Spaceworld Demo
by: Echoes on 7/30/2020
Below is a collection of archived reports about the MOTHER 64 Spaceworld 1999 demo. All of these were written from both journalists and players who had the opportunity to play the game, so they serve as the greatest insight as to how it would have played.
JINKO’s MOTHER 3 Report
A detailed description and report posted by artist JINKO about MOTHER 3’s Nintendo 64 Demo! They wrote and illustrated this report shortly after playing the demo, but only posted the report on their website. Much later, they posted it again on their Pixiv account in 2015. Their report goes into detail about Tazmily’s layout, game mechanics, demo cutscenes, and more, all with illustrations to help visualize each piece.
Core Magazine – MOTHER 3: Hands On
Core Magazine takes an enthusiastic look at the MOTHER 64 Spaceworld demo. “Between the gorgeous graphics, smooth scrolling and control, it was outstanding,” with particular praise going towards the characters and dialogue. Out of all the games playable at Spaceworld 1999, the writer describes MOTHER 64 as their favourite – high praise when put next to The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask.
Game Spot MOTHER 3 Preview
A more thorough report on the demo from Game Spot. They give the graphics modest praise for resembling the clay models seen in the EarthBound strategy guide, albeit “nothing to shout out about”. Interestingly, Game Spot reveals more about the “Speak” mechanic in MOTHER 64, which would’ve allowed you to reason with enemies to cease the battle. The greatest accolade they give MOTHER 64 is the cutscenes, having this to say about the minecart segment: “It moved so fast and looked so good that for a minute we forgot it was on the N64.”
IGN – Best of Spaceworld
A pretty simple summary of thoughts on MOTHER 64 from IGN. This was written in their overall report on Spaceworld 1999; particularly of note is how they mention the game had shorter draw distance than the N64 Zelda games. They (like most other reports from the time) give outstanding praise to the game’s in-engine cutscenes, claiming they “look better than most anything I’ve seen for the console.” However, they weren’t so keen on the battle system, labeling it confusing more than anything.
IGN – EarthBound 64 Preview
Presented here is IGN’s complete preview of MOTHER 64, which may the most informative report on the Spaceworld demo ever published. While they weren’t certain on the story or exactly what direction the game was heading in, they called MOTHER 64 “very promising” and not your average “cookie-cutter dungeon exploration fare”. In this preview, IGN breaks down all the MOTHER 64 demo had to offer by section. They explain each mechanic put on display while also gushing over the “silky smooth graphics and perfectly orchestrated music”. What’s exclusively interesting here is an overview of the game’s controls, which according to IGN was “intuitive and easy to master”.
The Gaming Intelligence Agency – MOTHER 3 Impressions
The Gaming Intelligence Agency once wrote this nicely detailed review of the Spaceworld demo. In it, we learn about all the playable areas – including one we have no images of, where Lucas and Flint would battle enemies together! “The other areas were all playable: in one, the blonde kid (apparently the main character) teams up with the man in the black hat to battle boars and birds. A second area takes place in the sewers, where the player hops around on mushrooms and battles snakes. Finally, a third playable area sees the party in a desert, battling a giant pig cannon”. They call the battle system far more interactive than MOTHER 2’s: “…you can evade enemy attacks by quickly hitting the proper button (as in Super Mario RPG). Also, landing a critical hit knocks the recipient flat on the ground and puts him or her out of action for a round”. However, they mention that no more than three characters ever join your party during the demo. Most of all, they were impressed by the bullet train scene featured at the end of the trailer. “The demo also contained a brief movie clip, in which the kids hop on a train and escape with a monster chasing them. The sequence is stunning, and the graphics look almost FMV quality”.
Myself and Nintendo – MOTHER 3 Blog post
A Japanese Nintendo blogger’s write-up on the demo. She expresses a bit of frustration at the game’s abundance of cutscenes, but seems delighted behind the traditions carried over from the previous entries’ battle system. Most significant of all is the survey she encountered at the MOTHER 64 booth, where she asked about the 64DD expansion; she learned the game was only going to be released on cartridge.
