of Porky’s tower to come, I’d say the Chimera Lab is probably the creepiest area
in the game. Because it’s the birthplace of this game’s
impious chimeras! I’ve used plenty of footage of the interior
already in previous episodes, but to paint the macabre picture and as an example, there
are skeletons of mixed-and-matched monsters on display in one room, while another has
full-bodied animals and animal parts stored in test tubes. Disconcertingly, we see that a good majority
of the friendly Dragos from chapter 1 ended up here. There’s a skull of a young Drago, a fully-grown
Drago encased in ice (kept frozen and preserved alongside other animals), and tools next to
an operating table with constraints big enough to hold a Drago for experimentation. On the top floor of the laboratory there’s
a room with a glass divider that has a luxurious sitting area on one side, then an empty space
with elevator access on the other. I think it’s likely that this is supposed
to be a viewing spot for whenever Porky himself visits the lab. Can you imagine scientists bringing up an
abomination like the Horsantula while Porky watches with a big dumb grin on his face? Let your hatred for him work as fuel for the
semifinal battle... Oh, and speaking of, this memo about “The
Kind of Chimeras I Want” implies that Porky even eats chimeras, as he requests ones with
a decent flavor and scent. Talk about twisted, but I guess as Lucas you
can technically eat chimeras too with hot dog sushi! The Chimera Lab is also where the game changes
genres to survival horror. Because eventually, Lucas and company will
be clued in about the scariest thing in the entire building being set loose by our old
friend Salsa the monkey! It makes every Pigmask fear for their lives,
and for good reason--The Ultimate Chimera is the biggest and baddest of all their creations,
a big red demon at the top of the food chain. It has a ridiculously huge maw that can instantaneously
incapacitate anything that comes within its reach--which means if it touches you, it’s
game over. The best way to tell if you’re safe is by
listening: if all you can hear are the sounds of Pigmask’s squealing (followed by the
Ultimate Chimera roaring), then you’re safe--as it’s in another room chasing someone else. However, if the music starts back up again
like normal then you need to evacuate, because that means the thing’s really close. Thankfully, the beast is battery-operated
so it does have a weakness with the off-button on its back, but the bird perched on top is
able to move on its own volition, so it easily resets its ferocious friend after Salsa powered
it down to save us. There’s no need to worry though as it’s
no longer in the lab...or perhaps that’s precisely why we should be more worried. An Ultimate Chimera-sized hole and immobilized
Pigmask let us know that this machine made for muder is now out somewhere in the wild. This can bring about an anxious tension in
new players, because it means that at any given point in the story moving forward, this
killing chimera could pop up out of nowhere. The Pigmasks’ protocol for if it ever did
escape essentially boiled down to “give up”, so what if it’s encountered later
as some climactic boss right before the end (hey, if it took Porky’s place in line it
could’ve been called the Penultimate Chimera) but that doesn’t happen. The next (and last) time you’ll dance with
this devil is comical, as it bursts out of a thunderbox in Porky’s all-you-can-pee
toilet dungeon. I think it’s genius as the total surprise
does still offer a scare despite your...surroundings. I know some fans would’ve liked a cooler
sendoff for this monster but meeting it again in a restroom maze just feels very MOTHER
to me. I’ve already talked about the Masked Man
and Fassad’s “rebirth” in Chapter 5 (so go watch that episode if you haven’t)
but I think it’s now time to skip ahead to the moment I’m sure many of you have
been waiting for--Tanetane Island. Oh, wait--there is one more very important
thing to mention before that...the scary stories these Frightbots tell in order to “torture”
the Mr. Saturns. I’d go into further detail but they’re
admittedly a little TOO dark for me and this series. Their pants-wettingly scary story is what
many cite as the reason MOTHER 3 hasn’t had an official localization yet, the exact
content of these spine-tingling stories are left to the player’s imagination, but the
ESRB would have to give the game an “M” rating for the implications alone…oops. They accidentally told a cute, funny story. Nevermind--joking aside, the next segment
I want to talk about is absolutely not played for laughs. Well, what happens at our destination isn’t. The journey to get to Tanetane (which involves
crossing the ocean floor) is still filled with shenanigans. Specifically these Oxygen Supply Machines,
modeled after Mermen who must give you an exaggerated lip lock for air. Instead of a fade to black too, the screen
turns pink! These Mermen machines were made for the Pigmask
Army, and oxygen refills must be required frequently for underwater patrol, so why were
they designed this way? Because its creator thought it was funny? Or did they think it would be enjoyable? This Navy SQUEAL towards the surface seems
