It was almost nine years ago now – Nintendo’s E3 2014 Robot Chicken sketch was rolling along when a random strawman annoying reporter pleads “Come on, Reggie, give us Mother 3!” at which point then-Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Aimé replies “how about this instead?” and powers up with a Fire Flower before immolating the reporter alive for daring to ask. As a longtime Mother fan, it was a funny moment – painful, but extremely funny. All the years of asking had finally worn the man down until he’d snapped. It was a quaint little acknowledgment of a longstanding feud between the devoted EarthBound fanbase and the head figure of Nintendo of America.
Now, it’s 2023. Reggie hasn’t been Nintendo president for over four years at this point, now doing businessman things at who-knows-where and still making the same Reggie-style comments that offer his unique mixture of stiffness and goofy charm. But never one to let old feuds die off, Reggie used Mother’s Day to poke fun at Mother fans pleading for a Western release in a routine that I just can’t help but feel I’ve seen before.
Happy #Mothers_Day! pic.twitter.com/AGFuyKz127
— Reggie Fils-Aimé (@Reggie) May 14, 2023
And that’s because I have. Reggie tweeted the exact same joke last year, on the exact same occasion, for the exact same purpose – though at least this time he properly credits the original artist (@Ferisae_). Look, Reggie, I know we harangued you for far longer than you expected (or thought reasonable) about the whole Mother 3 thing, and I’m down for some lighthearted fun about the issue as much as the next fan, but you gotta try a little harder. Think aloud about where that Lucas kid in Smash Bros. came from. Say you’re playing the alpha build of Mother 4. Quip about how Mother 3 came out in 2015 and Toby Fox did a great job with it. None of these are insanely original, but at least they’re not entirely recycled jokes. Come on, man.
Anyway, did you know you actually can play Mother 3 in English right now? All you have to do is go to mother3.fobby.net and — HRK! Wh-Where… did that tranquilizer dart… come from…? THUNK.
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Written by Amelia Fruzzetti
A writer and Nintendo fan based in Seattle, Washington. When not working for NinWire, she can be found eating pasta, writing stories, and wondering about when Mother 3 is finally going to get an official localization.
