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Mother 3 battle clips snuck up from behind!
Unwilling to compromise on the quality of its project for the sake of a quick release, the Mother 3 fan translation crew has been tweaking every setting and smashing every bug in its path to releasing an English patch for the Earthbound sequel. In addition to posting regular updates on the programming process, the team has put up screenshots and videos from its work so far, like the Flint vs. Mischievous Mole movie above. We can't wait to try out that rhythm combo system ourselves!On a disappointing note, the project's FAQ now states that the translation group no longer has plans to put out the patch before Super Smash Bros. Brawl's North American release, even with the Wii game's delay to early March. It's a painful wait, we know, but at least you'll get a few bonuses* that aren't in the Japanese game, like this secret enemy in the clip after break.*provided that you have a flashcart/emulator and, uh, the Mother 3 ROM
Dojo update: A flood of assist trophies
For those of you who're wondering where there usual dojo update is, know that up until release, all of the dojo updates can be considered as spoilers. So, we're tucking all of the info past the break. Head within at your own risk.
Dojo update: Ness
Unless you haven't really been paying attention, the inclusion of Ness in Super Smash Bros. Brawl is going to come as news to you. You might even see this as a spoiler, and if that is the case we apologize. But we're pretty sure most of you would like to know how Ness stacks up against Lucas. Well, hit up the gallery below for side-by-side comparisons of their move sets.And, if you want to know how to unlock Ness, hit up the "Read" link below. We don't want to take the chance of spoiling anything else for you.%Gallery-10206%%Gallery-6869%
Three Smash Bros. Brawl characters confirmed?
Courtesy of a new Japanese video for Super Smash Bros. Brawl, we get confirmation that Ness of Earthbound fame will be making his way back into Brawl. Not only that, but popular character Jigglypuff from Pokemon will be making a return to the field of combat as well. Oh, and the fun doesn't stop there as Lucario, from Pokemon Diamond & Pearl, also gets confirmed as a playable character. We just hope that the inclusion of Lucario doesn't mean that Mewtwo is getting the axe.Head past the break for another screen cap from the video confirming Ness is in the game.%Gallery-10206%
Nintendo accidentally confirms Lucario, Ness, Jigglypuff for Brawl
A small slip-up on the Nintendo of Japan website has revealed three previously unannounced characters in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Fan favorites Ness and Jigglypuff will be returning from the previous Smash Bros. titles, while the pokémon Lucario will also be joining the ever-growing ranks.Nintendo of Japan recently posted a 5-minute video explaining the many features of Brawl. In one section of the video, the sticker-collecting feature is shown off. A small set of icons along the bottom shows which character can equip each sticker, and originally showed small icons depicting Ness, Jigglypuff, and Lucario.Nintendo of Japan has since updated the video, conspicuously whiting out these icons and effectively assuring us that this is "for real." More than simply confirming new characters, this news also confirms that the Brawl roster will exceed those characters announced on the official blog, which is just good news for everybody. Check out the original, unedited footage after the break. The icons appear very briefly around 4:20.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Dojo update: Fight above Corneria all over again
That shot of the Great Fox can mean only one thing. Well, two things, actually. Firstly, it means that the dojo is back, and that our mornings have some purpose once more. Secondly, it means that Brawl will include yet more Super Smash Bros. Melee stages, to accompany the return of Hyrule Temple.Corneria, Yoshi's Island, Onett, Brinstar, and Rainbow Ride are the returning stages, with Corneria comfortably our favorite of the revived bunch. It's also worth nothing that Brawl's total number of confirmed stages is now 25, with (we'd estimate) another dozen or so dojo updates left to add to that total. And, in the unlikely situation you ever get bored of those, you can always make your own.%Gallery-10206%%Gallery-6869%
Dojo update: New Pork City?! Get a rope!
