Dark Aspects of MOTHER 64 - Thane Gaming

Dark Aspects of MOTHER is back, with an analysis of the even darker storylines planned for the unreleased EarthBound 64! From reports of missing sailors to kidnapped children, there were lots of mysterious plot points proposed by official promotional material that never made it into the MOTHER 3 we know today.
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If you enjoyed this, please check out these other playlists & videos of mine!
► All MOTHER/EarthBound videos:
• EarthBound/MOTHER 3 Vi...
► Dark Aspects of MOTHER: The Complete Series Playlist
• Dark Aspects of MOTHER...
► How The Notebook Trilogy Inspired MOTHER 3:
• Playlist
► The Meaning of MOTHER Spirits in Smash Ultimate:
• Playlist
► How MOTHER Inspired Animal Crossing:
• Playlist
► All Dark Aspects of Nintendo episodes:
• Dark Aspects of Ninten...
Sources & further reading:
Translations, books, and articles
⍟ The 64DREAM '96 & '97 interview translations by Chewy
yomuka.wordpre...
yomuka.wordpre...
⍟ Nindori.com Itoi interview translation by Chewy
mother3.fobby.n...
⍟ The MOTHER 3 Times - Scans, translations, and summaries by Kody NOKOLO. Translations from The Cutting Room Floor by Echoes
mother4ever.ne...
tcrf.net/Prere...
⍟ MOTHER 64 interviews featuring Itoh, Sakai, and Miura archived by Mother Forever & TCRF
mother4ever.ne...
tcrf.net/Prere...
⍟ Dengeki N64 February 1997 interview archived by Mother Forever
mother4ever.ne...
⍟ Shigesato Itoi & Satoru Iwata Famitsu June 1997 interview summary by Kody NOKOLO
mother4ever.ne...
⍟ Official EB64 cancellation interview translated by Chewy
yomuka.wordpre...
⍟ About & History of MOTHER 64 articles by Mother Forever
mother4ever.ne...
mother4ever.ne...
⍟ 64 Dream 2000 interview translated by Mycom Inc.
mother4ever.ne...
⍟ Legends of Localization Book 2: EarthBound by Mato
www.fangamer.c...
⍟ Legends of Localization articles by Mato
legendsoflocal...
legendsoflocal...
Images
⍟ MOTHER 64 screenshots archived by Mother Forever. English translations by Mato & Lone, edited into images by SnowWood
mother4ever.ne...
⍟ All sprites used in this video were ripped by The Spriters Resource. Ness sprites ripped by M. Bison and Depressed Mario
www.spriters-r...
⍟ Cabbage 64DD magazine scan by Unseen64
www.unseen64.n...
⍟ Literal cabbage stock photos by Pumuki111 and ulleo
⍟ EB64 magazine scan by Mato
legendsoflocal...
⍟ Haniwa photo by Daderot
⍟ Fried shrimp photo by allybally4b
⍟ Coffee & newspaper photo by markusspiske, photoshopped by me
Footage
⍟ Wii Would Like To Play uploaded by Foulowe59
• HQ Nintendo - Wii Woul...
⍟ Doraemon movie clip uploaded by CartoonSeries YT
⍟ Shigesato Itoi gold mining TV special uploaded by 波多腰鉄治 and Kris Meagan
• Video
• Video
⍟ Hobonichi Tour filmed by StephenVlog
• Hobonichi Tour [4K Vlo...
⍟ Chewy livestream by Fangamer
www.twitch.tv/...
⍟ Game Catalogue II Itoi Interview achived by Mother Forever
⍟ EarthBound 64 remastered trailer w/ English translation
By Echoes, Sam, Park, and Irikachana
⍟ EarthBound 64 trailer color corrected by Park
⍟ Spaceworld 1997 Footage recovered by Zen64
mother4ever.ne...
Sound FX
⍟ Crickets chirping by FunkApache
freesound.org/...
⍟ Coughing by joedeshon
freesound.org/...
⍟ MOTHER 1 and 2 sounds by Starmen
starmen.net/mo...
starmen.net/mot...
Follow me for channel updates on social media:
► Twitter - / thanegaming
► Instagram - / thanegaming
#mother3 #n64

[@globingoblin]

The darkest part is that it never saw the light

[@aerth6946]

Deep.