Retokyo – MOTHER 3: Fall of the Pig King – Finally, a Playable Version!
An article on the Spaceworld 1999 demo published by retokyo.com. While short, there is some interesting information to be found here. The author remarks on their excitement for the game following years of only being shown on video. Their excitement is projected by the humorous dialogue found in the demo, from, “Space World is on today, so it’s really noisy.”, to “”This Mother 3 can be played only at Space World. That’s a rare treat!”
Tomohiro Koide Demo Review
This personal review of the MOTHER 64 Spaceworld demo comes from an archived Google Group post by someone of the name of Tomohiro Koide. He wasn’t familiar with the game prior to this, but gave it a try since the convention just opened and there was no lineup! He describes “The game starts in a village, but from there you can either suddenly go into a dungeon or cutscene.” Although he saw both the Boney and minecart scene, he stated to not understand them since he didn’t know what the story was. He was also a bit critical of the camera, stating it didn’t move much and was “difficult to see sometimes.” However, when it got to the Pork Bean and battle system sections, Koide became a big fan of the game and it’s intuitive controls. “These battles are going to be fun! As soon as the battle begins, you can tap the A button to get comfortable with the rhythm. I’ve decided to buy MOTHER 3 after playing this!”
IGN Editor Peer Schneider Retrospective
Demo Information
On July 13th, 1999, Nintendo of Japan announced their game lineup for Spaceworld ‘99. Among its many titles was MOTHER 64, which failed to deliver a demo at the previous event in 1997. The development staff were nervous about what the fans might think of the game, claiming it to be a departure from previous entries. So, on the morning of MOTHER’s tenth anniversary on July 27th, 1999, Shigesato Itoi anonymously posted a letter on MOTHER Nippon’s message board:
“A playable version of the game is planned for an August game expo, whose name escapes me at the moment. It’s a bit of a dilemma because a lot of time will be spent focusing on the demo and not the game. But I think it will show how things are.”
Although he spoke sincerely about his concerns over fan reactions, users didn’t believe the poster was really Itoi! In his message, he relayed not much time was being spent on the actual game; likely in order to avoid missing the Spaceworld deadline again. The November issue of Dengeki Nintendo 64 featured an interview with game designer Akihiko Miura, who spoke about the challenges in creating a demo version:
“An RPG is difficult to display in shows like these. You don’t have time to level up or adjust equipment given the time limit, which is the most enjoyable part of an RPG. However, I made sure to arrange a savoury appetizer for the fans”.
When Makuhari Messe‘s doors opened for Spaceworld ‘99 on August 27th, 1999, Itoi was sadly unable to make it. Instead, staff members at Hobonichi attended in his absence and sent photos over to be published on his blog. Knowing he wouldn’t be present, it was decided the demo would feature dialogue written by Itoi himself. In classic MOTHER fashion, these featured many fourth wall breaks:
“I heard from a MOTHER commercial that if you drop the M from MOTHER, you’re left with something other, but maybe you should leave the M and add a 3 instead!”
The MOTHER 64 booth featured ten stations, and approximately ten minutes average of playtime per session. Generally, those in line would have to wait between thirty minutes to an hour to play. However, those who arrived early were lucky enough to play up to thirty minutes!
After being sat down, players were greeted by the title screen, which featured the iconic logo. Apparently, a report from EXCELSIOR states it was interactive – although the details of this are unknown.
When pressing start, the demo would open up with Flint standing in the middle of Idobata Square in Tazmily. The controls allowed for dynamic interactions with the residents, who would react to player actions (such as jumping.) Some buildings would feature the home of the villagers, with one containing a man and his many pigeons. Others, such as the northernmost building from the starting position, featured a cutscene!