Mother 3 fans are getting everything but the actual GBA game with Super Smash Bros. Brawl -- Franklin Badges, Lucas as a playable character, and now, New Pork City, one of several memorable locations from the Earthbound sequel. The massive arena is one of the game's largest, putting to rest worries that the game wouldn't have any Hyrule-Temple-sized battlegrounds. New Pork City boasts among its attractions a swinging boat and a stage-specific menace. Before you preview the screenshots at the Dojo, be warned that there are some Mother 3 spoilers scattered around the images. You can also watch a 2D tour of the metropolis after the post break.%Gallery-3347%%Gallery-6869%
We bet this Mother 3 shirt is awesome
Since we've never been given the opportunity to play Mother 3, we aren't really able to gauge the thematic radness of Edit Mode's new Mother 3 "Emergency" shirt. Still, just as we know that all shirts sold on The King of Games are awesome, we have an inherent knowledge that everything about this shirt is wonderful, except the $50 price tag. We know that the design is pretty nice, and that the warning text on the back is adorable. The other new Mother shirt, featuring a logo for "The Sharks," comes from Mother 2 a.k.a. Earthbound, and is therefore easily verifiable as being great. You can totally pretend you're in an arcade-occupying, hula-hoop wielding gang led by a smilin', knifin' Frank Fly.[Via GAME Watch]
Smash Bros. Brawl adds Mother 3's Lucas
Wouldn't you have loved to have been there on Super Smash Bros. Brawl audition day?"Hi, my name is Lucas, but you may know me from Mother 3.""So, no one in America has any clue who you are, right?""Umm, yes. That is technically correct. Yeah.""Do you have any special powers?""Well, I look kind of like Dennis the Menace.""You're hired!"For our part, we're forever going to pretend that newly announced brawler Lucas from Super Smash Bros. Brawl is actually Power Glove and radical haircut sporter, Lucas Barton from The Wizard. In the biz, that's known as an upgrade.
Yo mama so cheap, you can buy her at Play Asia for $14.90
If you caught our interview with Starmen.net's Reid Young, you already know that the chances of Nintendo of America ever bringing EarthBound's GBA sequel, Mother 3, to the states are slim to none. As depressing as that reality might be, you shouldn't let it stop you from experiencing one of the most endearing RPGs ever released.There are several walkthroughs and guides available to assist you with the game's Japanese text, and, from now until next Tuesday, import shop Play-Asia will be selling copies of Mother 3 for only $14.90, less than a third of its standard price! What more do you need to convince you to pick this one up?[Via CAG]
Itoi and Iwata continue their dinner conversation
Normally, dinner conversation doesn't translate into a multi-part feature, but most dinners don't include Nintendo president Satoru Iwata and novelist/Mother creator Shigesato Itoi. Three more segments of the "interview" have been posted on Itoi's site, called "View Things over Someone Else's Shoulder," "Something Special about Mr.Miyamoto," and "On Management: 'Enhance your Strength.'"The first two parts continue the de facto theme of the conversation, which is talking about how awesome Shigeru Miyamoto is, but the third part is most interesting to us, as it deals with Iwata's management style. Somehow, during the discussion, Iwata manages to omit any mention of his "yelling at NOA about Brain Age" tactic.
Iwata and Itoi talk shop over dinner
Perhaps inspired by our recent interview with Starmen.net's Reid Young, Shigesato Itoi, best known in video game communities for his work on EarthBound and the Mother series, posted a few English-translated notes from a conversation he had with Nintendo president Satoru Iwata six months ago over supper.Itoi and Iwata spent a great deal talking about Shigeru Miyamoto, as Japanese developers/designers are wont to do, discussing his belief of ideas being "something which solves multiple issues at once." Though the two chums didn't chat much about past projects or games, there are still ten more portions of the roundtable that Itoi promises to release over the next two weeks. We'll make sure to notify you if we hear of any megatons.
DS Fanboy interviews Starmen.net's Reid Young (part two)
If you didn't catch the first half of our two-part interview with Reid Young, co-founder of Starmen.net, an online community for all lovers of the Mother series, make sure to check it out when you have a chance. We discussed a number of topics -- what makes the series stand out from other RPGs, why EarthBound (Mother 2) failed to sell in the U.S., and how Starmen.net is building awareness on the games with its EB Siege and Earthbound Anthology campaigns. Reid also took some time to update us on what our chances are of ever receiving a western localization for Mother 3, whether or not we'll receive EarthBound on the Virtual Console soon, and the current status of the Mother 3 fan translation project. As an admirer of creative and heartfelt games, you owe it to yourself to read the rest of our interview past the post break.
DS Fanboy interviews Starmen.net's Reid Young
You can't have a proper discussion on the Mother series without bringing up the enthusiasm of its stateside fans; the two are entangled, strands wrapping around each other to make up the DNA of Starmen.net, the most devoted video game community online.Since EarthBound's (Mother 2) SNES release in 1995, Nintendo of America has, for the most part, ignored the title and its cult following. Combating Nintendo's apathy towards bringing the rest of the games to the U.S., the Starmen.net crew pooled its resources and talents together to conceive the EarthBound Anthology, a 250-plus-page collection of fan-created work and a chronicle of Mother's history.Starmen.net co-founder Reid Young sat down with us to talk about EarthBound and the anthology -- its production, ambitions, and success at catching the video game media's attention. Read on past the post break for the first in a two-part interview on Mother's past, present, and, hopefully, future.