[@FindingsOfAnArmouredMind]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH *screams in pain at a pun*

[@Viper-py4pg]

this guyyyyyyyy

[@DJmisterpeluca]

I was hoping some material was going to be leaked during the 2020's Nintendo massive leaks

[@kingofsnacks8566]

NOOO MY BRAINCELLS

[@datbarry5264]

I've been obsessed with finding out more info about Earthbound 64, we just seem to be getting more and more info on how it could have been, with the leaks and such! So this video was absolutely intriguing, and entertaining! Thanks so much for all these quality videos you make, I always find out new things about my favorite games!

[@andrewcoe3343]

IDK. "That" just looks like a real-life grasshopper/insect that got really close to the camera. I think it would be very in-line with the Mother franchise, if "That" is setup to be a big monster, only to find out it was simply close to the camera lens. The cameraman also exaggerating it's size to 40cm would be in-line with this gag. Like a more complicated version of an innocent creature casting a big scary looking shadow.

[@wi11ow8]

Was not expecting this, but this was definitely a treat! This Totally made my day :D and Im also glad that enough info about M64 has been dug up to make another dark aspects!

[@ThaneGaming]

I don't think a video like this could've been possible without all the more recent discoveries by Mother Forever, particularly The MOTHER 3 Times translations! Without them, we'd really only have the screenshots & trailer, along with some of the interviews I mentioned. I'm very thankful for all of those dedicated enough to hunt down and archive these resources for a better glimpse at what could've been!

[@wi11ow8]

@@ThaneGaming hopefully someday we can find a playable Demo of M64. See what it could have been and how it shaped into Mother3 :D

[@ThaneGaming]

@@wi11ow8 I really hope so, too. We know that there was a playable version of MOTHER 64 available to Brownie Brown during the GBA game's development, so that must still exist in a drawer somewhere 😅

[@nernguan995]

Dragon Quest pfp

[@wi11ow8]

@@nernguan995 yea

[@NichoMania2]

I always thought the zombie male in the graveyard looked more like Ness than Claus, though the zombie woman definitely looks like Hinawa.

[@Sand-Walker13]

Oh god... imagine if that lady was Hinawa. That'd really mess me up.

[@AlonzoTompkins]

The real dark aspect of Mother 64 is the development issues the game had.

[@CLTurtle]

3:38 Well, now we know why this game wasn't released, because Quest 64 beat them to it, as it was an RPG that made people cry...albeit for a different reason

[@thedankarcade8473]

Whenever this game is brought up it just unsettled me it is just simple graphics and the mysterious nature I can't explain it

[@ThaneGaming]

I agree, there's an inexplicable, mysterious air unique to N64/early 3D games and graphics. I think the fact that this game is vaperware just adds to that feeling!

[@thedankarcade8473]

Yes you are correct it could also just be that graphics like those were before my time I'm pretty sure I'm the only one in my age group that knows about mother 64

[@dustgraystone9448]

Awesome video! For some reason the photo of the "unknown beast" actually scared me lol.

[@davidgoldammer348]

One day we are gonna learn what the ending of this game was gonna be and we will be scarred.

[@The93195]

i think “THAT” is just the mole cricket or the flying mouse

[@rickshabusky4553]

What would work 64 Porky look like?

[@FiggsNeughton]

This is a great example of why RPG Maker type games are so important. Itoi had multiple ideas that went through a lot of iterations for Mother 3, and yet the corporation stars never lined up for most of those ideas. Instead of wasting time with Nintendo, a person like him should just make their own games and release them on Steam. Can you imagine if we had half a dozen Mother games rather than what we got?

[@Bird-wz7nx]

Do you understand how important Itoi and the Mother team are to Nintendo though? Imagining them going off and making RPG Maker games instead means that gaming as a whole is way worse. They had their fingers in all the pies in the 90s, so in some roundabout way, if you like anything Nintendo (and kinda by extension PlayStation because of that failed deal lol) you do NOT want to butterfly effuck around with it

[@FiggsNeughton]

@@Bird-wz7nx Artists make deals with megacorporations because of the promise of reach. But when the corporation's promises turn into endless red tape and excuses, it's time to cut the cord. Nintendo wouldn't have even release Mother 3 in the States if not for the herculean efforts of people totally unaffiliated with Nintendo. You're mistaking the corporation itself for the creative power of the handful of employees in the game dev division. I would argue that RPG Maker games are having more of a creative cultural impact than Nintendo churning out tired franchises to aging soyboys. In fact those old Nintendo games more closely resemble modern RPG Maker games than the shiny and safe corporate products they're making now. Sorry if I'm rambling.

