This week's topic was:

Assuming it comes out, how do you think Mother 3 will be received by the newer generation of gamers?

Well, thanks for all the fanthoughts! It's much better than last week which featured practically nothing. I'm glad to report that there's a good amount of fanthoughts here today! Hopefully we'll keep getting stuff like this... keep submitting your fanthoughts!

Now, I personally think that Mother 3 will fare better than it's predecessor in the US. There is a greater interest in RPG's nowadays, and Super Smash Bros. has increased Ness's popularity. I'm also sure that Nintendo has gotten smarter and won't give it such an unsuccessful ad campaign this time around. Also, I know that many gamers nowadays are more focused towards graphics, but there are still a good amount of gamers who settle for mediocre graphics as long as the game itself is good. I personally don't think that the shallowness of gamers is as big as some make it out to be, and I think that Mother 3 has the potential to be good... as long as the game itself is good, of course.

-Skulryk

I think Mother 3 will be met with better-than-expected success. For the fans waiting for the game, as well as RPG fans, it will be accepted with open arms. If Nintendo puts Mother 3's graphics up to the standard, it will gain more customers. If the graphics are below the standard, it will lose some potential customers. Also, those who are curious about the game's plot will likely flock out to purchase it, assuming it comes out, of course.

DarthDarthBinks

I think a Mother 3 (Earthbound 2) could appeal to many people this time around. When Earthbound came out it was just a little too late in the snes era seeing how other games had much better graphics, much better music, etc. But what Earthbound had over other games was a storyline, the way it painted an elaborate picture of weird nonsensical characters and situations, Shigesato Itoi was a master in creating these feelings. When I was playing Earthbound recently I realized how it would make me feel while playing it. I would come away with a kind of feeling of being an unknown environment, kind of like how a bigfoot sighting or a ufo encounter would make you feel. haha. But yeah, getting back to my point there are two directions I see an Earthbound 2 going. If they decide to make a sequel to Earthbound as quickly as possible for the sake of making more money they most likely will leave out elements that made the game great. But if they take their time on this project and Shigesato Itoi works the magic he did before I think we will see a great finished product. If graphics and sound are up to par we may see an even better game than the last one and may see it more widely accepted by the video game audience. Certainly, Ness' appearance in Smash Bros will help spark an interest in this series if Earthbound does get a resurrection.

Agent Orange

I am waiting for mother 3 with the high hopes. If is is ever released, I hope it will equal the time I had (and still have) with EarthBound. If this game is ever announced, Myself and many other Mother 2 fans will run to stores to pick it up instantly.

The newer generation of gamers, though (AKA Gamecube, PS2, XBox, heck, even the Dreamcast) might not do the same however.

I must admit, I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I picked up Earthbound. I had heard of the game through Nintendo Power, (Which, BTW, is the most biased gaming magazine EVER), but never really looked into it. What i found was a magical fantasy land, yet at the same time, a down to earth kind of game. It was (and still is) better than any Final Fantasy at the time. It was the fisrt RPG experience for me.

However, the newer generation is all about one thing - Graphics. Just look at the amount of garbage games out today that sell. Anyone i've talked to that isn't an "old-school gamer" thinks graphics are number one. That was the one department where the game failed to deliver, and that's also one of the two reasons i believe that EarthBound flopped (The other being that the game was not well known). I can get people to look at Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy VI, but as soon as I pull out EarthBound, no one wants to see it. That, in my opinion, is a major problem for mother 3.

Fast forward to the... uhh, future. Let's say the game is released. All the people who turned Mother 2 away are probebly going to turn Mother 3 away. At the same time, They've got Square Games (Final Fantasy) and Enix games (Dragon Warrior) to compete against. And now that there's a FF game coming to gamecube, i'd say there's even less of a chance that the game will sell. I have a bad feeling that people will see it as "another Final Fantasy knock off".

Now, I know that I'm taking the role of a pessamist here. Mabye if the game is released, people will see it as a unique RPG experience, different from Final Fantasy. Heck, they may even buy it because they played Final Fantasy 36 and they like this new-fangeled "RPG" thing. However, I have a gut feeling that this will not happen. I feel as if the game will flop. I seriously hope it dosn't, but i just can't see the game selling better than it's predecessor.

That won't stop me from buying a copy, though.

avenger339

I'm very sure that it will in Japan ( they use lots of that humor), but...well...im not too sure about the US, especially most of the gamers out there are PS2 freaks and only care about gore, violence, profanities, and more gore. I believe that many of the Nintendo fans will like it, being gamers of stuff like Mario, Donkey Kong, Kirby and such. However, I think if Earthbound 2 was to be released earlier, it probably do better according to how people think of games now. Even if the sequel does come out, it should definately become sucessful, especially with how SSBM rose Ness and the games popularity up several notches ( Hey, the first one hooked me up with EB!). Like for instance, me and my friends play tons of various Nintendo games and make a quirky little personal comic. Once SSBM came out, we added Ness into our little comics, thus leading me into showing my friends more of the glory about Earthbound. This thought is getting more and more rambleful (is that even a word?), so i've better stop. So that's my opinion on how EB2 may be sucessful in the future.

TANI

If Mother 3 comes out, EarthBound or Mother 2 will most definately be rereleased on GBA before it so more fans can know about it and then buy Mother 3. The number of people who aren't EarthBound fans outweighs the number of people who are. Nintendo would definately rerelease EarthBound prior to releasing Mother 3 if they had any brains at all.

Mr. Tenda

It's funny, I was just talking about this the other day to a friend who has yet to play EB (I know, I know, I'm a bad friend for not getting her to play sooner...)

It's a sad reality, but I believe that EB will not have quite the same effect as it did when it was first released. This is the game that changed and inspired all future games! Yet, with these games out now, does EB stand up to their measures? Can they possibly understand the time it came out in, the uniqueness of the game?

Most EB fans have been playing EB since it first came out, and I believe those gamers are the ones who truly appreciate the game.

Anyways, my friend promised to give EB a try sometime today, so I guess I'll find out the answer to this topic soon enough :)

James D

I think the gaming community has become mainstream and diverse enough to allow a niche title with a cult following to thrive in this much different era.

When EarthBound was realeased, it possibly was overshadowed by the many great RPG's surrounding it. Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy III are good examples. Also, if they can make the graphics super smooth, but just as goofy, it'll stand a better chance at getting picked up by those graphics fanboys.

In the past few years I have seen some incredible breakthrough titles I'd never think would have actually been released. Rez (PS2) is an amazing example of niche titles actually being released, hopefully Mother 3 can expand on the formula and actually have a successful run in addition to being published, however...

Also, Ness is now a bit more recognizable character due to SSB and SSB:M. Putting him on the cover and making him a major player would be a smart move, and would most likely move some more copies.

Leeman

Unfortunately, I don't think M3 will be received well by the new generation of gamers.

Assuming that Nintendo has revamped the graphics and all that, it should be developed to use most of the GameCube's abilities. Hopefully, that should make some gamers, who only focus on how great a game looks, take notice and give Mother 3 a chance.

However, I think that the video gaming world has declined since the days of SNES and Playstation. Games on the new platforms have used the graphics capabilities to make more blood and gore appear when the player shoots someone. It seems to me that the new generation of gamers only plays FPS or sports/racing games. The RPG is losing popularity, and I think that it's really sad.

In conclusion, I think that anyone who appreciates the art form known as an RPG will buy M3. Anyone who has only played sports games or FPS probably won't. I think those people are missing a lot.

SaturnBOING

Well, I think that Mother 3 will do just fine despite most younger gamers being unfimiliar with Eb. If it has the graphics, gameplay, and word of mouth like it should. Then there is no reason it wont do well. I dont think we need to worry about this.

Psionic Brawler

I really REALLY hope that if Mother3 does come out, it satisfies todays gaming generation and doesn't bomb. Mother2/Earthbound was a great game and I hope that if the sequel ever does come out, it is liked by all. Although, if Nintendo decided to keep the same storyline with Flint and those other crappy characters, I do hope nobody buys it. All in all, if Mother3/Earthbound2 does come out, I hope that it doesn't suck.

Voltor 25

Now... don't get me wrong. I loved the Earthbound(Mother) series for what it was, it was entertaining and for the most part a low key and interesting RPG(ignoring of course the pathetic boss fight). But seriously, my pallete kind of calls for a more serious game. Basically I look at it this way: Let's take Chrono Trigger and its sequel Chrono Cross. While I must say that Chrono Trigger's premise was in no way shallow or lighthearted like Earthbound was, Chrono Cross completely dwarfed it in that respect. CC showed a great more insight on the situation of time and space than CT did, and whereas CT generally depicted laughing children sprites and such, CC showed fully developed, concerned characters. If EB3 ever does come out, I would much rather like it to something that tied up the three plots that will be created when it is added to the previous two. It just seems like there could be something more grave and serious behind the kidish plot of Earthbound. But that's just me.

Starman Jr. Jr.

When gamers play their Metroid Prime and Final Fantasy X, they say they're having fun and enjoying themselves. The realism of the graphics and the purity of the sound sweeps them into their own little worlds that say they are having a grand old time. But nowhere, nowhere in the newest games do you find the humor that would truly give you a grand old time. Sadly, the only humor you find is sick humor; jokes about stuff you would only find in health classes at school. Believing sick humor is the only humor, the new generation of gamers is trapped in a box that we say we are thinking out of.

