Mother 3 - Building character through combat

The combat of the mother series is in several aspects unique. These games are known for their surreal heartfelt narratives and absurd mashup of real world and JRPG elements. Something that doesn’t get mentioned enough though is that they are exploring interesting gameplay mechanics and use the fights to further build their characters.

Take the way your party uses their PSI powers for example. PSI, being the mother-equivalent of magic in other games. Lucas who starts out as a very passive person and gets called a crybaby by the game numerous times, is able to buff the party. The very direct and high-energy Kumatora on the other hand can use debuffs on your enemies. This further characterizes Lucas as someone who supports and protects his friends. Something that gets reinforced by the story later on. He also learns to shield the party and gets stronger healing techniques way earlier. Kumatora meanwhile gets increasingly stronger elemental attacks which are effective on different types of enemies.

This contrast perfectly shows what kind of people they are. Since there is no party-banter or conversations between the main cast at all you don’t get a detailed insight into the group dynamic. Using the details of the turn-based combat is a really great way to give this group flavor and let them have a unique personality without direct exposition.