[@elsiebartlett6808]

“That” looks like a close up of a mole cricket 😉 And the clay men on 64 almost seem Gumby-like

[@ThaneGaming]

You're probably right, I'm sure it is the Mole Cricket 😅 I'm glad you used Gumby to describe the Claymen, I almost put a picture of him in the video because that's what I first thought of too!

[@elsiebartlett6808]

@@ThaneGaming it would definitely fit with the humor of the game since the mole cricket is one of the weakest enemies 😂 Great vid, loving your stuff! Thanks for sharing your research and love of these series.

[@princessfetus]

his mii is actually so funny

[@cellophanezebra4663]

Wow, there was so much planned for the 64 and it (most of it) never saw the light of day

[@kingofsnacks8566]

Me looking for the missing 62 other mother games

[@MadotsukiGaming]

rip this game

[@ThaneGaming]

Now I'm picturing a pixelated Nippolyte burying the photo of his N64 model

[@Ivan_Silva325]

Personally i prefer this version instead the GBA because we got more content and people says everytime: "Ugh this game looks like sh*t" but the art and the desings of the characters, enemies and places are so cool to me, makes this game so strange an extraordinary. And i hope one day I can play the full game or just the demo 😅😅

[@MadotsukiGaming]

I agree but I prefer the current design we have for Kumatora but the rest are really cool and it's disappointing that they were never properly used.

[@ThaneGaming]

I think the GBA designs generally did a good job of repurposing the originals and making them look their best as pixel art, but plenty of them are quite different with some missing elements that made the N64 models and environments special, so I understand your preference. For characters, I love the look of N64 Flint and Ionia, but especially Leder. I agree that Kumatora's GBA design is better though 😅

[@shadowlugia0011]

Also the N64 version gives more of a horror-esque feel due to the low poly models and such

[@beauwalker9820]

It's a shame many gamers don't appreciate low-polygon art. Pixel art still gets lots of love for it's unique styles, and expressionism, but sadly early 3D games are just told they look bad. I grew up with polygons so I appreciate them more than most do, and some polygon games still look great to me.

[@brostinson2798]

I've been waiting for this one!

[@ThaneGaming]

I'm happy to finally be able to share it! I learned a lot in making it 😁

[@brostinson2798]

@@ThaneGaming I'm surprised that there was a lot of things here i never knew Mother 64 stuff was something i used to obsesses over wen i was in middle school so i really enjoyed this vid

[@ThaneGaming]

@@brostinson2798 there was a lot that surprised me too, the amount of new information that's been found in just the last couple of years alone is insane. Hopefully even more will surface in the future--enough that I'll have to revisit it!

[@SuperStar-ss1pn]

as someone who never liked mother 3 THIS was a much better version

[@oi6915]

As someone who loves mother 3, yeah 64 was better

[@SuperStar-ss1pn]

@@oi6915 oh really?

[@ThaneGaming]

It's refreshing to hear from those who see the potential in the 64 version! I personally wouldn't say I'd rather it have been released for that console as I love it on GBA, but I think it could've easily been a contender for best N64 game, and I really really want to see the demo surface one day

[@SuperStar-ss1pn]

@@ThaneGaming hell I hope we find that "90 percent build" that is probably long gone by now

[@ThaneGaming]

@@SuperStar-ss1pn Itoi, Miyamoto, and Iwata themselves estimated the game being around 30-60% complete, but then they agreed the actual number didn't really matter. The scenario was finished, all that remained was "finding the overall balance, finishing the directing, and polish". They did have some kind of playable version of MOTHER 64 for reference during the GBA game's development too! I believe it still exists somewhere--whether we ever see it or not is a different story 😬

[@casdy1773]

new series: sad subtexts. its about game subtext thats sad

[@sokoTV2]

I can see why Japan was disappointed with the Mother 3 we got when they were able to read all this information about M64.

[@lane3398]

3:42 I sometimes think that M3 was designed to make people's stomachs turn in sorrow and disgust. Hinawa dying in the first chapter, Claus going missing (then you having to endure the relentless onslaught of Claus, brainwashed by the Pigmask Army), and having to just sit there as he chooses to "Game Over" himself right in front of you. Honestly, I do wonder what other messed up stuff Itoi had planned before it was scrapped.

[@ThaneGaming]

For sure! I think he succeeded in that design goal with the GBA version, even if his original scope wasn't fully realized. Fassad & Salsa's uncomfortable relationship is another great example of this twisted feeling he wanted to convey; M3 is so effective at evoking complicated emotional responses with storytelling techniques unique to video games.

[@nickk3077]

What I love about Mother 3 is that the game's world is rich in detail. Every villager has a story and a personality and all of them change over time! However, I feel like there still room for improvement in a sequel.

[@ThaneGaming]

That's my absolute favorite thing about MOTHER 3 as well, the attention to detail is unmatched! The sheer amount of missable dialogue still blows me away, most everyone has something new to say even after the most subtle plot developments. I would love to see Itoi's detective idea fully fleshed out for a sequel/spiritual successor!

[@nickk3077]

@Thane Gaming I prefer EarthBound’s more grounded world, but I also really liked the nuance in the character writing in Mother 3! I just need a sequel that blends both together well. I don’t know much about Oddity, but maybe that game could do it!

[@TheAnimationStationTAS]

This is a certified Mother is full of dark and mature themes and this is a natural progression of that moment.

[@machina5]

This is indeed a certified-

[@tempest6027]

the ironic thing about them saying they were afraid to make mother 4 because of mother 3's difficulties is that oddity, previously called mother 4, was in development hell for about 10 years before being cancelled

[@ThaneGaming]

It's very fitting, that's for sure. Anything that calls itself a MOTHER game has to be doomed to some development Hell, and each sequel spends a little longer in it 😅 With that said, I'm personally pretending Oddity doesn't exist until another major update comes out, and even then I'll be skeptical until a playable demo is released because I have been following the project for all these years...

[@franciscoalejandro7567]

Was it ever officially canceled? I thought it just went into development limbo and never came back.

[@nickk3077]

Dang. If this game was actually released, it could have potentially rivaled Final Fantasy VII as one of the most impactful RPGs of all time! Wow! Can you imagine living in such a reality?

[@frostbite_1244]

No because Nintendo refuses to release mother 3 to the west.

[@ThaneGaming]

Apparently, Computer and Video-Games Magazine described the footage they saw from E3 '98 as, “Many times more impressive than Final Fantasy VII”. We can never know if it actually would've been, of course, but at the very least I think MOTHER 64 could've easily been a contender for best N64 title on a console with very few RPGs.

[@AnAverageGoblin]

baseless assumption

[@byHexted]

What the hell are you talking about just from the concept? There is nothing to indicate that you could say that about any game that didn’t release at that time, most games don’t get released for a reason

[@pretzel6629]

Ff7 is honestly way darker than people give it credit for. The enemies gave me night terrors.

[@SwaggyG_2102]

Earthbound 64 is like the Holy Grail of cancelled video games. If it were to somehow, SOMEHOW get leaked, then all Hell and Heaven would break loose in my opinion.

[@aerth6946]

I share the thought

[@piranhalettuce]

Earthbound 64 is right next to Sonic X-treme in terms of canceled video games.

[@aclstudios]

@@piranhalettuce Except Sonic X-treme kinda looked like garbage tbh.

[@MZ-zu7wk]

I'd say PT (Silent Hills) takes that title now, though.

[@zombies4evadude24]

We got Starfox 2 and “Air World” so I don’t think it’s impossible to get Earthbound 64 sometime soon, either a recreation or the original version.

[@TheFatestPat]

11:21 This might actually be a joke. It looks a bug landed on the camera lens just as the picture snapped. And "fluttering in people's faces" is exactly what bugs like to do.

[@ThaneGaming]

Another comment mentioned that it could be the Mole Cricket, so I think you're both right 😅 maybe I can sleep easier now

[@Ranixo286]

Tazmilly's Mothman....local legend or Chemerical Abomination

[@denisvaida6357]

That is definitely the mole cricket lmfao

[@SonicTheCutehog]

15:20 I heard a theory that it might be an early version of New Pork City. Porky may have originally built the city off of his memories, in which he used to live in Onett and became Monotoli's right-hand man in Fourside.