to like them…which begs the question, why is a centaur variant with the same function
found in Porky’s fan room? That thought is more bloodcurdling than the
Frightbot’s stories so let’s move along to Master Eddy, the guardian deity of the
sea and his unwinnable boss fight. After your team whittles down the sentient
whirlpool’s health enough, he’ll summon an inescapable vortex that knocks everybody
out. Luckily, they’re saved by some nearby Oxygen
Machines (see, these things aren’t that bad!) but all of our heroes’ items floated
away because of the attack. And (as a nearby frog points out, who’s
having a bit of a crisis himself) you all are at death’s door with 1 hitpoint remaining. Assuming your full party’s with you, Kumatora
will be the one to suggest that the lot of them search for something nearby to eat so
that they can all recover their strength. But as it’s too dangerous to backtrack and
with a rotten Zombieshroom blocking the way forward, the only edible food that’s available
are these fresh-funky looking mushrooms. Yes, they’re a sickly purple color but hey,
what could go wrong? Everything. Lucas and his friends are suddenly overcome
by an odd sensation. The world around them twists and bends while
psychedelically changing color, until they pass out again face down on the ground, before
waking up in an altered reality where the trees and the ocean have turned a vibrant
pink, while roaming monsters appear as familiar faces, taking the form of our protagonists'
friends and family. There’s postboxes to peek into with disturbing
messages and erratic descriptions within. Repeating uncomfortable phrases over and over
again not unlike the previous game’s final boss fight. This is my favorite segment of MOTHER 3 because
so many of these lines still send chills down my spine. “Inside the mailbox were countless screams.” “Inside the mailbox was the sound of yourself
crying.” “Inside the mailbox was absolutely nothing. Nothing after nothing came bursting out.” And that’s just the stuff that’s generally
terrifying. It gets even worse as the visions of loved
ones dig deep into the personal traumas these characters have endured. Especially Lucas. His missing brother Claus appears several
times, just as he would have if he had the chance to grow up normally. He’ll allude to his supposed death, telling
Lucas that he’s the Claus you can’t see and that Lucas should touch his beating heart. The twins’ deceased mother is mentioned
a few times when an illusion of their father asks why she hasn’t returned home yet and
blames Lucas (then himself, and Lucas again) for her disappearance. Finally, there’s a couple of lines where
this phony Flint is outright abusive, telling his son that daddy’s going to beat him. You could call this place the game’s equivalent
to Moonside because it’s a mind-bending version of a real in-game place--however while
Moonside was eerie with disconcerting undertones, the Tanetane hallucinations are overtly evil. Some of the dialogue is similarly nonsensical,
sure--but a lot of it isn’t, and consists of direct attacks towards Lucas’ sanity. “Everyone’s waiting for you. Everyone’s waiting to throw rocks at you,
spit on you, and make your life hell. Who’s ‘everyone’...? Everyone you love.” This line right here was inspired by one of
Itoi’s greatest fears. “If I had to say what my worst kind of nightmare
might be, it would involve my friends and family all being evil.” Before revealing this he mentions having tried
to tone down the initial, temporary dialogue used in Tanetane just enough by rewriting
it, because the text was so unpleasant to look at. It’s crazy to think that what we ended up
getting is the toned-down version, but it’s easier to imagine when considering that while
she’s mentioned by name, the party encounters no hallucinations of Hinawa. Tanetane certainly pushes the envelope as
is, but the ways in which Lucas’ mom could have been used are gut-wrenching to envision. What if an apparition of her appeared to directly
tell Lucas that she didn’t love him anymore? Or to ask why he couldn’t save her, with
her sprite then changing to something akin to her zombie look alike back in chapter 2
before attacking? In interviews, Itoi has repeatedly brought
up his goal in making the player feel upset, and (while he greatly succeeded) the possibilities
for opening up that wound even further are endless. With all this said, I’m not unhappy Itoi
supposedly held back. I appreciate the equilibrium this game maintains
as to not go too far. One of the reasons I feel MOTHER 3 works so
well in its emotional delivery is the fact that no matter how grim things get, there’s
always a silly or heartwarming counterbalance around the corner. If Tantetane was all pain without one of the
post boxes containing “lots of pretty butterflies”, it’d be too much to stomach at once. You could say that MOTHER 3 is a master in
portraying its Dark Aspects. That was a little long-winded, so maybe I
need to be smacked upside the head like Lucas and his friends to snap out of the funk. To wrap things up here (after enduring everything
on this gnarly island), the Masked Man still gets to pull its needle when he unfairly arrives
via airship. At this point in the story, 5 of the 7 needles
have already been pulled. The score? Masked Man 3, Lucas 2. This means that the stakes couldn't be any
higher--Lucas has to pull the remaining two so that he’ll have the majority required
to pass his heart on to the dragon. Just one more needle is going to be pulled
in this chapter though, with the very last one saved for the finale of course. As the player, my next talking point becomes
easiest to notice on what is the final return trip to Tazmily because now, Lucas’ hometown
is almost entirely vacant. At the beginning of this chapter, many of
its original citizens were debating whether to pack their things and head for where the
Pigmask leader resides: New Pork City. Gradually, as we’ve been pulling needles
(or trying to) those thoughts have turned to actions as more and more people began to
legitimately move there. And like a social contagion, those left behind
didn’t want to miss out on the promise for grandeur and decided to depart for the big
city themselves. Towards the end of chapter 7, Tazmily has
finally been abandoned, save for a few very reluctant individuals and a mayor who’s
looking forward to ditching what he calls a “miserable little village.” A nearby sparrow reiterates the news while
a slower, sad version of a song from chapter 1 (which was fittingly called “Going Alone”)
plays in the background. This dispiriting new song, with the title
“And Then There Were None” replaces the forest track and even the similarly melancholic
music whenever Lucas’ home is revisited--evoking a true sense of emptiness, affirming the notion
that this will be your last chance to explore Tazmily and its neighboring locales. Porky treated the village and everything in
its vicinity like his personal playpen (or pigpen, if you will--a place to house his
toys to then leave behind when he loses interest) but developing the village and its surrounding
areas was crucial to his endgame too. Besides his “Fascinating Chimera Project''
that helped satiate his malice (and boredom), along with his factories that aided domination
and his grand goal of unearthing the Dark Dragon, Tazmily itself and its rapid rate
of growth encouraged consumerism in the worst possible way. It awakened a purely materialistic mindset
that has perhaps laid dormant within these people who may have once hailed from a world
reminiscent of ours. A world I think was the one from MOTHER 2. Porky slowly inculcated a widespread motivation
to leave Tazmily so that all of its residents would voluntarily flock to him. It all started off as an innocent question:
“there’s nothing bad about having TOO much happiness, is there?” The thought of a Happy Box simply adding to
Abbey’s joy turned into the belief that a Happy Box is the cause for her joy. That change from contentment to an endless
desire for more made the call of the Big City irresistible to these people. I don’t mean to be too cynical, but I think
replacing the holes in our lives with stuff and stimulation is an ever-increasing first
world problem, and Porky just abused that mentality to herd all of Tazmily to his own
sinister, ostentatious turf. Is there anything more depressing than all
of this? Surprisingly yes, as we get the chance to
encounter what might just be the embodiment of depression itself, Negative Man. This self-loathing...thing is a strange creature
that spends his turns in battle lamenting life and his own uselessness. “There’s just no way I can win…” he
utters, defeated before actually being defeated. When (or if) he does attack, he’ll inflict
pitiful, negligible damage. Funnily enough, his theme is “Strong One!” He is (obviously) susceptible to crying too. Then, even when he’s dispatched, exiting
the cave and reentering proves that Negative Man will forever respawn--so you can never
fulfill his dismal wish to “just get rid of” him. He will indefinitely suffer in solitude here. And that’s probably the saddest way to end
a video, right? Well, not quite--but to find out why, you’ll
have to watch the Dark Aspects of MOTHER 3 finale (unless you’ve already played the
game and know what’s coming). Either way, there will be much more to talk
about so I hope to see you all then. Hey real quick before I transition to the
credits, I just wanted to remind you all that I do have a Patreon page which is how your
name can be included at the end of my videos. Beyond that, it supports the channel by helping
fund what it costs to do what I do. Thank you to my most recent patrons, Caleb
and DatBarry, and to everyone out there who’s supported this series by watching! Let’s meet again next time for Dark Aspects
of MOTHER 3: Chapter 8! Welcome all to a very special 30th episode
of Dark Aspects--which also happens to be the 8th and final chapter to one of my favorite
(if not my most favorite) games of all time, MOTHER 3. After 12 parts with nearly 3 hours worth of
content total we are finally at the conclusion for the MOTHER series. I have easily spent hundreds of hours researching
and writing the 50+ pages of scripts, recording them, and editing everything together. It has been a labor of love, so I am both
