Over the last two decades, the MOTHER community has been at the forefront of the ROM hacking community and the creative ideas it can bring out of people. From the earliest efforts of the PK Hack community, to even the present day with Coilsnake, MOTHER fans are pushing the limits of what can be done with utilizing EarthBound’s engine. We’ve seen many creative hacks like HyperBound, which turned the beloved turn based RPG into an engaging, psychological adventure game. And of course, most notably Toby Fox’s ventures which have directly led into the modern classic, UNDERTALE. EarthBound hacking has always been an integral part of the MOTHER community, and is partially responsible for the indie scene we have today.

However, its sequel MOTHER 3 has somewhat been left behind in all of this. Not only due to the game itself lacking the accessibility of EarthBound in the public eye, but also due to the lack of accessible tools. Our knowledge of MOTHER 3 on a technical level has always been somewhat limited, and many secrets laid behind the ROM. Miraculously, recently that’s been changing due to the efforts of a group of passionate fans. Along with it, the hacking scene for MOTHER 3 itself has been blossoming into a subculture of its own!

This all began when the EarthBound 64 Discord community began to traverse inside the ROM’s data in hopes of uncovering cut content that hadn’t been seen before. Aspiring MOTHER 3 hacker Yosuke decided to search the game’s many tables (a table is a structure to each map, which communicates to the game what will be placed in that map in terms of items, characters, enemies and objects. Each map has about five different tables), and quickly discovered a shocking revelation about the game that hadn’t been seen before.

When exploring an unused table for the campfire scene in Chapter 1, Yosuke found that originally Jonel was the bearer of bad news to Flint, complete with unused, identical struggling animations to the one Bronson has in the final game! 

This one discovery inspired the community to band together and scope every portion of the ROM possible, and since then many other unused sprites and scenarios have come to light. If you’re interested in it all, you can check their progress on the MOTHER 3 TCRF page. Some other notable discoveries include:

• Hinawa’s grave was originally in the top left corner of the central Sunset Cemetery map, rather than up the hill on a separate map to the right.
• Originally, the Pork Tank boss in Chapter 3 was fought on the campfire site, rather than within the Sunshine Forest.
• A Porky Bot is present in one of the unused tables for Master Porky’s personal bathroom.

Since then many have begun to be more ambitious with their MOTHER 3 ROM hacks, with this better understanding of the ROM and how it packages data. Yosuke himself was working on a ROM hack which restored Wess as a playable party member, but since then it’s grown into something far greater. 

This hack, entitled MOTHER 3.5 (based on the falsified 64DD expansion to MOTHER 64) seeks to restore as much cut content as possible. As explained by Yosuke, “My main aim with MOTHER 3.5 is to restore as much unused content as possible, with some creative liberties. Thanks to this hack, we’ve been making many MOTHER 3 discoveries and I’m excited to see what we find next.”

Not only does it restore Jonel in the campfire scene, as well as playable Wess, but players will be able to experience tons of other cut content for the first time as well, including:

• Bronson as a guest party member in Chapter 1 instead of Thomas.
• Flint’s cameos in Chapter 4 through 7 are restored.
• Flint, Wess and Andonuts assisting the party against the Mecha Porkies in Chapter 8 instead of the DCMC.
• Sound samples from MOTHER 64 restored, such as the original text sound and organ instrument. 

Bronson informs Flint he should equip the stick.

Bronson certainly doesn’t have the same patience as Thomas! Yeesh!

Bronson is also playable in battle!

Wess assists his son in battle. Wonder what new skills he’ll have…

A more personal party joins the Mecha Porky battle! I’m sure they’ll have some touching things to say to the team!

Many other new additions are also planned, but for now this can give yourself an idea on what the team is promising! However, another, completely original hack is currently in the making by fellow community member Moonguy, called MOTHER 3: Opposing Force (inspired by the critically acclaimed Half Life expansion.)

According to Moonguy, Opposing Force “…is a new story hack aiming to tell the tale of a mostly unseen side of MOTHER 3–that of the Pigmasks. Spread good will and happiness to the residents of Tazmily through ruthless tactics and planning, and top it all off with a relaxing night at Club Titiboo. This hack will take the player through key events of Chapters 4-7 from a uniquely porkish perspective.”

Many new and original features are planned for Opposing Force, such as the following:

• New fully playable characters!
• New skills!
• Hundreds of new lines of dialogue!
• Gear up with Pigmask weapons & equipment!
• Utilize Pigmask vehicles & tech!
• Fight remixed & rebalanced foes! (Along with some new ones!)
• Serve your superiors!
• Get promoted!
• Get paid!
• Make Pigmask buddies!
• Army discounts!
• Protect Tazmily from evil insurgents!
• Listen to the anthem roar!

Currently, you can check out the provided screenshots and trailer to get a taste of what to expect! Naturally, MOTHER 3 hacking still has a long way to go, so there’s no tentative release dates on these projects yet. However, the possibilities and understanding of the game is always developing, and the future looks brighter than ever.