EarthBound / Mother Series Social Thread - Octopus Erasers Are The Best Inkling Weapons

[TotesTim]

Earthbound is probably my favorite single player game to this day. I got introduced to Ness through Smash 64, and later managed to find a copy with the box for $35 in 2003. I fell in love with the game quickly, and even managed to get my childhood friend hooked. Both of us bought EB when it came to the virtual console, and are now waiting for the Ness amiibo to release here in May. Mother 3 was an excellent game as well. I plan on getting Lucas's DLC for Smash 4 on day one.

Also, speaking of EarthBound, has anyone ever done solo runs of the game before? I tried one with Jeff before, and got up to the Mani Mani statue in Fourside before giving up due to lack of interest. The game is a lot harder without having PSI available, but it actually makes for a pretty fun challenge.

 

[Xon Suprimes]

The game is pretty cool... ahem I mean "groovy".
But yeah, the game's presentation was nice, the gameplay magnificent, and plenty of replay value. Such a long game. Too bad we aren't getting Mother 3 anytime soon most likely. Imagine if we got it after the Lucas DLC. Whew.

Mother 4 is looking really hype as well, can't wait! I'm gonna be one of the first to play it as well! (~^u^)~ ~(^u^~) ~(^u^)~

 

[Tepig2000]

Earthbound is probably my favorite single player game to this day. I got introduced to Ness through Smash 64, and later managed to find a copy with the box for $35 in 2003. I fell in love with the game quickly, and even managed to get my childhood friend hooked. Both of us bought EB when it came to the virtual console, and are now waiting for the Ness amiibo to release here in May. Mother 3 was an excellent game as well. I plan on getting Lucas's DLC for Smash 4 on day one.

Also, speaking of EarthBound, has anyone ever done solo runs of the game before? I tried one with Jeff before, and got up to the Mani Mani statue in Fourside before giving up due to lack of interest. The game is a lot harder without having PSI available, but it actually makes for a pretty fun challenge.

I never tried doing any sort of challenge run in any game, but it seems interesting. I think I'm gonna try this.

 

[SilverEra]

Has anyone tried to do the T-Rex bat challenge in Winters? It takes some time but it's worth getting a stronger weapon for Ness.

 

[Teddy]

I love good storytelling, but my aversion to RPGs keeps me from getting far in these games. I've given Mothers 2 and 3 a try via emulator and gave up on both. Love playing as Ness in Brawl and Smash 4, though.

 

[TotesTim]

I never tried doing any sort of challenge run in any game, but it seems interesting. I think I'm gonna try this.

Awesome! If you plan on trying a run with Jeff, then I have a few pieces of advice for you. It's very important to have a body equip that protects against paralysis. In a normal run of EB, flash is usually what most people want protection against due to it being able to induce instant death later on in the game, but getting paralyzed as Jeff is more or less the same as being dead. You can't attack, use items, and if you're in a fight where you can't run away...well, good luck.

Has anyone tried to do the T-Rex bat challenge in Winters? It takes some time but it's worth getting a stronger weapon for Ness.

I've done it twice before over the years. It takes up quite a bit of time, but it was fun having Ness being able to breeze through the next few sections of the game. I want to try earning enough money to afford Paula's frying pan upgrade one of these days.

Have any of you guys made it to the end of Jeff's solo section at level 1 before? It gets a bit rough once you hit the Brickroad segment, but I had fun doing it. I had one EB run where Paula and Jeff were kept at level 1, while Ness gained all of the exp.

 

[SilverEra]

Have any of you guys made it to the end of Jeff's solo section at level 1 before? It gets a bit rough once you hit the Brickroad segment, but I had fun doing it. I had one EB run where Paula and Jeff were kept at level 1, while Ness gained all of the exp.

Never heard of that trick. How do you do it?

 

[Fakevox]

I love good storytelling, but my aversion to RPGs keeps me from getting far in these games. I've given Mothers 2 and 3 a try via emulator and gave up on both. Love playing as Ness in Brawl and Smash 4, though.

Not very surprising. I love RPGs, and the Mother series is one of my favorites, but the actual gameplay isn't great even by RPG standards and the stories aren't anything to write home about either. What makes the Mother games special is their style. The humor, the music, that kind of stuff. Without those, it'd just be another mediocre RPG series.

 

[TotesTim]

Never heard of that trick. How do you do it?

For making it out of Winters at level 1 with Jeff, it basically involves running from all of the forced encounters in the Brickroad Dungeon, and then manipulating the spawns in the cave that leads to Dr. Andonuts Lab by using the old, "walk until the enemies are off of the screen and come back" trick.

As for keeping Paula and Jeff at level 1 for the whole game, that's fairly easy. As soon as Paula normally joins, you just kill her off so that she is never able to gain experience. As far as Jeff is concerned, the same principle applies, except you have to make it through his solo scenario without gaining any levels so that he joins Ness and Paula at level 1.