[@ThaneGaming]

I really like that theory! We can't know for sure of course, but that makes a ton of sense. I love that this was included in the final batch of screenshots shared by the devs, but it doesn't quite have a match in the GBA version. It's open-ended enough for theorizing, but not so vague we have no idea what it was supposed to be!

[@EmilyVioletMarie]

I’ve played mother 3, three different times and I never knew about any of this!! Thank you for making this video! Love the channel keep up the great work!

[@ThaneGaming]

Thanks so much! I've played through Mother 3 a bunch too, but had limited knowledge of the 64 version before making this. I'm glad I had an excuse to really comb through all of the interviews and articles collected over the years, it made for a really fun script to write 😄

[@kennethkay7226]

I can only imagine the messed up ideas Itoi had for the original game. Like what if the pig mask army kidnapped Boney and turned him into a chimera? The game would make you kill your robot dog before you get to your brother at the end as a foreshadowing. Just an idea I had.

[@Bird-wz7nx]

Or just straight up pull a Fullmetal Alchemist on us?

[@masterseal0418]

If only Earthbound 64 released. It would've been a masterpiece, if not coming out in the west via the MegaPak used for Donkey Kong 64 and Zelda Majora’s Mask. Next up, Thane should handle the darker aspects of the Metroid series. From Super Metroid(the point where the franchise turned horror-esque and intense), to Metroid Dread.

[@ThaneGaming]

I'm very interested in eventually getting to Metroid; Dread was actually the first one I played! I just picked up the Prime trilogy from the Wii U eShop, and I heard Zero Mission is a must play. I do have other upcoming projects planned of course, so it'd be a while but I know I'll get to Metroid at some point!

[@masterseal0418]

@@ThaneGaming Thx, go ahead!

[@skinnyweenie8679]

I recalled a Mother/Earthbound youtuber theorizing about this "destroyed onett" screenshot (@15:20) possibly being a early version of New Pork City (along with being from Mother 3's ending and NOT the escape spaceships from Leder's speech.) I remember him explaining how there are small callbacks to Mother 2 in the final GBA version of New Porky City which shows Porky being obessed with his past, the N64 version originally had this idea being pushed more further with New Pork City being a recreation of the towns and cities from Eagleland. There is also other screenshots of the early N64 version of New Porky City which supports this theory. Also, even if this was supposed to be a "destroyed onett" then how in the heck would the Monotoli building be there---?

[@Viper-py4pg]

Its so wild seeing the N64 version of things/themes/characters after playing Mother 3! Poor Itoi-Sama had this whole game in his head and was forced to keep it in there for quite a while longer

[@musichousesection1264]

good job man i love these videos loved learning about mother 64 since its a little obscure

[@ThaneGaming]

For sure! This was really good for me to make as well, Mother 64 was a bit of a gap in my knowledge of the series so I'm glad to have now researched it thoroughly!

[@musichousesection1264]

@@ThaneGaming yeah the fact that people had to be send to the hospital because of stress from mother 64 is scary

[@tidepoolclipper8657]

Another thing to mention is that Porky was suppose to die in the GBA version, but apparently what was going to happen to him in the N64 version would have been very dark.

[@Spectrik]

I was so excited for this one

[@ThaneGaming]

Let me know what you think! I'm excited to finally be able to share it

[@Spectrik]

@@ThaneGaming honestly I'm extremely impressed. I'm an extremely avid Mother fan particularly Mother 3, and was unaware of alot of this content surrounding a game that doesn't even exist. (Sadly)

[@ThaneGaming]

@@Spectrik so glad to hear it! I honestly didn't know a lot of this stuff before reseaching for the video either; so much new information has surfaced recently thanks to Mother Forever and the EB64 community! Even though I'm glad we got the version of MOTHER 3 we did, it's really interesting to learn about what could've been 😊

[@liliflower1376]

Holding out hope that one day,,, one day,,, a build will surface

[@Substitute102]

This is really interesting! Though, with Mother 3 as it is being my favorite of the trilogy, hearing everyone say this seems way better than it is a little demoralizing, eheheh... While I love learning about this kind of stuff, and would be interested in seeing more beta things and/or a fan recreation, Mother 64 seems like it really would not have been my cup of tea, and that would be basically it for any interest I have in the Mother series. It's precisely Mother 3's specific brand of angst and storytelling that got my attention, and while that's certainly not entirely gone (the chimeras, mainly), it seems like it sure would have hit different, in a way I wouldn't find as compelling, personally... Anyways, excited for the next Dark Aspects, when it comes out! It's cool to see what Mother 64 could have been regardless!

[@ThaneGaming]

The MOTHER 3 we got is one of my favorite video games ever, and it's my favorite of the trilogy too. This comment section is actually the first time I've seen a number of fans saying they prefer the N64 version, in my experience I've mostly seen negative reactions to screenshots and people thankful it released with pixelart instead! Personally, I think the 64 version looked really cool and advanced for its time, but I also prefer our timeline of MOTHER 3 coming out on GBA. Everyone has their own preferences though, I think the intrigue of what could've been draws a lot of people to want MOTHER 64 to have been released instead!

[@Substitute102]

@@ThaneGaming Really? gwek... I may not have preferred this version, but I think the screenshots look pretty cool ;v; Sure, it's not as "refined" as pixel art tends to be, but... and yeah, that's fair! I know I've felt that way about my fair share of games at times. I just really wanted to break up the overwhelmingly 1 opinion >///////

[@NukeOTron]

Okay, regarding the Claymen: Have you seen Unico in the Island of Magic? (I can't believe I have to bring THAT up.) In the show, we have our villain, Kuruku (or Kukuruku), a puppet who turns other people into "living puppets", and makes a castle out of them. The N64 Claymen remind me of those living puppets from THAT Unico movie.

[@ThaneGaming]

I have not seen that Unico movie, but I have a family member who's brought it up before! I just pulled up a picture to see what you're talking about and wow--you're exactly right. They look really similar! That's funny, I would've used a clip if I had known. Is the film any good? I love older animation so I'd be willing to give it a shot, if not I can just skim through for the parts they're in.

[@NukeOTron]

@@ThaneGaming The question of "Is it any good" is always a matter of opinion. It's animated by Madhouse, and based on the works of Osamu Tezuka, so it's high-quality animation for something so old. I find Unico in the Island of Magic a decent and well-made show, but I prefer the previous film The Fantastic Adventures of Unico. ...but that's just me. If you want a DVD, Discotek Media has you covered (if it's not out-of-print).

[@ThaneGaming]

@@NukeOTron DVD does appear to be out of print, which is too bad. Looks like it's currently available to stream on Crunchyroll though!

[@aerth6946]

I've been eagerly waiting for this. Thanks!

[@ThaneGaming]

Of course! I've been amped up to share this since the Direct announcement, and eager to start working more on the MOTHER novel video 😁

[@MusicTheoryforGamers]

Cool insights!

[@ThaneGaming]

Hey thanks so much! I just discovered your channel somewhat recently--I love your streams, particularly the MOTHER 3 ones of course. I didn't catch them live but I listened to all of parts 1-6 later while exercising & doing chores around the house! It was especially great to learn about the specifics of why the rhythm combos are much more difficult with the later variants of those battle songs. Your content is so original & interesting, I respect what you're all about 😁 thanks for commenting here!

[@josh6453]

“Disappoint the players,” huh? *glares at Naughty Dog*

[@skinnyweenie8679]

Another thing, is wow. I didn't know that the Mole Crickets existed in N64 Mother 3:p.

[@aortaplatinum]

Based on what we've seen in trailers and interviews, I think the N64/DD game would have had largely the exact same story as the GBA version, just with more content and an expanded narrative. Like for instance, that famous scene of Claus and Lucas in the minecart was very likely between Hinawa's death and the boys being discovered in the river, with Hinawa having sent the boys off in the minecart to get them away from the Drago chimera that would kill her. Since GBA is both far more limited in it's capabilities and GBA carts can hold much less data than an N64 cart and *WAY* less than a DD disc, it would make sense to cut some of the superlative stuff. The "betraying the player" idea is interesting, because depending on who you ask, that goal was perfectly achieved by the ending of the GBA version, and the original console version of the game likely had the same story beat, but with more intense presentation and maybe lacking the epilogue where you walk around as the END text and learn the world was successfully recreated.