Get Out and download this game!
Jao describes Get Out, his first homebrew release for the DS, as a "Pac-Man-like game," but it's really more stealth-based than wakka-wakka-based.Players have to escape their classrooms without being spotted by patrolling teachers. Sneaking out becomes harder with each level as the number of instructor sentries and their walking speed increases. To aid you in your noble quest, empty desks are available for you to duck into if you see one of the teachers headed for your row.Though it doesn't seem like much was put into its presentation, what with the lack of a soundtrack and the sprites being ripped from Earthbound, the simplicity and accessibility make for a very entertaining diversion. Plus, you can't argue with its price -- absolutely free! Get Out is one of over two dozen entries for Dev-FR's homebrew coding competition. Make sure to try out the many other fine applications and games that've been submitted, especially Plop Invaders!
Virtually Overlooked Week: Jason's picks
Virtually Overlooked has taken over Wii Fanboy! All this week, members of the staff will be outlining their personal picks for future Virtual Console releases. Growing up with gaming is an interesting thing these days. Many of you are part of the first generation that was quite literally born into a household with a gaming console, as I was. In my experience, if you start off in life gaming hard, you don't stop. Therefore, in the very near future, I will able to ask a random middle-aged man if he wants to go play Guitar Hero 4, and it won't be totally weird.Who am I kidding? This isn't Japan, and that guy will probably think I am, in fact, totally weird. But man, screw those non-gamers. The hardcore, like you and I, have tons of gaming memories, and thus we frequently long for the games of yore to be released on the Virtual Console. But they have not yet appeased my feral hunger, and thus do I lay these games out in a commanding fashion for Nintendo's minions to take note.You, of course, may gaze as well.
Wii Warm Up: SMAAAASH!
We've got a very simple question for you today: who's your favorite existing Super Smash Bros. character? Is it Ness, or one of the many inferior filler characters they put in so everyone wouldn't just pick Ness?
Mother 3 soundtrack on iTunes pours salt in our wound
Seeing the words "Mother 3" in the same sentence as "released" is cause for excitement. In this case, though, it's more like a kick in the stomach. The Mother 3 soundtrack has just been released on the US iTunes store. All 26 songs from MOTHER3i and the arranged album MOTHER3+ are available for $9.99 each. After almost a year of pestering Nintendo to localize the game, we get a soundtrack.A soundtrack. Are we being taunted? Is this a carrot dangling in front of our faces or a gift of mercy from the overlord? It is the first commercial release of EarthBound merchandise outside of Japan since the SNES game in 1995. And it's not like fans won't snatch it up in a heartbeat. But does it make sense to release a soundtrack for a game very few of us have played?Regardless of our bitter feelings, thank you, Nintendo. We don't mean to be demanding, but how about some graphics, a storyline, dialogue, and gameplay to go along with the music?
Nintendo 64 tech demo videos still make us cry
Remember anticipating a 3D The Legend of Zelda? How about the excitement Final Fantasy 64 stirred up? Gaming was making its first leap into 3D in the mid-90s, and Nintendo was primed to usher in the new generation with its powerful Nintendo 64. Tech demo videos got gamers hot and bothered with the prospect of playing our favorite franchises in glorious 3D. While the graphics pale in comparison to today's games, we have to admit, they're still pretty cool to watch. Hit the jump for the videos, and be prepared for the tears of joy.
Mother 3 to stay lost in translation
Any hopes that Mother 3 was in the process of being translated in English have just had their hopes dashed by Nintendo of America Treehouse Localization Producer/Manager Nate Bihldorff. In an interview with Planet GameCube, Bihldorff exclaims that he "wouldn't look forward to [a Mother 3 translation] in the immediate future," adding that none of the writers are currently working on one, though maybe some of the translators that do not work for him may be "in discussion."It has been over seven months since the title was released in Japan, and in development for years prior -- if Nintendo was to bring the title over, the process would have already begun. That it would be a sure-fire hit, with a built-in audience of rabid fans, is just another piece to the confusing puzzle: why would Nintendo, as a for-profit business, not spend the time and effort to bring the title over? The fan translation for Mother 3 has been ongoing since its launch.[Via Starmen.Net]