Inside, a rock concert featuring the D.C.M.C. played, with hundreds of Pigmask soldiers bouncing to the beat! IGN complimented this scene’s “great sound samples.” Two other cutscenes were featured in the demo, including:
- Claus helping Lucas into a minecart. It shredded through the mineshaft’s rails, before falling off the track into a waterfall.
- Boney fetching a sleeping Duster by the leg from his home to help Flint, Lucas and Wess by a cliffside.
While journalists were impressed by the visuals and Shogo Sakai’s score, some fans were mixed on the length of cutscenes – as it ate away at an already brief playtime. Nintendo and Me in particular wrote, “Waste of time! I wanted to do various things, not watch movies!”
Players who wanted to get a feel for the MOTHER 64 experience had a couple of areas to play around in. The first of which was the Snake Dungeon, a dimly lit cavern filled with wavy green textures and overgrown mushrooms! Besides enemies such as the Flying Rat and snakes, players could bounce off springy mushrooms, which could even help them reach high areas.
In terms of enemy interactions, players could flip over small enemies by kicking them, with bigger ones having to be punched first. After successfully stunning them, they could attack again to initiate the battle screen! Here, they were free to press “A” to the beat of the music to get a hang of the new “Sound Battle” system. Headphones were requested by the developers so players could get a feel for this mechanic. Alas, those who attended found it confusing, as one of the representatives at the booth stated, “…this is a mechanic you learn as you play the game, so it may be difficult to understand when first playing.”
Other new battle mechanics such as Magic were inaccessible. A lot of players had trouble with the battles, having Flint as their solo party member. But those who went off and explored the desert area were surprised to find Lucas waiting for them! As he kicked away the sand from his shoes, players could perform a “Baton Pass” and high five Lucas by pressing the Z button. This would switch Lucas to their main party member, and with came a new ability in battle named the “Call” ability! Although it was unavailable in the demo, allegedly it allowed for Lucas to summon friendly animals to help in battle.
In Lucas’s desert area, the world’s dynamic elements were put on full display. If a player ran up a steep slope, the characters would fall back down! Certain rocky parts of the terrain could also be tripped on; at one point a player found it took Lucas a full ten seconds to stand back up. Other party members and enemies would fall over if bumped into, causing sparks to fly out!
The last playable area was another desert section where players could ride a Pork Bean. By aiming the control stick and pressing B, it would hover away at high speeds! Reports called this the best part of the demo performance wise. Journalist Tomohiro Koide described the controls as “…quite different from your average racing game. I think the feeling of acceleration was quite nice.
Here, players could dodge the Supreme Tank Z’s cannonballs, which could knock you out of your vehicle! On the other hand, the Pork Bean was able to topple over any average enemy in its path. An artist named JINKO also described a potential “glitch” in which they crashed into a wall – which caused Flint to get stuck inside of it!
Any potential glitches aside, the MOTHER 64 demo was met with an overwhelming amount of praise. Reports were fond of its graphics, expressing they “resemble the clay models found in the MOTHER guidebooks.”
Core Magazine wrote, “…this game was probably my favorite at the entire show. Between the gorgeous graphics, smooth scrolling, and control, it was outstanding”.
IGN also praised the graphics and music: “…the interesting graphics, excellent sound and wonderful sense of humor certainly left a lasting impression. RPG fans should already be saving up their money for this one”.
As players exited the booth after being escorted out by the representatives, a survey was held for anyone willing to share their thoughts on the demo. A couple of these comments were shared in November’s issue of Dengeki Nintendo 64 too:
One player commented, “The graphics were very nice. The music that played was very MOTHER-like. I think I’ll buy it.” While another said: “I love the MOTHER series, so I came here to play this. The battle system was very good.”
Things were really looking up for MOTHER 64, finally having a solid release date of May 2000. Even though photos weren’t allowed at the event, many uploaded onto the internet. This kept fans patient as they awaited the next piece of news for the game…
If you would like to learn more specific details about the Spaceworld demo, check out this page on The Cutting Room Floor!
Writers & Editors
Echoes – Writer
8lackSphinx – Editor
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