[@PKSkyler]

wow. that was a lot of info of Mother 64 I somehow never knew (huge mother series fan here). Over the years most ppl have claimed that Itoi himself said Mother 64 and Mother 3 are the same, or that Mother 3 did more than Mother 64 ever could, etc. But from the more we get leaked of Mother 64, it seems more and more like they're different games.

[@ThaneGaming]

That's a great point! While the two games fundamentally explore very similar themes & concepts, it's all the side stories and details that differentiate them (and it's MOTHER 3's little details that make the game so special). Itoi had a different mindset at the time he initially wrote the script too, so while the core experience likely remained intact, we know it would've been filled with new and different ideas not present in the MOTHER 3 we know now.

[@FindingsOfAnArmouredMind]

I'm positive the info dump from Leder wasn't supposed to be in the original 64 version as that game was originally going to have 12 chapters (4 more than the GBA final) and you were supposed to discover those revelations as you'd advance in the game.

[@Lynk56]

I love that this was uploaded not long after I watched your other dark aspect of mother videos. 👌 thank you for compiling all this info! I believe you mentioned it once towards the beginning that there was a site you reference a lot, was this one already linked in the description for mother 64 or was it a more general one? If you have any links you recommend mother fans to read I would be super grateful if you’d be willing to paste them here. Also, is that picture of you around 18:25? That’s sick. 😂 where did you find that mural?

[@ThaneGaming]

You are welcome! Yes, all of the sites are in the description but there is a lot to go through there so I'll link them here explaining each 😁 This is the MOTHER 3 interview I said was "required reading", it's split up into two parts with 11 pages total. This interview is a big reason why MOTHER 3 is my favorite of the trilogy: mother3.fobby.net/interview/ This is the MOTHER 64 cancellation interview, translated by Lindsay (Chewy). Lots of great exclusive information here: yomuka.wordpress.com/2013/08/18/earthbound-64-cancellation-interview-itoi-miyamoto-iwata/ This link is an archive for all of "The MOTHER 3 Times" articles, scanned and translated by Kody NOKOLO. All of the information you could ever want about MOTHER 64 can be found on this site as well, if you click the MOTHER 64 tab. There's an about page, history of the game, and sections for enemies/characters: mother4ever.net/the-mother-3-times/ That is a picture of my wife and I at 18:25, it's a mural painted on the side of Fangamer's office in Tucson, Arizona! We live about 10 minutes away from Fangamer, so I actually pass it quite often which is a crazy coincidence 😅

[@Kev701]

Wait, so was Kumotora older in the 64 version, as in the GBA version, she's the same age as Lucas and Klaus.

[@revolutionarymagic3459]

Really wish we got this game instead tbh. It just seems more interesting.

[@ThaneGaming]

I can understand that. Since the MOTHER 3 we got is one of my favorite games ever I wouldn't want another version of it to have existed instead, but the 64 version is endlessly fascinating to me and I really hope the demo somehow surfaces

[@Bitstacker]

Cry at the end ? Cry at the finish? I cried before it even came out 😢

[@eduardorpg64]

"The original Mother 3 was supposed to be darker and sadder". Dear God, Mother 3 was already quite dark and sad for me 😟

[@ZKP314]

*starts taking notes for maybe including as flashbacks for my outline of an Arceus fanfic* Edit: For the record, I already have a character who’s first introduction is murdering a random townsperson at the end of Chapter 3 to bring the village back in line, culminating in A) the revelation that he murdered his parents in order to be free from his limitations, B) his regicide of Porky to take control of the Pigmasks, C) him admitting that he put a soul of himself into Claus to hijack the needle wish cycle, and D) He’s one of the first Chimeras the Pigmasks did, and experience with this helped with the Masked Man’s surgery.

[@oem4444]

2:07 I thought about a new series too. xD

[@DanHoger]

Awesome video. I can tell you put in a lot of research. The video flows really well, too. Your transitions from topic to topic are seamless and held my attention the entire time. I remember being hyped for EarthBound 64 back in the day, and then disappointed when it was canceled. I was unaware that there was this much information about it out there. Really nice to learn about all these details and think about what could have been. Thanks for making this video.

