End of Year Mailbag
December 31, 2011 by The Dave
Welcome in 2012 with a good ol’ mailbag post.
For those unfamiliar, the mailbag is where we take questions you all have asked and answer them here for all to see. Group learning! You can ask your own questions through the Contact Us page.
Hello, I am very interested in how this is coming along and must ask how much of it overall have you completed percentage-wise? Any general release date? Thanks, and keep up the good work.
We generally don’t answer these types of questions since the answers can be found on the Questions and Answers page. But I will answer it here nonetheless. Coming up with a completion percentage is a difficult thing. We’d have to get really involved to give you an accurate one, and that’s something that we don’t think is necessary. If we give out an incorrect estimate, we run the risk of giving a number that represents less work that we’ve done, or represents something too high which people will take as meaning we’ll finish sooner. For this reason we are not going to give a completion percentage estimate.
As for a release date, we do not have one set, or an estimate of one. We want this game to be a polished, well constructed piece of work, so it will be done when it is done. That’s not to say we’ll be working on it indefinitely though. We’d like to finish the game just as much as you’d like to play it. We have plans for things after Mother 4 is done, so some of us are getting a little antsy.
In your post of ‘Special Features of Mother 4′ you talked about hotels and how they affect the towns. As I read this I immediately was reminded of private actions from the Star Ocean series. Now I wonder, is it at all similar to that system? Do a certain group of characters trigger different events and outcomes? And does it affect their endings or relationships in the long run? If so then I must congratulate you. If not then no trashcan burger topped with fuzzy pickles for you. So either way, win-win, ‘ey?
(For those who missed it, this message is referring to this post from 2009.) I’m not familiar with the Star Ocean series, but what you’ve described is sort of similar to what we’re doing. It’s nothing as drastic as multiple endings, but it does change little things in the long run. That’s all I’ll say. 
Is there a specific page, Youtube channel etc. where I can see screenshots and watch videos?
Indeed there are! Over on the right bar you’ll find a button that takes you to our screenshots page. There you’ll find all the screenshots we’ve posted here. On the bottom of the right bar is a YouTube button. That’ll take you to our YouTube channel where you can watch (or listen) to the videos we’ve posted. Take a look!
Hey you guys are great! You deserve a cookie!(Mother 4 development staff got a cookie!) Ok, my question is will there be any hidden bosses in the game harder then the final boss? I ask this because I was playing SMRPG and battling Culex and he is tougher then the final boss.
Thanks for the cookies~ Yes we’ll have some hidden boss battles that could be harder than the final boss. We’ve come up with some hidden bonuses we think you’ll all enjoy.
Is the game windowed or fullscreen?
The game will have both windowed and fullscreen options. You’ll be able to choose what scale factor the game will be displayed in as well. So you can magnify the game by 2x, 3x, etc. all pixel-perfect; no blurriness here.
Will the game tell us unknown secrets of the series? Like, how did Porky escape and went to the past(Mother 3). I remember in the ending of Mother 3 that Lucas’ village burned down so he went to Onett. But why is Lucas important to the series? What does porky want with Lucas? Why didn’t Porky go to the time period where Ninten was? There were a lot of things Itoi didn’t tell us.
I don’t think Lucas went to Onett at the end of Mother 3, but it’s very vague as to where everyone went so who knows! One of the great things about the series (I think anyway) is that a lot of the dots are left to be connected by the player and the fans. I think if these questions were answered, it would take a lot away from the charm of the game. We’ve approached Mother 4 with that in mind. So perhaps the game will “answer” some questions, but it will also make you ask a few more. We certainly hope it’ll get your brain stirring.
I tried to see if this was answered yet or not and couldn’t find it. Are you guys taking donations and would that help speed things along? For equipment/materials, motivation, or otherwise? I’d really like to play this game and see it reach “legit” status as soon as possible.
We are not taking donations for much of the same reason the Mother 3 Translation team did not take donations. The best thing you can do is continue to follow us and comment on things. Essentially, we work for your comments and feedback. Thank you all for keeping us going for these three plus years. 
Any cool gimmicks that will come into play later in the game? What I mean by “gimmicks” is like, in the begging of the game will you be able to type in stuff to answer questions? Such as: What is your favorite food? What is your favorite thing? What is your favorite item? etc.
You will be able to name your characters, as well as enter your favorite food and thing. We have a few more tricks up our sleeves, but we’ll save those for later.
Throughout the MOTHER series there has been many different types of weapons used like bats, guns, swords and some others. My question is can we expect to see new types of weapons for our heroes?