relieved and sad that it’s all over after this. But don’t worry, I will still make videos
about the MOTHER series alongside Dark Aspects of course. So far for MOTHER 3 alone (a game that looks
as cute as this this, you should keep in mind) we have talked about the following topics
in depth. I’m not going to read them all out, but
here they are: Today, we are about to talk about a great
many more including: Totalitarianism
Parental abandonment Existential horror
Sacrifice Child suicide
The annihilation of mankind and the world at large
...and more! Chapter 7 last left off with Lucas pulling
his third needle. The Masked Man has also pulled three, so there’s
just one keeping the Dark Dragon and all of its divine power restrained. It is at this point, with nearly everyone
having moved on from Tazmily over to his city, that the King P moniker is dropped and now
most refer to him by his actual name--Porky. He “graciously” invites Lucas and the
rest of his friends to join everyone for what is (as best described by the DCMC’s pianist)
a festival for the end of all life. Porky has gathered all of the Nowhere Islands’
inhabitants (and beyond, as he’s been kidnapping people from different eras and forcing them
to join his army) for one twisted, apocalyptic celebration of the Dark Dragon’s predestined
awakening. Everyone has been envious of the supposedly
superior New Pork City, but now that they’re actually here--now that everyone is here--it’s
become obvious that this is a dystopia. The big city is an unclean, creepy and crowded
place that fills up with even more people as we progress the plot. Nothing here has substance. If the unusable and/or fake goods in the flying
limousine ride didn’t tip you off, all the extravagance is for show and there’s this
evil, yet child-like innocence that permeates throughout as foreshadowed by Porky’s playroom
in Thunder Tower. He’s created a warped kiddie wonderland
where he and everyone else can revel in his unhealthy past. Multiple robots modeled after Porky’s negligent
mother run a fast food shop, likely as a way to provide him with some sort of uncanny comfort. To everyone else, it’s just unsettling. But also sad, as his real mother didn’t
love him, so he replaced her with something that will. It seems that nobody ever really liked Porky
(save for maybe Electra, his maid in MOTHER 2 he replaced in this game with a look-alike),
so he’s forced everyone to surrender to him via reconstruction and brainwashing. This doesn’t truly satisfy him though because
I think he knows deep down that nobody would legitimately love him without these means. So after making all of humankind submit, he
plans to eliminate the species that betrayed him once and for all. He wishes for anyone who doesn’t like him
to be gone, and when you take away his tools for suppression, that extends to every single
person and creature here. Everything terrible that’s happened in this
game is because Porky wants revenge on humanity and (likely through the combination of a carking
childhood and Giygas’ evil influence) he indulges in cruelty. Porky is a sadist who disturbingly singles
out Lucas as the one he wants to suffer most. I don’t think he deliberately sought out
Lucas at first or anything, as Hinawa’s death seems to have just been an inadvertent
result of his careless actions. Lucas probably became his primary target for
two reasons. The first is obvious--Lucas is the only other
chosen boy capable of awakening the wish-granting dragon which can directly affect Porky’s
plans; the fact that his enslaved needle-puller and Lucas are twins just adds that much more
to his depraved sense of fun. The second reason though is more speculation
on my end, but I think that whether it be from his appearance or status as a hero tasked
with taking him down, Lucas probably reminds Porky of Ness, the archnemesis he clearly
has unresolved feelings about. To focus more on this point, Porky wanted
nothing more than to dominate his ultimate rival in the previous game, so when that plan
failed he resorted to a replacement. Porky’s been spiraling down a progressively
worsening moral path since the first time we met him--Shigesato Itoi describes both
Porky and Fassad’s criminal descent as first being influenced by someone really terrible
(like Giygas). Then, what started off as playing around soon
turned into dirty tricks. Dirty tricks evolved into unforgivable deeds,
and not before long, evil sin. For more about this topic and MOTHER 3’s
own approach to evil, Itoi points us to a Shin-Buddhism book called The Tannisho, or
"Lamentations of Divergences" which, yes, I have read in preparation for this video. Nevertheless, Porky began his journey as a
foil to Ness on the lesser (but still extreme side of the spectrum) until his mean pranks
and crimes became the evil sin Lucas has had to take the brunt of. That’s really all it is--Lucas will continue
to be Porky’s punching bag until the Pig King falls. But before we confront him by climbing his
tower of torment, we have to navigate this freak show and slump through the sewers to
speak with an old friend. Leder, the too-tall bellringer who’s been
imprisoned here by Porky (shocking I know) because of the secrets he keeps. In the biggest lore dump this series has ever
seen, Leder reiterates that Tazmily was absolutely a painless paradise before the Pigmask Army
muddied it. But, besides the newest generation of Tazmily
(those who were born here, like Lucas and Claus) all of the islanders are immigrants
that escaped to Nowhere from a ruined world. Due to some unspecified apocalyptic event
(that humans were directly responsible for) their old world was completely destroyed and
these islands--specially protected by the Dark Dragon--remained as the sole safe haven
for the few who survived. Right before the end of that world, what Leder
calls a “White Ship” provided passage for those spared. The people who arrived aboard the White Ship
feared a second judgement day more than anything, so (as to not repeat the same mistakes that
caused the old world’s annihilation) they all agreed to surrender their memories and
store them inside of the mystical Hummingbird Egg we’ve been protecting so that they could
all “start over” by living life unsullied in pure innocence with newly-imagined identities
and roles. However, it was necessary for one individual
to retain the truth, and naturally, because of Leder’s distinguishing trait as a giant,
he was selected to keep watch over them all and ensure that their real memories remained
repressed indefinitely, revealing them only if they were ever needed again. Unfortunately though, Porky was likely given
intel about Leder, so before he could warn anyone he was discreetly locked away and isolated
here without much suspicion aroused. People were aware that Leder was gone (how
could you not be), but they no longer knew his true purpose and didn't think much of
his disappearance. Everyone has been happy living their new lives
in ignorant bliss, but then Porky stumbled upon this place in this era, using the Phase
Distorter (called a “Time Distorter” in Leder’s speech), which is probably the one
he stole from the previous game. It allowed him to travel through the space-time
continuum at will, a power he abused and now faces the consequences of. He’s messed with the fabric of the universe
so much that he’s been granted immortality, but cursed in that he must live forever in
a frail, withered body that houses his adolescent mind. This fact is made much more disturbing when
considering Porky’s fate...which we’ll get to soon. Porky was apparently (and interestingly) shut
out from all other times and spaces before landing on these islands, which would be an
amazing side-story in and of itself. I really like that while the way he and everyone
else got here is explained well enough, it’s all left purposely vague as to encourage theories
and generate discussion. For example, we know that humans caused the
“End of the World”, but we don’t know exactly how. Was it a fallout from global nuclear warfare? Did some other man abandon their alien child
who grew up to be a world-eater worse than Giygas? And, while it’s said that the Nowhere Islands
are an impervious part of the previous world, “world” itself is an indistinct word that
can be defined in a way that encompasses life beyond Earth. “White Ship” then, might be referring
to a boat, but it could very well be a spaceship instead. Personally, I do think that all of Tazmily’s
residents evacuated from the world established in MOTHER 2. Back when the Nintendo 64 version of MOTHER
3 was cancelled, Itoi posted several screenshots of what could have been, with two in particular
displaying what looks like Fourside being destroyed, and what is clearly Onett (Ness
and Porky’s hometown) in rubble. Much of what this game was supposed to be
has been faithfully revived for the Game Boy Advance release, but perhaps Leder’s explanation
was initially a bit more show instead of all tell? As a result of how the story we got was presented,
many types of conclusions can be drawn (as we’ll see with the ending). This was by design, as Itoi believes that
players add more than half of the meaning and value to video games, so that part they’ve
contributed is entirely their own. He goes on to state that his personal feelings
steer him to want to affirm everything the player thinks about the game. He “wanted to make MOTHER 3 like a mirror. One that reflects the heart of the player
off of the screen”. I’m rambling on like an evil mushroom though,
and this sewer is starting to stink more than EarthBound’s advertising so let’s leave
behind a broken Fassad to forever fester in filth, and push past the ever growing, mindless
mob to make a break for the Empire Porky Building. Porky himself waits at the very top of this
impractically cool and intimidating tower, using the opportunity to bully Lucas and stall
time by controlling the elevator. It forces the party to stop and take detours
through ridiculous floors (like his hall of toilets and the “fan room” I mentioned
in the last video, which is its own secluded harem for half-dressed (most likely brainwashed)
girls to “dote over him” by the way. Plus a lip-locking centaur. Don’t forget about that little detail. Averting our eyes, one of the last stops we’ll
make is the “Nice Person Hot Spring”, which rivals only the Chimera Lab in how unsettling
