EarthBound (series)
EarthBound マザー MOTHER | |
International logo of the EarthBound franchise | |
Japanese logo | |
System | Famicom Super Nintendo Entertainment System Game Boy Advance |
Genre | Role Playing Game |
Rating | T (ESRB) |
Publisher | Nintendo |
Developer | Ape Inc. HAL Laboratory Brownie Brown |
Release dates |
The EarthBound series, also known as the Mother series in Japan (マザー MOTHER), is a series of role-playing video games published by Nintendo. There are three games in the series. EarthBound Beginnings, EarthBound, and Mother 3 have been released on the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and Game Boy Advance respectively. Only Mother 3 has been released exclusively in Japan. Beginnings was released in Japan in 1989, and was re-released in the west on the Wii U Virtual Console in 2015. EarthBound was released in North America in 1994, and re-released on the Wii U Virtual Console in 2013. Mother 3 was released in Japan in 2006, and has yet to gain a western release. Characters, music, weapons, and locations from the series also appeared in the Super Smash Bros. series, with Ness and Lucas being playable characters.
This article or section is under construction. |
Franchise history
The series was created by an influential Japanese copywriter, actor, and minor television celebrity named Shigesato Itoi, who took part in Nintendo's video game industry in the late 1980s. After forming his own subsidiary Ape with then-Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi, he began working on the franchise starting with Mother, later released internationally as EarthBound Beginnings.
Gameplay
The gameplay of the series involves the player traveling through an overworld screen. They can travel in any direction, provided the path isn't blocked, and will be challenged by enemies, most of which will move toward the player. A new screen appears in fight, with there being many options. Also listed is the amount of HP the character has left. If they beat the enemy, the fight will end and the game will return to the overworld screen.
Games
Title | |
---|---|
Cover, original release and system | Description |
EarthBound Beginnings | |
July 2nd, 1989: Japan June 14, 2015: International (Virtual Console) Nintendo Entertainment System |
Also known as Mother, EarthBound Beginnings is the first game to be released in the EarthBound series. It follows the adventures of Ninten, Lloyd, Ana, and Teddy trying to find the Eight Melodies. It was released in Japan on July 27, 1989. It was released via the Virtual Console on the Wii U on June 14, 2015. |
EarthBound | |
File:EarthBoundBox.jpg August 27, 1994: Japan July 2, 1995: North America July 18, 2013: Europe and Oceania (Virtual Console) Super Nintendo Entertainment System |
Also known as Mother 2, EarthBound is the sequel to Mother in which Ness, Paula, Jeff and Poo team up to defeat Giygas and save the world. It was released on August 27th, 1994 in Japan, it is also the only game to be released outside of Japan, being released in North America on June 2nd, 1995. It was released on July 18, 2013 on the Virtual Console for the Wii U. |
Mother 3 | |
April 20th, 2006: Japan October 17, 2008: Fan Translation Game Boy Advance |
The final game in the Mother series, Mother 3 follows the adventures of another group of heroes as they attempt to save the world from a strange pig-themed army. It was released on April 20, 2006 in Japan, however, it was never released anywhere else. Despite its Japan-only release, a fan translation was created. Since Mother 3's release, it has seen a very strong fan effort to try to get the game released outside of Japan. It was re-released on December 17, 2015 on the Virtual Console for the Wii U. |
Ports and Remakes
Title | |
---|---|
Cover, original release and system | Description |
Mother 1+2 | |
June 20th, 2003 (Japan) Game Boy Advance |
Mother 1+2 is a port of Mother and EarthBound on the Game Boy Advance, containing various tweaks to audio and graphics to suit the Game Boy Advance's style. It was released in Japan on June 20th, 2003 to hype players for the release of Mother 3. It was never released outside of Japan, likely due to the original Mother being unrealeased outside of Japan at the time. |
Common elements
All games feature protagonists wearing striped shirts, and all are about collecting pieces to a song, often heard at the end of each game. Giygas appears as an antagonist in the first two games, and Pokey appears as an antagonist in the last two games.
and by Shigesato Itoi |
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