Yes you can. For example, Travis’ weapon type isn’t necessarily bats. You might find him wielding a toy light sabre, or something equally as deadly. I think you might end up liking Floyd’s choice of weaponry the most though.
Will there be any references or quotes from other video games besides MOTHER? Will any characters resemble other video game characters? Like how the runaway five had the two band members that looked like Mario and Luigi.
As well as pop culture references, we’ve worked in a few video game references. You won’t be seeing a companion cube or anything blatant like that though. We reference other games in much the same way that Mother 1, 2 and 3 did. Subtly.
You know how how Mother 3 has that quick *dorok* sound when you move through options, while in earthbound it has a little click sound? My question is if the options in Mother 4 will have their own tone. I just hate it when fan games don’t give an effort on little things like that, they just paste the same type of sound tone from the last game.
Yep. We’ve got our own sounds for the menus. We’re going all out- most everything is original. We’ve had pseudo-arguments about them. Whole chunks of meetings talking about how the menu sounds should sound. Hopefully you all will find them pleasant to the ear.
I was just wondering if one of you guys on the team have made a game before. It would be cool to be able to play it and see what kind of style Mother 4 would be like! Other than having that Mother series style, of course.
A fair number of us have worked on games before, but most have fallen through. I have some particularly old games available on my website if you’d like to check them out. They aren’t representative of Mother 4′s quality though, so keep that in mind. All of us have been working with or around game projects for quite some time.
That wraps up this mailbag! As always, feel free to send in your questions and comments through our contact page. We enjoy reading and answering your mail! Have a good New Year’s, and be sure to have fun and be safe. Dave out.
I can’t wait for Mother 4 to come out i will play the whole thing even all of it then finally sleep thats how much i think i will love that song.
Why do people only ever bring up the music or the humor in mother games?
The games had alot more than just those things going for them,
and the music arrangement itself wasnt anything spectacular,
even if the style was original.
Fans kill the series sometimes.
Hi guys, A Question I would really like answered…
I know the Mother series has usually been about it’s humor, atmosphere and heartwarming charm, But for me, it’s more than that, I’ve always been in love with the music tenfold.
And hearing the music composed in the youtube videos, I am ALREADY infatuated and excited for M4.
but…
….The battle system…
Are you planning on going Rhythm-based for the battle system?
I prefer EB’s extremely groovy OST overall, but Mother 3′s Soundtrack really blew me away with how involved it actually was with the game.
How about it?
Zephys lives a crazy life. But we’ll work hard to get something to you guys next week. Over two months of no updates is pushing it. I apologize for that.
YES! I finally got an e-mail account, so at last I can communicate with the Mother 4 Team (after lurking in the shadows since this project began)! Things are looking great, can’t wait for this game to be released. I’m sure Shigesato Itoi would be proud. I’ve noticed there haven’t been many updates to the blog recently, though. The one update I’ve been hoping for was your versions of the Pollyanna and Snowman themes (all of the MOTHER games have them!). Will there be any big updates soon? For example, what’s been delaying the “everything we’ve told you” post?
Heheheh there are a bunch of hidden links to stuff on the site. But they’re secret.
And yes, there will be a band, and something akin to Moonside or Tanetane. I don’t think it’d feel much like a Mother game without some of that.
I just found a secret picture on this site that scared me to death! I was not expecting that to pop up. If anybody knows what picture I’m talking about, why is that there??
Just found this and I can’t wait to play it! I do have a couple questions though! Will there be a band ala Runaway Five or DCMC? And will there be a weird location ala Moonside or Tanetane Island? I know you can’t release all of your info, but even a yes or no would be fantastic!
Are you guys to make clay models of your characters a la every other Mother game? If not, then I could totally make some for you guys for promotional stuff.
I’m so glad ya’ll are moving on up with mother4. ya’ll really deserve ice cream :3. keep it up
Man I hope this game is a hit!
@Itoi’s Apprentice: I’d prefer if the team made up a variation on this specific Mother trope. Although one instance of a “recap coffee” would be very welcome, if only to keep in with the series’ gameplay tradition, different recap-instances, like the “last will and testament” by one of the Magypsies (I forgot his / her / its name) you would read in Mother 3 or Earthbound’s Lumine Hall, would be even better. There’s a multitude of nice events and things that could be used for this occasion, from “Movie Of Your Life”-type events in cinemas to — whatever, really (“extended periods of heavily implied hallucinogenic abuse”? À la a Mr Saturn-ian “Have shroom. Feed head. Boing!”).
End of rambling.