it is. These rows of capsules reveal that Porky took
another page out of Giygas’ book by entrapping people inside these green-liquid tubes. Porky uses them more explicitly than Happy
Boxes for indoctrinating the masses to become his loyal followers. This even extends to livestock--as soaking
in the liquid makes them want to become a delicious meal for Porky. At this time, Lucas and company must be at
the end of their rope having to jump through the Pig King’s hoops. The fun isn’t over yet though, as they’ll
have to prove themselves to be suitable playmates by letting a mecha version of him win (but
only by a razor-thin margin, as his ego must be properly stroked). Oh, and he tries to eliminate them all after
with this Natural Killer Cyborg abomination too. But behind that door lies a boat ride down
a certain someone else’s memories, which finally, finally takes us to his elusive throne
room. Fassad/Locria’s needle is discovered towards
the end of Porky’s monologue, deep underground below where Lucas and his friends are standing. He abruptly activates a separate elevator
in the middle of the room that sends them plummeting down 100 stories until they crash
into the needle excavation site with no way of going back. The twins’ father, Flint, was taken along
for the freefall and insists on running off ahead of the pack to confirm a suspicion that’s
been eating away at him. He’s ultimately realized and comes to terms
with the fact that the Masked Man is the son he’s been looking for since chapter 1. Flint is the best of the bad fathers that
plague the MOTHER series. These past few years, he’s largely been
absent from Lucas’ life because he’s been spending that time endlessly scouring the
mountains on the notion that Claus might still be out there, alive. We all know that his pursuit was in vain,
as the Pigmasks found him first (probably already dead)--but Flint is now relieved to
have some sort of answer to his anguish. He’s the one to tell Lucas for certain that
Claus (in some capacity) has been found living as Porky’s robot. Both Lucas and Flint see the family member
that was taken from them in the Masked Man, but Porky couldn’t care any less. He has zero compassion for Claus, scoffing
at the fact that this “monster” he’s created “used” to have a “person’s
name”. To Porky, Claus is nothing but a tool--a means
to an end. And that end is the extinction of his own
species he condemned long ago. If that and every other soulless deed this
child dictator’s carried out doesn’t make you want to end his reign, then you’ve been
soaking in a certain hot spring for a little too long. So shake it off, as it’s time to engage
Porky in battle. As a nod to Giygas’ fight, you’ll have
to fend off his inexplicable attacks until the spider-mech carrying him powers down. This is the only way to defeat Porky because
as stated before--he can’t die! Without a machine to fight for him, Porky
cowardly ducks inside another. But this thing...isn’t built for fighting. It’s called an Absolutely Safe Capsule and
all it does is provide absolute safety from receiving (or inflicting) damage. In other words, it is completely invincible
to any harm. Porky mentions that he’s simply taking cover
inside of it for the time being. What he doesn’t realize, however, is that
while he supposedly tricked Dr. Andonuts and the Mr. Saturns into making it for him--Dr.
Andonuts thought ahead and designed it so that once a person seals themselves inside,
it’s impossible to exit. Worst of all is the fact that Porky is immortal,
so he’s trapped in here for all of eternity. He is now absolutely safe from the world,
and the world is now absolutely safe from him. You can theorize all you want about Dr. Andonuts
or some other scientist in the far future inventing a device that allows him to escape
this eternal prison but Itoi has confirmed that in 5.5 billion years from now, Porky
will still be alive. So when the sun inevitably dies and Earth
as we know it ceases to be, the Absolutely Safe Capsule will still be keeping him safe. Which (by extension) has to mean that in hundreds
of billions of years from now, when the universe itself may perish through heat death and decay,
ripping apart, collapsing, or whatever fated cosmic horror awaits, the Absolutely Safe
Capsule will keep Porky alive. The existential dread of this is so significant
and so interesting that I can’t help but think about it from time to time. To put the weight of Porky’s fate into perspective,
try and picture yourself actually being inside of this thing. It helps that there’s a real-life product
similar to it for natural disaster emergencies called a Survival Capsule. So look at this footage--and imagine yourself
isolated inside of there for one whole year with nothing to do but gaze out of a tiny
window, left alone with your own thoughts. You’d go mad! One year is an unfathomably long time to exist
in this thing, right? Now think about the prison sentence Porky’s
guaranteed to live out. We know for certain he’ll at least be in
there for 5.5 billion years. So what’s just 1% of that? 55 million years. Again, to serve just 1 measly percent of his
fated life sentence he will have to wait 55 million years. The United Nations Standard Minimum Rules