[@ThaneGaming]

Thanks for telling me what about the video specifically you liked, it's very helpful and encouraging! I really enjoyed writing the script for this one since I learned so much as I went, so I'm happy to hear that it flowed well.

[@ianoneill5189]

Dude I love your voice. Listening to these before bed is perfect for me. Thank you 🙏🏼

[@ThaneGaming]

As someone who now always listens to podcasts/KZbin videos before bed, I'm glad to hear you think I have the voice for it! Thank you 😄

[@rickrijks4560]

I got a FF14 ad before this video started! Oh, and about the video itself, imagine if we lived in an alternate reality, where Mother 64 DID come out.

[@nonamebleach]

That burp always had a lil barf in there. 🤢 not quite enough to be a full barf but enough to make it a possibility lmfao.

[@chromeisbadalex6466]

I love how for all the pictures of shit we want to see badly everyone whips out the trusty potato

[@instancee_bear]

Isn't "that" just a mole cricket?

[@ThaneGaming]

You know, you're probably right 😆 maybe I can sleep easier now

[@AStupidID]

It would be so cool if we got a tech demo of Earthbound 64 on NSO. It would never happen but just releasing the latest ROM they had as a piece of history would do so much for video game preservation.

[@BIGSHOT__]

What if we do instead of normal mother 3 :0?

[@johanandersson8252]

OKE-SKA

[@Samsung_Samuel]

I think it is time for Donkey Kong 64 to get its dark aspects video, don't you agree?

[@ThaneGaming]

I've gotten a lot of requests for it, so maybe 😮 I'll do another community poll!

[@graveyardsmash2711]

@@ThaneGaming I concur for Donkey Kong 64! Some of the areas in the game actually scared me quite a bit more than the Nintendo 64 Zelda games did.

[@SodiumNuke]

1:27 where did you find the pigmask sounds?

[@sahilhossian8212]

Lore of dark aspects of mother 64 momentum 100

[@sonic40001]

Thane, do you remember the show Relic Hunter? I kinda think the intro for it would have matched the more adventurous aspects of EB64 (such as the minecart scene or that imagine with Claus epicly pointing that stick for Boney).

[@ThaneGaming]

I just looked it up and no, I haven't seen Relic Hunter--I'll have to watch the intro now and get back to you, that's really cool!

[@sonic40001]

@@ThaneGaming , thanks a lot! Looking forward to it! 😄

[@sahilhossain8204]

Hmm yes the mother we could've got

[@Silver_Red4248]

Ooo I bet this will be interesting.

[@ThaneGaming]

Let me know if you like it!

[@SonicTheCutehog]

4:12 F

[@ThaneGaming]

The initial plan was to just include the full quote, but I was going frame by frame and stumbled upon the F alone and thought it was too good to pass up 😅

[@ZeranZeran]

15:43 Oh my GOD XEHANORT IS IN EVERY GAME

[@guyug6940]

whats that tuscon vid you privated

[@ThaneGaming]

It had a slight error, I'll fix it now and reupload

[@abaddon5420]

cool viseo

[@ThaneGaming]

Thanks for saying so!

[@nascour5991]

I will say as dark as this game looks, idk about it's graphics like most n64 games I don't think it would've aged well. So in a funny kind of way the troubled development and then shifting to gba actually kinda helped mother 3 be more memorable imo

[@WoodenClockwerk]

Let's goo! I've literally rewatched the mother dark aspect complete series over 10 times

[@ThaneGaming]

That's amazing, I'm so happy to hear that 😅

[@AnAverageGoblin]

mother 3 is so boring and overpraised, this sounds so much better

[@aerth6946]

Why downplay one to praise another?

[@AnAverageGoblin]

@@aerth6946 Because 3 is boring and 64 sounds better

[@aerth6946]

@@AnAverageGoblin M3 on the GBA is basically the abridged version, I get it. But that still doesn't mean it isn't a good game in it's own right. That said, I'm a nerd for the N64 version and I personally believe it's the better one, but I don't go around bashing the GBA M3 just because "it's overpraised" It's praised for a reason.

[@AnAverageGoblin]

​@@aerth6946 I'm not going around bashing m3. chill the fuck out spazz. i never said it was bad either

[@someguy3263]

@@AnAverageGoblin That doesn't explain anything