EarthBound Beginnings News
June2022
Random Undertale Creator Wanted To Help Shigesato Itoi Make Mother 4
"I'd gladly give it my all to help out"
It's pretty well known at this point that Toby Fox's Undertale took quite a bit of inspiration from the Mother / Earthbound series. Heck, you only need to play Undertale for 5 minutes to see the similarities! Fox's love for the Mother games goes all the way back to his high school days, during which he created...
"50 minutes of MOTHER / EarthBound fan projects"
Although E3 isn't taking place this year, there are still plenty of things going on in the video game industry this week - with events like the Summer Game Fest. So how about a fan-made one to top it off? The Mother / EarthBound fan website Mother Forever will tomorrow be airing its very own Mother...
May2022
Video Join Us As We Celebrate 'The MOTHER We Share: Our EarthBound Story'
Mother-lovin' Sunday
It's the second Sunday in May, which means it's Mother's Day in a great many countries around the world (although not in the UK, where Mothering Sunday falls in March). We're celebrating Mother's Day this year in a very special way and looking back fondly on one particular Mother that Nintendo fans around the world are united in...
March2022
Rumour Could We Be Getting New NES And SNES Games This Week?
Update: Three more classics have been added!
Update [Thu 31st Mar, 2022 02:05 BST]: It's official, Nintendo has expanded its SNES and NES service with three more titles. Nintendo Expands Its Switch Online SNES And NES Service With Three More Titles Original story [Wed 30th Mar, 2022 13:45 BST]: New games for the Nintendo Switch Online service...
News Nintendo Reminds Fans EarthBound And EarthBound Beginnings Are Available On Switch Online
You can even download a free strategy guide
Earlier this year, Nintendo finally made EarthBound and EarthBound Beginnings available on the Switch Online service. In case you missed it, Nintendo has now issued a reminder by sharing a fact sheet on social media - highlighting a few of the fun details about each game. It's also shared a link to the
News My Nintendo Adds EarthBound Beginnings Notebook (Europe)
Dear reader, I redeemed it
My Nintendo continues to add regular physical rewards, which are more obtainable than ever courtesy of weekly Nintendo Switch Online Missions that allow us to top-up our Platinum Points. The latest reward to land in Europe is an EarthBound Beginnings Notebook, below. There are some nice details there for fans of the...
News You Can Now Read The Official Mother Novels In English
Thanks to a fan translation
If you're a Mother/EarthBound fan and are hungry for more stories set within this weird and wonderful universe, you might be interested in checking out this fan translation of the Mother and Mother 2 novel by Nyaasu. Both of these novels have never received an official English translation. They tell the stories of the...
December2021
Video We Have An EarthBound Conspiracy Theory
Fuzzy pickles, fuzzy pickles, fuzzy pickles
It's an old chestnut now. Way back in 2006 it was disappointing — if not surprising — that Mother 3 wasn't brought to the West, but after Lucas came to Super Smash Bros. in 2015 it seemed like a foregone conclusion that we'd see the third part of the EarthBound trilogy officially localised at some...
October2021
News A New Mother Tribute Comic Has Been Revealed, Pre-Orders Open In Japan Later This Month
Part of the 'Hobonichi Mother Project'
Last May, you might remember how the company Hobonichi Shinbun (owned by Mother series' creator Shigesato Itoi) launched the 'Hobonichi Mother Project'. It included a Pollyanna tribute comic - featuring comics and illustrations handled by 35 manga artists and writers - including Toby Fox (
March2021
Random Artist Reimagines EarthBound As A Modern 3D Game Series
And it's absolutely stunning
One cult hit JRPG series that many Nintendo fans refuse to forget about is Mother, otherwise known as the EarthBound series. Although Nintendo has done nothing new with Ness and the gang in many years now, diehard fans continue to show their support for this weird and wonderful IP in many different ways. With this in...
November2020
News Mother Is Getting Its Own Pop-Up Shops In Japan
As part of Hobonichi's project
While we've been waiting for the return of the Mother video game series, the Hobonichi Mother Project has been filling the void with all sorts of goodies. To top it off, it's now announced it will temporarily open two shop displays in Japan to sell Mother merchandise. The first shop, in Osaka, will open up later this...
August2020
News Hobonichi Techo Reveals Mother Themed Line For 2021, Pre-Orders Open Next Month
Even more EarthBound merch!
Japanese planner company Hobonichi Techo has revealed a brand new line of merchandise based on the EarthBound (Mother) series launching in 2021. It'll be available for pre-order next month via Amazon Japan and the Hobonichi online store. What's on offer? There are all sorts of items including notebooks, calendars,...
News Shigesato Itoi's Company Reveals New Mother Themed Merch
Fancy a Franklin Badge?
Following on from an official tribute comic in May, the Hobonichi Mother Project (from the same company owned by Mother series' creator Shigesato Itoi) has now revealed new themed merchandise (including jewellery and accessories). They'll be released on the company's online store on 24th August. Ther
June2020
Anniversary EarthBound Turns 25 In The USA, And A Whole Generation Feels Old
Mother!
As time continues to march on relentlessly, it's time for another significant video game anniversary - and today's is a particularly nostalgic one. It's 25 years to the day since Shigesato Itoi's lovely EarthBound first arrived on US shores and gamers in the West got to take on Giygas with Ness and his band of young heroes on the SNES. They...
May2020
News Official Mother Tribute Comic Revealed, More News Expected To Follow
"to be continued"
At the end of last month, the company Hobonichi Shinbun (owned by Mother series' creator Shigesato Itoi) launched the 'Hobonichi Mother Project' - promising "various contents and goods" before the end of 2020. Now, in the latest update, the Pollyanna tribute comic has been revealed. According to a translation on the
April2020
Teaser website also launched
The Mother series, as we know, hasn't really been acknowledged by Nintendo since EarthBound Beginnings was released on the Wii U eShop back in 2015. Fortunately, it's not been completely forgotten about. Although the series' creator Shigesato Itoi has said he's not particularly interested in making a fourth entry, his...
Random This Animal Crossing Island Is Probably As Close As We'll Get To A New EarthBound Game
Onett in paradise
Last week, we heard how a creative Animal Crossing: New Horizons player recreated Hyrule from The Legend of Zelda: A Link To The Past, and now this week, a Japanese player has transformed their island paradise into a place that looks similar to
March2020
News New Documentary Uncovers The Amazing Story Of EarthBound Beginnings
A story 25 years in the making
The Mother series – better known as EarthBound in the west – is one of those franchises that benefits from a massive amount of attention from the Nintendo fanbase, despite the fact that the company has done relatively little to encourage such devotion over the years. Sure, Mother 2 was localised as EarthBound on...
February2020
News Shigesato Itoi's Company Wants A Manga Artist Who Is A Fan Of The Mother Series
Hmm, interesting...
The Mother series hasn't really been acknowledged since Nintendo released EarthBound Beginnings on the Wii U eShop in 2015, but it hasn't necessarily been forgotten about. Although the series' creator Shigesato Itoi has previously said he's not interested in making a fourth entry, a recent tweet by his company, Hobonichi...
December2019
News Sony Music Is Publishing A Special 30th Anniversary Mother Vinyl Set
Now that's the sound of Christmas
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of MOTHER - the first game in Nintendo's popular RPG series and known as EarthBound Beginnings in the west - Sony Music Direct is releasing a MOTHER Original Soundtrack on Christmas Day in Japan. The soundtrack is a UK recording by Keiichi Suzuki's Moonriders. This double album set...
October2019
News Earthbound Creator Shigesato Itoi Felt 'Indebted' To Nintendo When Pitching Mother
"I owe a lot to Mario"
In a wide-ranging interview with GameCenter CX the creator of the Mother series, known as Earthbound in the west, has shared a trove of gaming memories and tidbits about the series' development with the show's presenter 'Arino Kacho'. As you may well already know, the Japanese show features comedian Shinya Arino in the role...
July2019
News This Week's Smash Bros. Ultimate Spirit Event Celebrates Mother's 30th Annivesary
Starts this Friday
The Mother (EarthBound) series is currently celebrating its 30th anniversary. As part of the celebration, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will be hosting an appropriately-themed spirit event later this week. This event will begin on 26th July and will run for the entire weekend. During this time, you'll be able to get your hands on...
News Monolith Soft Developer Recalls Pitching Earthbound Sequel To Shigesato Itoi
“Iwata-san was there as well.”
Video games can inspire some pretty fervent passions in their fan bases, and few are as passionate as that of the Mother games. Set in modern times, this RPG series follows the exploits of Ness and his friends and is known as EarthBound in the west, but we only ever got the second game on its intended console. The...
August2016
News Hobonichi Techo's 2017 Product Lineup Features Plenty Of Mother(ly) Love
Earthbound organisation
As seasoned Earthbound / Mother fans will know, series creator Shigesato Itoi now runs a company which - amongst other things - creates "Techo" planners and sells them in Japan. These notebooks are incredibly popular in the Land of the Rising Sun, and eminently collectable thanks to their lovely jacket designs. Itoi's...
July2016
News Two More Discounts Arrive on My Nintendo in Europe
A classic and some ninja action
My Nintendo in Europe has frequent but small updates, no doubt designed to keep users interested and logging in regularly. Two mid-month discounts have now arrived in the region to tempt us to part with our Gold and Platinum points. There's one discount apiece for Wii U and 3DS, one being Virtual Console and another...
June2016
Video Take A Tour Of Earthbound Creator Shigesato Itoi's Offices
Welcome to Hobonichi
Shigesato Itoi may not be as active as other Japanese developers, but his impact on the gaming world is immense. Itoi created the Mother series - better known in the west as Earthbound - and across a handful of titles touched the lives of countless gamers all over the globe. These days, he runs Hobo Nikkan Itoi Shinbun - better...
April2016
News Campaign Seeks to Spin the Tale Behind EarthBound Beginnings
Kickstart your Mother
EarthBound Beginningswas finally released on the Wii U Virtual Console last year, providing the first official western access to what is known in Japan as Mother. This is far from the whole story, however, The full tale involves an unreleased original localisation, leaked carts, and secret dealings; and a documentary team wants...
October2015
Random Fan Creates Custom amiibo of EarthBound Cast and Pokémon Trainer Red
Because wave-waiting just doesn't cut it...
Custom amiibo have become a growing craze since shortly after the launch of Nintendo's NFC figurines, and have ranged from simple paint-jobs to full-blown model changes. It's impossible to keep track of everyone's creations, but Insomniac Games' Environment Artist Bryan Renno has joined the party and has...
August2015
News We're Pretty Sure We Need These Earthbound Techo Planners In Our Lives
Shigesato Itoi mines his past for future greatness
One of the many modern-day pursuits of Earthbound / Mother creator Shigesato Itoi is creating planners, or "Techos" as they're known in Japan. His company Hobonichi makes many of these useful items, which can be used as a diary, notebook or scrapbook. Hobonichi has had plenty of success in its...
June2015
Nintendo Download 18th June (North America)
Classic Fire Emblem! Weird Smash 3DS controller thing! Discounts! More!
Some things don't even change in E3 week, whether it be the underwear of those of us watching everything unfold over three days or the arrival of the Nintendo Download Update. This week's North American update has a treat for Fire Emblem fans, some new eShop-only releases,...
News The First Mother Game Is Finally Coming To The West As EarthBound Beginnings
1989 NES prequel gets localised at last
The very first title in the critically-acclaimed Mother series is finally coming to the West. EarthBound Beginnings is the new name for this Western release of the 1989 NES/Famicom prequel to the SNES title EarthBound, which was known as Mother 2 in Japan. This is the first time that the game has ever been...
March2015
Interview Aaron Hamel on Bringing the Mother Original Arranged Soundtrack to the West
We talk about the soundtrack’s history, future projects, and much more
We recently reported on the Kickstarter campaign that has been launched with the goal of giving the Mother Original Arranged Soundtrack a western release. In just four short days the campaign smashed its funding goal and is now well on
News Kickstarter Project Aims to Fund a Vinyl Album Release of the Mother Soundtrack
Music to our ears
Video game soundtrack releases are always interesting pieces to be added to any avid fan’s collection. Be it something like the Super Mario Galaxy soundtrack or, more recently, the Super Smash Bros. soundtrack, these always serve as bearers of some of the best tunes to grace gamers ears. More often than not, these things are...
October2014
Video Check Out this Adorable Tribute to the Mother Series
That's 'Earthbound' to us
Regardless of who wrote them, fans are the ones who can really tell the story of a game better than anyone, and that statement is no truer than in this video which pays homage to the Mother series, which sadly still only exists as a single game outside of Japan. All of the peculiarity, all of the charm, and all of the...
July2014
News Mother 25th Anniversary Fanfest Teleports in this 5th July
Celebrating the Zero fans have always wanted
Many of us caught the bus with Shigesato Itoi's quirky RPG series through EarthBound, but well before that came his first game, Mother. Also known as EarthBound Zero, Mother was released July 1989 in Japan and, unfortunately, nowhere else officially since. Not one to dismiss a reason to celebrate their...
February2014
News Princess in Another Castle Launches First Trailer and Indiegogo Campaign
Showing that kids can't do what they want, but can imagine anything
Earlier this year we brought you the news that film-maker Kennedy Baruch was following up his award winning Escape movie with a feature-length film called Princess in Another Castle; we then spoke to him in detail about the project. He explained the core idea behind the film:...