for the Treatment of Prisoners defines prolonged solitary confinement as a “time period in
excess of 15 consecutive days.” Just 15 days, or a little over two weeks in
total isolation falls under their restriction as a cruel, inhumane, and/or degrading punishment. So what about a lifetime of zero human contact? I know a lot of fans say good, this is what
Porky deserves but truly sparing a moment to think about the horror that this entails
is what Andonuts was talking about when he spoke with remorse. I don’t think that any living thing--even
Porky--deserves this. I’m going to leave that conversation there
though, if you’re interested in hearing more on my thoughts about the matter and the
changes Porky might go through inside of the capsule I may just make it into a separate
video later on. For now though, it’s time to end our Dark
Aspects of MOTHER 3 journey with what I think is the most somber moment to exist in a Nintendo
game--a one on one fight to the death between brothers. When he is reached, the Masked Man tries to
overpower everyone immediately with a mortal blast of lightning. Like their previous encounter, Lucas’ lightning-deflective
Franklin Badge redirects it, but unlike last time, it only offers protection for himself. Your three other party members are knocked
unconscious, and if any one of them is revived during the fight, the Masked Man will put
them back down without hesitation. It’s made obvious that this has to be an
exclusive battle between brothers. Going in though, Lucas can’t bring himself
to attack, knowing that it’s family standing in front of him. The conditioned Claus’ memories are deeply
repressed though--according to Porky, he doesn’t know anything about who Lucas is so this soon
becomes a one-sided clash with the older twin mercilessly beating down his forgotten brother. This encounter is a fight to keep Lucas alive. Heal, defend. Heal, defend--just when it seems that Claus
won’t ever let up, the voice of Hinawa--the twin’s mother calls out to the both of them
to stop fighting. It fails to reach the Masked Man at first,
but it eventually starts affecting him as his relentless attacks become weaker and weaker. Before his ruthlessness is assuaged though,
he attempts to strike down Lucas with a pair of powerful blows--but Flint jumps in front
of the son he’s neglected and takes the PSI bullets for him. Thankfully, while they deal major damage (what
level was he at when we last played as him, 16?) The damage doesn’t kill him. It’s effective in showing just how far gone
Claus is, and Flint’s willingness to sacrifice himself makes it clear he does care about
both of his sons equally--even though this is one of the only time’s he’s shown it. Lucas, likely feeling an intense mix of devastation
and rage is only now able to hit back. What’s notable too is that the waving battle
background made of prominent angular shapes and bold colors changes the more the Masked
Man begins to realize who he is. At first, it begins fizzling out like static
on a television. Then, what was once rigid, focused intensity
slows and loosens while the stark palette softens to pastels. Paired with the music that starts off erratic,
with a distorted, distant version of the “Love Theme” that eventually becomes more heartfelt
and pronounced--these cues are a solid indicator of his mental state throughout. If you haven’t yet, I highly recommend listening
to Battle Against The Masked Man outside of the game, with headphones on. MOTHER 3’s composer, Shogo Sakai, expressed
Claus’ internal struggle perfectly with this song--there are so many details like
notes that end abruptly and a piano riff that circles around and around as if to emulate
the feeling of going insane. The sad echoes of the mother Lucas and Claus
prematurely lost is gradually getting through to him, made especially clear after a flashback
plays out of the two boys as infants in their cribs. This equally wrecks Lucas--neither of them
know what to do anymore and now, trying to throw punches results in Lucas shutting his
eyes and missing. Fighting to stay alive is no longer the main
concern--now, it’s a fight to hold back tears all around. The remaining lines of text that conclude
this sequence hit harder than PK Love Omega, but the way that I or anyone else describes
them can never accurately put into words how impactful they are to experience in the moment. Hinawa saying “Come to your mother. You must be so exhausted. Come here, Claus.” This finally breaks him (and me too)--as he
removes his helmet to reveal a face that looks just like Lucas’. Claus has finally regained control of his
mind, but what if it’s only temporary? In a prompt, decisive maneuver Claus fires
an intense bolt of lightning at his twin--knowing very well that the Franklin Badge would keep
Lucas safe, but send the blast right back his way, killing him. Claus is fatally wounded and staggers towards
his brother, nostalgically embracing him for the last time as he dies in Lucas’ arms. Many fans question why Claus had to commit
suicide, but I think there are several factors to consider here. First of all, Claus’ awakening could very