Will there be coffee breaks that recap the game?
this Mother will have a hot spring like Mother 3?
Is there any plans to make this an open source project after release?
ALSO
I think itd be really nice if there could be some sort of demo. Any kind. It could even be only loosely connected to anything we’ll see in Mother 4, perhaps a sort of teaser or showcase of the mechanics you guys have come up with or to WHATEVER effect you would prefer, and it would be very much appreciated by all eager minds. It might even tie over alot of people a little more.
But its really just a thought. You could very well retain all artistic integrity and mystique of the project, create something that doubles as silly fun for you guys and as a very rewarding treat to the public, and meet all concerns involved. ‘-’
Again, just spitballing.
I just want to make a point of order, regarding the discussion of canon. I mean this to simply be in the sake of informing and constructive, and by no means party pooping. While this game is the greatest stake in advancement in the Mother series, and you have all gone to great lengths to keep it well within its vein, to the people who may overlook and be engrossed with wishful thoughts and fantasy, this is in fact a fangame.
The creators, indeed as gifted and professional as they may be, are more or less still just players like everyone else, and while it is not apparent but very possible that they have coordinated in some respect with someone who was apart of the original games, they arent apart of the original team in any sort and therefore can only know as much about the Mother series as any of us could work to discern as well. They dont have any secret exclusive knowledge bestowed on to them, and the fact that this is a fangame, it is an unofficial entry into the series, and therefore they could only work off what has already been established in the Mother universe. They can poke at facts of the canon, and they can place their game wherever they want in the timeline, but that doesnt mean that they can illuminate or answer anything that was never said about the games, nor does it mean that they have the authority to say that any of the events that happen in their game were the cause of events in any of the other games, given they make their game any sort of prequel. Even to extend certain aspects such as bloodlines and such might be too much taken with liberty. To look to them and think that they have that kind of power in this endeavor would be somewhat foolish clouding of wishful fantasy, and to ask it of them is even worse. You must’n forget that this IS a fangame, and that all of our great want for more Mother games doesnt mean we can force it to be something it never was going to be.
NOW
with all that said
I would absolutely love this game to be out already like everyone else,
and I love the professionalism and dedication and thoroughness going into it. As it has been said before, I have no doubt it will definitely get as close to an official game as it can possibly get with flying colors,
and I am so glad that for the most part, the team tries to remain objective in most aspects and not turn the principles of what has already been established by Mother games into something they would much rather wish it to be, while still taking personal and original takes and expression into their consideration and application.
In short
Im glad its not a shallow fanfiction “ness and lucas meet up and fight the now rogue evil dr andonaut who has taken the powarz of ninten, ness’ grandfather, in a bid to decide the fate of the werldz.”
And I look greatly forward to it coming out.
and there was something else I wanted to add but I forgot it. :#
this game is looking more and more promising with every post.
i love the fact how you guys when the extra mile to make all of the games content original.
i wasn’t barely hyped for zelda skyward sword.
but this… hell.
iv been hyped for the few years iv been watching this project.
all the best guys. your doing an awesome job.
HEY! this my first time in this site i had to visit to see if it was actually true someone was making a fangame of Mother 4 Im actually currently trying to beat Mother 3 XD well i just wanna say im cheering you guys on for you to finish the game so i can play and enjoy but if you do send the game before i beat Mother 3 im gonna haft to beat the game in a rush so i can play this one im really excited for this game
Dude, you’re awesome. I’m anxious and I believe it will be amazing.
This will be a real Mother game, for sure!
I’ve been reading these blog posts for a while, and I have to say that you guys are doing a fantastic job.
I have some very fond memories of playing Earthbound as a kid, and from the hints you’ve dropped so far, I’d say you’re doing the series justice. I’m beyond excited for the final product!
this game so far looks awesome! i even made a minecraft skin for it
http://www.planetminecraft.com/skin/travis-mother-4/
good job, and keep it up.
I like the “You cannot rush perfection!” sort of attitude that the dev team always shows off. As far as i’m concerned, take as much time as you all need, I will be waiting for ‘ya.
Awesome. I can’t say it enough, the day this justice to the Mother series is released can’t come soon enough.
I just realized that picture of the letter is written in Latin. Wow.
This is fantastic! I’m so glad that so many people are getting their questions answered. I like it how original this game is going to be and how it doesn’t copy a lot of things from the rest of the series. And, as the Rope Snake would say, “Have a good new year! Have a good new year!”
Words can’t explain how excited I was to see this update on rss. Everything looks awesome, and I can’t wait to see how things progress in the new year. (: