Regarding the jarring lightheartedness: You’re definitely not the only one with that reaction, though I personally didn’t mind the contrast. Most of my Mother 3 posts are laden with spoilers, but after you finish the game you might like to delve into the archives for more on that topic.

I got the translation setup through emulation, and have been trying to figure out when to hit the attack buttons. I tried just tapping it in time with the music, hitting it with the upbeats, the downbeats, on the rests..and nothing. The taps SEEM to be immediate upon pressing the emulator key corresponding to the A button, but I’m not seeing combos (although, I did see something that LOOKED like a combo in the “you got 2 hits” message when I was tapping the A button mercilessly in time with all fo the beats int he music). I’ll keep trying, because this sort of secret system really appeals to the musician in me.

The game itself, wow. I’ve NEVER been this invested in the GBA-style sprites before. They’re obviously pixels and I find the way the artists and animators express the rather complicated story and emotions with simplistic art tools surprisingly effective. The events in the first part of the story, before the scene at the graveyard, are really intense, and emotional. I have young chilredn, and I could relate to the character’s emotional response very well. The mood of the piece, including the fire, then rain, plus the ASTOUNDINGLY good music, all come together to create such a good mood. I actually was upset at the game when it tried being lighthearted again after the dark events in the early part.

I’m just about to head out to find the kids in the game, so I look forward to more and more story connection and emotional resonance. Thanks for posting so much about the game, and talking it up on the Confab. GREAT game.

Regardless, I will always enjoy my beloved JRPGs. The good ones, anyway. =)

Angelo, I’ve not played Patapon, but from what I understand it sounds like a similar idea.

MOTHER 3’s battle system is novel, however, in that one must time their strikes with the background music itself.

For me, that’s enough. :-) I see a huge difference between “hit the button at the right time” and “hit the button in time with the music.”

But it still feels a tad abstract, in my book, and does not address the issue of the grind itself, even if it does make things more engaging and pleasurable.

I’ll grant that it feels abstract (though as I said in the first paragraph, I think that problem is endemic to JRPGs in general). However, I disagree that the battle system doesn’t address the grinding problem — that’s the very reason I like it so much. Battles are less tedious, and if you’re good at the combos it’s rarely (if ever) necessary to go out of your way to gain more experience.

But it still feels a tad abstract, in my book, and does not address the issue of the grind itself, even if it does make things more engaging and pleasurable. But I wholeheartedly agree that this is the way things will (and must) progress for the JRPG. Combat can still be turn based, but the player should still be able to choose to be an active participant to some extent. It’s a hard balance to establish, but when done right, it feels fresh and exciting. The old plain turn-based method, in contrast, is not aging well, at least to me.

The battle system does seem to remind me of PSP’s Patapon. Is it similar, or am I completely off with this analogy?

This. I guess it’s time to embrace a less grindy RPG to work up my endurance to play the new Persona.

My interest in Mother 3 is growing exponentially… I now at least have a DS, maybe I’ll invest in a flasher card…