Earthbound is filled to the brim with real humor. Who wouldn't laugh when the Territorial Oak explodes into flames? Who would not chuckle slightly when you first see the Dr. Saturn in a trash can? Who couldn't split their sides when Tracy says "Is it my line now? Oops!". The humor and absolute craziness of Earthbound would, unfortunatly, count against it during this new generation. Expecting oozing seriousness, gamers would utter profanity to themselves when they are thrown off-track by the first joke. After only a few minutes the new gamers would leave or seive: they would play something else or just ignore what the hilarious humor. Good humor (not the ice cream company) goes against the grain of this new generation of gamers.

I know this for a fact; I myself, a new generation gamer, missed the humor entirely because I was expecting far better graphics. Even now, when I actually look for the humor, it misses me entirely. My slightly younger sibling and his pals have an average attention span of negative twelve when they play Earthbound. All they care for is the graphics and sound quality.

Earthbound will be great and fantastic for those that actually open their eyes to it's humor, but for those who close their eyes to it will see nothing.

--Goldstarking

I think it will be a big hit, and Nintendo will feel awful about waiting this late to release it.

Davidus Hauleus

I myself do not think mother3 would be a great success, although with us EB player i think we will appreciate it and love it the same way we loved EB. (On nintendo gamecube mind you, because that is what Mother3 would be on)-> I think that the newer gamers who are all young and do not like the rich storylines, quirky humor, and such will not enjoy this. If you were to hand a new gamer a SNES and an EB cartridge, he wouldnt like it. There wouldnt be the flashy graphix (But i love the graphix in Mother2) and there wouldnt be the cute characters. (like sonic the hedghog) So in conclusion i think that Mother3 will be enjoyed by those who like Eb, but for those who dont i think Mother 3 will be a dissapointment. (I think Mr. Saturn's Text the kids would like though :)

Kirk

I have owned and finished both Earthbouds on the NES and SNES and nothing is gonna stop me from doing the same with this. The only thing i'm worried about, is with the graphics especially that the development team is not used to 3D graphics. Though is this is solved i'm sure it will be a success, just give it a PAL release k,lol as i live in Ireland. PS. Lets hope Mother 2 arives on our GBA as well.

Patrick Conway

I think that, if Mother 3 was to be released now, it wouldn't do so well. First of all, a few people (like myself) feel that Earthbound simply isn't Earthbound without Ness, Paula, Jeff, Poo, The Apple Kid, Pokey,... *two hours later* ...and the nameless person on the street corner. Secondly, people who were tought by Super Smash Bros. what to expect will be completely taken aback by the new game. Simply put, if they do release it, they should work all of the "famous" characters back in.

Bio Spark

Flashy graphics is what it all seems to be about. Thats what this generation of gamers wants. Me being part of such said generation (I was in first grade when EB was released and still rember it as the first RPG I ever played... if you can say that) I share a slightly similair sentiment. But I also have commen sense and know it takes more than flashy graphics to make a good game, I'll admit rarely do they deteriorate from a good game but they aren't all there is. Sadly this generation is filled with those who would disagree on that statement. And it shows as if you were to look at the message boards after the release of a rumor that mother 3 was gonna be placed on GBA you ahd pretty much three respones the top response was "Are you sure you got that right/well it's just a rumour" second was "but if they put on GBA it'll ruin the graphics" or three "WHOO MOTHER 3 MOTHER 3!!!!!!" just the fact that the second place option made it to second place shows how well it'll be accepted, it'll depends on graphics sadly.

Rootbeer kid

EarthBound has a strong cult following, many people who loved the game and were excited to hear that they were manking an N64 sequel, and considereing the facet that Ness appears in both Smash Bro. games, if Nintnedo releases it, and hypes it enough, it could work. (Just look at Animal Crossing).

Ralor Haen

I think it's fate would be much like EarthBound's was. It would be one of the most underrated games in history... just because it didn't have flashy graphics. How sad...

Arcenseal

OK, I'm one of those people who are fairly new to the world of Nintendo, although my dad has a Super Nintendo with no controls or games :P. I have a Gamecube and Super Smash Bros. Melee, and Ness is the second coolest character (first would be Ice Climbers)! When I heard about the story of Earthbound, I started searching everywhere for a copy of it. Though, I was a tad bit disappointed that Earthbound 64 had nothing to do with Earthbound, I still think it would be so cool if it came out on Gamecube! ...But that's just me. Heh.

Noname Something