SHiNGUJi
Mother 1989
Log Status
Completed
Playing
Backlog
Wishlist
Rating
Time Played
--
Days in Journal
5 days
Last played
May 29, 2024
First played
May 13, 2024
Platforms Played
While I will say that this is a classic worth playing, I must also admit that this game is a bit dated and that some parts, especially the difficulty spikes, can be off putting to some.
Mother, or Earthbound Beginnings to some, is a RPG that started the Mother/Earthbound series, which is known for it's parody elements and weirdness.
After his great grandparents strange disappearance 80 years ago, Ninten (who just awakened his psychic powers) must now travel around the world in order to put a stop to the strange occurrences happening around him. Along the way, he'll meet Lloyd, a gifted student who's bullied for his lack of physical strength, Ana, a girl who also possesses psychic powers (although hers are offense-orientated compared to Ninten's defense-orientated powers), and Teddy, a gang leader who wishes to avenge his parents death.
It plays a lot like most RPGs, but most RPGs probably don't have you fight hippies or trees that explode upon defeat, so it definitely gets some points for being unique.
In terms of difficulty, as mentioned before, this game has a few difficulty spikes (especially during Mt. Itoi) where you're just forced to grind for a bit and hope the enemies don't kill you. Speaking of enemies, this game uses random encounters, meaning sometimes you can't even go 3 steps without encountering an enemy that could probably kill you.
Also, I'm not sure if the way you learn PSI skills are random or not. I hope they're random because why the hell would they intentionally make it to where Ninten learns Life Up Alpha at the beginning of the game but doesn't learn Life Up Beta until right before the goddamn final boss.
But even with the problems this game has, I still had some fun with it. I'm also glad that the best armors and weapons are just stuff you can find/buy instead of the 1/128 bullshit this game's sequel uses.
The soundtrack is also pretty good (especially the train/credits theme), even for a NES/Famicom game. I also like the eight melodies and how they are WAY more important here than in Earthbound.
I think this game is proof that older games are definitely worth playing, so if you enjoy some of the more older RPGs (early Dragon Quest/Final Fantasy, Digital Devil Story, etc.), you should give this game a play, just promise me you won't cry until the end.
Mother, or Earthbound Beginnings to some, is a RPG that started the Mother/Earthbound series, which is known for it's parody elements and weirdness.
After his great grandparents strange disappearance 80 years ago, Ninten (who just awakened his psychic powers) must now travel around the world in order to put a stop to the strange occurrences happening around him. Along the way, he'll meet Lloyd, a gifted student who's bullied for his lack of physical strength, Ana, a girl who also possesses psychic powers (although hers are offense-orientated compared to Ninten's defense-orientated powers), and Teddy, a gang leader who wishes to avenge his parents death.
It plays a lot like most RPGs, but most RPGs probably don't have you fight hippies or trees that explode upon defeat, so it definitely gets some points for being unique.
In terms of difficulty, as mentioned before, this game has a few difficulty spikes (especially during Mt. Itoi) where you're just forced to grind for a bit and hope the enemies don't kill you. Speaking of enemies, this game uses random encounters, meaning sometimes you can't even go 3 steps without encountering an enemy that could probably kill you.
Also, I'm not sure if the way you learn PSI skills are random or not. I hope they're random because why the hell would they intentionally make it to where Ninten learns Life Up Alpha at the beginning of the game but doesn't learn Life Up Beta until right before the goddamn final boss.
But even with the problems this game has, I still had some fun with it. I'm also glad that the best armors and weapons are just stuff you can find/buy instead of the 1/128 bullshit this game's sequel uses.
The soundtrack is also pretty good (especially the train/credits theme), even for a NES/Famicom game. I also like the eight melodies and how they are WAY more important here than in Earthbound.
I think this game is proof that older games are definitely worth playing, so if you enjoy some of the more older RPGs (early Dragon Quest/Final Fantasy, Digital Devil Story, etc.), you should give this game a play, just promise me you won't cry until the end.