 The Mole Cricket: Reminiscent of Buzz Buzz
- Let's move from "strange" to "funny". So, the "Oxygen Machines" from Chapter 7... I felt they were the greatest machines in the series.
Itoi Yes, they were certainly the "strange and funny" aspect, weren't they?
- Games have always featured various kinds of ocean floor exploration, but you must be the first person to ever create such machines.
Itoi Yes. They're machines, but then they even say, "Good work today." after a hard day of work. (laughs)
- They're all gathered together after work is over. (laughs)
Itoi They probably all gather together on their own. Just like when city buses all gather together at the station, it's like they're all returning and telling each other, "Good work today." I'm quite fond of that. (laughs)
- When you use the machines, the screen turns pink...
Itoi Yes, when you're being sucked in. Oh, wait, no. When you're being blown into.
Both: (laugh)
Itoi I always mix those up! (laughs) That's when you're being blown into.
- It seems like you're being sucked in, too, though... (laughs)
Itoi No, that's just a misunderstanding.
The Oxygen Machines, hailed as the best machines in the series. Everyone blushes slightly. |
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- Speaking of funny, the mole cricket was great, too.
Itoi I really hope people embrace the mole cricket. It's like he almost understands himself, but not quite. Somewhere out there, there's probably some president of an emerging company who feels the same way. (laughs) It's like, in the beginning they were doing music, but they ended up quitting because they didn't actually have any talent. So it's like, "What, you'd been doing it the whole time without any talent, and you just noticed now?"
- So, that's why the defeated mole crickets turned their attention to commerce?
Itoi No, no, that's just what eventually happened. I'm actually a fan of people who are like that mole cricket. He did his best, didn't he?
- The first time the mole cricket appears, the mother squashes him so easily that I thought it was going to be his only appearance.
Itoi That partly acts as a reminder for fans of Buzz Buzz12. Kind of like, "Whoa, another bug showed up and died?"
- Oh, I see. Mole Cricket Hole was pretty great, too. (laughs)
Itoi With the elder mole cricket's sympathy towards youngsters and such. Only an adult can really understand the flavor of that. (laughs) Of course the elder mole cricket knows the mole cricket is just acting tough and will probably be beaten, but at the end he says, "Perhaps mole crickets aren't so powerful after all." (laughs)
- And that's what led them to learn about the business world. (laughs)
Itoi When I made that part, I had a really hard time with it. But on the other hand, I also hoped the development team's get-togethers would never end...
- And that's why the enjoyment of the people making the game comes through so clearly when playing the game. That really hit home for me.
The elder mole cricket's sympathetic feelings towards the young ones fills his words. |
 Note 12: Buzz BuzzA messenger from the future that appears in MOTHER 2. He takes the form of a bug.
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 Itoi's Song the Origin of the Save Frogs?
- So this time around, we save through frogs.
Itoi Yes. Even before the game was on the shelves, I was anticipating many questions about why saving wouldn't involve calling Dad. Actually, I was already being questioned about it even before then. (laughs) Changing the system of a game is, in the end, going to absolutely guarantee complaints. What I'd really like is for people to think that the frogs were even better than phone calls to Dad.
- It was extremely fun coming across all of the different situations of the frogs. Like the geezer frog in the old folks' home. (laughs)
Itoi Yeah, that one's like, "Sh-sh-shave your game, shonny?" (laughs) But really, the question I fear most is, "Why frogs?" But they are tiny, they seem like they could be anywhere, and they won't get in your way, yet they do stand out. A dog wouldn't really seem like a save point. I've written a song called Furimukeba Kaeru13. When someone fails, a frog comes along and says, "Oh, it's nothing to worry about." The lyrics show, hey, you're being told this by a frog. It's obviously not worth being that upset about. It's a frog telling you this, what more do you want? (laughs) That's where it comes from.
It's amazing how saving the game can actually be this much fun. Ribbit. - The wonderfully fun Mr. Saturns show again this time.
Itoi I like when the Mr. Saturn shows up later to give you the Franklin Badge.
- Oh that was good. With the Mr. Saturn trying to cover his face and stuff. (laughs)
Itoi It's good, isn't it? (laughs) I love that part. After he says, "Farewell!" and departs from view, he's actually still sitting there, just slightly off screen. (laughs)
- (laughs)
Itoi He's off screen, so he feels relieved about it. (laughs) That was actually just a bug in the game. But I decided to leave it that way.
- That's a good bug. So you wrote some text for him.
Itoi I wound up wanting to keep him there. I like stuff like that. I'm the game's creator of course, but I was able to enjoy that from the player's view, too.
Incognito Mr. Saturn. His stealthy costume is just too cute. |
Note 13: Furimukeba Kaeru
"If You Turn Around, Frog"
A song by Akiko Yano with lyrics written by Shigesato Itoi.
Note: Kaeru is a pun that means both "to return/go home" and "frog".
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