Without exploiting glitches, it's possible to finish EarthBound with Paula and Jeff both at level 1, and Poo at level 18 (his minimum) by constantly killing them off and only letting Ness receive exp. If you do count glitches, then it's possible to make it up to Giygas with Ness, Paula, and Jeff at level 1, and Poo at level 18. I don't imagine you'd be able to survive very well without some serious RNG manipulation though.

 

[SilverEra]

For making it out of Winters at level 1 with Jeff, it basically involves running from all of the forced encounters in the Brickroad Dungeon, and then manipulating the spawns in the cave that leads to Dr. Andonuts Lab by using the old, "walk until the enemies are off of the screen and come back" trick.

As for keeping Paula and Jeff at level 1 for the whole game, that's fairly easy. As soon as Paula normally joins, you just kill her off so that she is never able to gain experience. As far as Jeff is concerned, the same principle applies, except you have to make it through his solo scenario without gaining any levels so that he joins Ness and Paula at level 1.

Without exploiting glitches, it's possible to finish EarthBound with Paula and Jeff both at level 1, and Poo at level 18 (his minimum) by constantly killing them off and only letting Ness receive exp. If you do count glitches, then it's possible to make it up to Giygas with Ness, Paula, and Jeff at level 1, and Poo at level 18. I don't imagine you'd be able to survive very well without some serious RNG manipulation though.

That makes total sense. I think I'll try it out eventually.

 

[Reila]

I love good storytelling, but my aversion to RPGs keeps me from getting far in these games. I've given Mothers 2 and 3 a try via emulator and gave up on both. Love playing as Ness in Brawl and Smash 4, though.

I am also avert to RPGs but I absolutely love Mother 2/Earthbound. It is such a beautiful and touching game. The story is nice, the characters aren't really the focus but they are still memorable and there is no pandering like in modern RPGs. Oh, and the soundtrack kick butts! Now Mother 3... I tried playing it on an emulator but it messes up the timing of the rhythm-based battle system, so I never got to finish it. I wish I could finish it someday.

 

[Squidkip9000]

When is Mother 4 being released for Mac and PC? Just wanted to know

 

[Tepig2000]

When is Mother 4 being released for Mac and PC? Just wanted to know

I don't remember the exact date, but I'm pretty sure it is this year.

 

[AEM]

When is Mother 4 being released for Mac and PC? Just wanted to know

June, if I remember correctly.

 

[BedBison]

I've always wanted to get into Earthbound. I've been waiting/hoping for an officail release of Mother 1 and Mother 3 but I don't think that's gonna happen at this point so I should probably just play it, though where should I start? Should I just start from Mother 1 and progress from there or should I start somewhere else?

 

[TotesTim]

I've always wanted to get into Earthbound. I've been waiting/hoping for an officail release of Mother 1 and Mother 3 but I don't think that's gonna happen at this point so I should probably just play it, though where should I start? Should I just start from Mother 1 and progress from there or should I start somewhere else?

I'd say that M2 -> M3 -> M1 would be the best order to play. EarthBound (Mother 2) is pretty good on it's own. Mother 3 basically expands upon the gameplay mechanics of M2, and has a handful of neat references. M1 hasn't really aged that well, but it's still a decent game in its own right. I'd recommend playing the 25th Anniversary Edition hack of M1 if you plan on playing it though. It basically modernizes the game to make it less time consuming and frustrating like many NES RPGs of that time were.

Honestly though, you can play them in any order. Some people don't bother with Mother 1 at all, but with that hack having come out recently, I'd say that M1 has become a lot more accessible to new players.

 

[BedBison]

I'd say that M2 -> M3 -> M1 would be the best order to play. EarthBound (Mother 2) is pretty good on it's own. Mother 3 basically expands upon the gameplay mechanics of M2, and has a handful of neat references. M1 hasn't really aged that well, but it's still a decent game in its own right. I'd recommend playing the 25th Anniversary Edition hack of M1 if you plan on playing it though. It basically modernizes the game to make it less time consuming and frustrating like many NES RPGs of that time were.

Honestly though, you can play them in any order. Some people don't bother with Mother 1 at all, but with that hack having come out recently, I'd say that M1 has become a lot more accessible to new players.

I'll probably do that then, when I get my Wii U soon I'll download Earthbound ASAP.

 

[SilverEra]

I'll probably do that then, when I get my Wii U soon I'll download Earthbound ASAP.

You will not be disappointed, friend.;)

 

[Cynlet]

In my first run I named my characters after their original names. Then I run a set with my friends and I, together we forged the power of PK Friendship and Clam Chowder to rule the world!! Except the yoyo guys still kicked my *** in the beginning, other then that, grinding and prior knowledge allows me to run pretty smoothly.

 

[Trieste Sp]

I can't wait for Mother 4 to be released. Supposedly, it's coming out in June.