well be fleeting, so perhaps he used the opportunity to do what Lucas couldn’t--he ended his
own life to protect his family in case he reverted back. I think that’s a likely possibility, but
there are more--what if Claus wasn’t able to forgive himself for all that he’s been
made to do as the Masked Man? What if he was already dead when discovered
and forcibly revived, so his soul was simply pining for a reunion with his mother? Whatever combination of the above is true,
there is now nothing stopping Lucas from pulling that final needle and passing his heart onto
the dragon. Lucas’ life, and the lives of all who believe
in him are put on the line as the seal is released skyward and the sleeping deity rises. In perhaps the most cinematic sequence the
series has ever seen, The Nowhere Islands in its entirety is overcome by falling meteors,
waterspouts, earthquakes, and eruptions enclosed by an inferno. Noone is free from the unrestrained, unbiased
destruction as Osohe Castle is consumed by the Earth and a fleeing Pigmask airship is
swiftly shot down. We catch just a glimpse of the cause for all
of this--the Dark Dragon as the screen violently shakes and fades out. Just three letters appear: END, followed by
a question mark, suggesting there’s more to see. From here, you can actually walk around as
the END text and talk to others--it doesn’t always reveal whom exactly you’re talking
to, but it’s easy enough to guess based on their manner of speaking. We of course bump into Kumatora and Duster,
but also familiar friends like Rope Snake and a Save Frog. You eventually touch something rolling around
too, which is probably Porky inside of his capsule. Everybody from throughout the adventure greets
you (the player, as yourself) to give their thanks and let you know that everything turned
out okay. Everyone is apparently alive and well. What specifically happened is never elaborated
on--we can only read about and piece together the fate of these characters as we navigate
this void. But after an emotional credits crawl the game
leaves us with one final image, one last message while a touching track plays in the background. In the first episode I mentioned the meaning
of the starting logo’s uncomfortable blend of wood and metal, but here, a fully wooden
logo with a healthy Earth in place of the metallic sphere prominently displays itself. So what does this all mean? Well, when I first played the game I actually
envisioned this screen as some kind of afterlife. However, over time I’ve changed my view
and I now think that The Nowhere Islands were reset--cleansed of the Pigmask Army and everything
they’ve tainted. All of their technology, their chimeras, the
brainwashed people and soldiers that fill out their ranks--purified. Porky himself may still be unaffected of course,
but everyone on the outside gets another go at a peaceful life on the islands before his
meddling. I think this is implied by the true end screen--the
befouled, manufactured logo restored to a natural state. I do not think that Hinawa and Claus were
revived, but as stated before, if that’s how you want the game to end then you can
interpret it that way because Itoi deliberately left these plot points just vague enough. The ending of the N64 version was reportedly
even darker than this, possibly absent of any indication that anyone’s all right,
but I think Itoi’s vision of an ending that’s “as pure white as the morning after a long,
dark night” is entirely intact here. Quite literally as the backdrop against the
newly revitalized logo is white, following our stumbling around in the pitch darkness. To quickly touch upon how the final battle
could’ve been darker, Itoi was (for MOTHER 64) “thinking about alternately just not
having any dialogue whatsoever.” Kind of like in chapter 6! There are a great many unused backgrounds
featuring disturbing imagery of Claus within the final game’s files, so are they a remnant
of that idea, to tell his story through visuals alone? If that’s the case, perhaps these striking
drawings were later replaced with the minimalist designs, because Itoi realized they could
get the point across and that ultimately, he’s able to convey more with the right
words. This is all speculation of course but it’s
tough to imagine these being planned for anything but the Masked Man fight--to appear alongside
these unused cutscenes. Though there are several potential takeaways
to the ending we got, I think overall it’s such an effectively satisfying, heartbreaking,
and exhilarating conclusion to my favorite game series. It’s an ending you’ll contemplate long
after the credits roll, and I hope you’ll continue to think about this series of videos
long after I say goodbye. This has been the largest, most time-consuming
project I’ve ever completed for the channel, and I’m happy that it’s now out there
in the world for all of you to interpret. If you’ve joined me for each and every episode
or just jumped headfirst into the finale here you have my deepest thanks. I will be compiling all of these videos into
one mega upload soon, so please look out for that, and I hope we’ll meet again for future
videos covering both the MOTHER series, and the Dark Aspects of Nintendo. Thanks…
