The MOTHER Series Topic (No Crying Until The Lock)

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Mother 3 is getting a Virtual Console release on December 17th, the same day as Lucas' amiibo.

Unfortunately, it's a Japan exclusive, sigh. Why does Nintendo refuse to localize this game?

[Failinhearts]

Welp, time to bring up the inevitable reply:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CePk795Xum4

[Sean]

This officially kills Mother 3's chances of coming to the west. Nintendo is not going to bother localizing a game on dated hardware, especially not a Virtual Console release for which the costs for localization would equal to how much they would spend on an entirely new game.

The only way I ever envisioned M3 being localized was if they were preparing a remastered version or 3DS compilation, and I was hoping the reason M3 took so long to reach the VC was due to that.

[...]

This officially kills Mother 3's chances of coming to the west. Nintendo is not going to bother localizing a game on dated hardware, especially not a Virtual Console release for which the costs for localization would equal to how much they would spend on an entirely new game.

The only way I ever envisioned M3 being localized was if they were preparing a remastered version or 3DS compilation, and I was hoping the reason M3 took so long to reach the VC was due to that.

I really wish they'd just use the fan translation, especially since the team gave it to Nintendo freely for them to use. It'd save them a lot of trouble, but you're right anyhow. This bites hard.

[Celestia]

Has any company ever used a fan translation like that? I'm genuinely curious here, because it sounds like something most companies wouldn't want to do, and there may or may not be stuff like legal issues that outright make it impossible.

[Tailikku]

Has any company ever used a fan translation like that? I'm genuinely curious here, because it sounds like something most companies wouldn't want to do, and there may or may not be stuff like legal issues that outright make it impossible.

They used an entirely new one when Wonderboy in Monster Land and Monster World IV were released stateside on the original VC.

[shdowhunt60]

So, if it's one thing about Earthbound that's been bothering me lately is that... What are its themes? I mean, what is it about?

Like, thematically the other two games were pretty obvious. Like the first game was about child abandonment and the consequences of two societies conflicting, Mother 3 was rather hamfisted in it being about how evil capitalism is, but what is the second game about? What is the overarching theme behind Earthbound?

[Tailikku]

So, if it's one thing about Earthbound that's been bothering me lately is that... What are its themes? I mean, what is it about?

Like, thematically the other two games were pretty obvious. Like the first game was about child abandonment and the consequences of two societies conflicting, Mother 3 was rather hamfisted in it being about how evil capitalism is, but what is the second game about? What is the overarching theme behind Earthbound?

Growing up

[shdowhunt60]

Growing up

I've heard this one before, but looking at the other games, it always feels like the reasoning is far too abstract. And even then, growing up is a theme of the other games as well. 

[Sean]

I feel like there's a LOT one can take away from EarthBound. What I felt the most was the empathy you develop for many of the supporting characters, even if all their roles are quite small. To be honest, the mother is actually my favorite character in the entire game. I love how she unconditionally supports you throughout your journey yet never stops treating you like her child, and she always provides you a sense of relief and comfort no matter how tough the going gets. I don't know what overarching theme EB has going for it, but I suppose I never thought about it because the game has a profound way of making you pay attention to and cherish the little things.

[Solly]

Has any company ever used a fan translation like that? I'm genuinely curious here, because it sounds like something most companies wouldn't want to do, and there may or may not be stuff like legal issues that outright make it impossible.

This is what a lot of people ignore. 

I love the Mother 3 fanslation, and I'd love to see it become official, but big companies don't do that. For one, it would look bad. Nintendo has teams of their own writers that should be handling this kind of thing. While using the fan translation would be a nice gesture, it's not very professional. Secondly, they'd want to control the content in their product. Using someone else's work doesn't afford them the flexibility they usually have, and they would no doubt want to make their own changes. This is especially true in the case of censorship, which is another concern altogether. I don't think Mother 3 could get away with a lot of stuff in the West, especially if they were reaching for the same audience (children). 

[Celestia]

Honestly, while I'd be fine with them using it, I'd almost rather see them do it themselves if only to see how different their localization of the game is. I mean, as far as I know the fan translation is pretty faithful and accurate, but it'd be interesting to see how an official translation would compare and contrast.

It's been a while since I played the game, so I'm actually not too sure how much of the game would be censored. The biggest thing that comes to mind is maybe downplaying some of the text in Tanetane Island since it does get...very disturbing.

[Sean]

If it weren't for Smash Bros. basically confirming it I would have hoped an official Nintendo translation of M3 opted for Pokey instead of Porky. I mean... I know Porky is the official name but god I really hate it. Haha get it? He's called Porky because he's fat

[azoo]

Isn't the guy who translated M3 a professional (like, hasn't he done this for money before)? If so, can't they just hire him to do it with revisions that they'd want? That honestly sounds like the best middle ground that could come out of this.

[G-Force]

If it weren't for Smash Bros. basically confirming it I would have hoped an official Nintendo translation of M3 opted for Pokey instead of Porky. I mean... I know Porky is the official name but god I really hate it. Haha get it? He's called Porky because he's fat

It's not just because he's fat, it's because he's a pig.  Both in appearance and in nature.  He's a selfish and greedy child who just takes and takes with no concern for who he hurts in the process.  

He even went so far as to betray humanity in favor of an entity of pure evil, and he actively ruined humanity's final attempt at being able to survive and live in peace. 

[Solly]

If it weren't for Smash Bros. basically confirming it I would have hoped an official Nintendo translation of M3 opted for Pokey instead of Porky. I mean... I know Porky is the official name but god I really hate it. Haha get it? He's called Porky because he's fat

Porky might not be subtle, but Pokey doesn't even say anything about the character. 

Also, to add to what G-Force said, Porky's empire in M3 has a huge pig motif going on. It'd be really weird if he weren't named Porky. 

[Sean]

Yeah I get all that and acknowledge its officialism/meaning but ehhh I liked EB more than M3 and the pig empire wasn't in the former so I'm kind of biased.

Whenever I talk about the character in relation to the second game I always use the name Pokey. Porky is a name I accept in M3's context due to Nintendo using it and its added meaning in M3, but if given the choice I prefer using his original English name

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Just so you know, that full-on remake of Mother 1 (or EarthBound Beginnings, as you may call it) using EarthBound's engine while refining the gameplay is still alive and coming along very nicely! Here's some screenshots from this week: