History TearJerker / MOTHER

TearJerker/EarthBoundBeginnings

* The first Chapter doesn't pull any punches -- midway through, you learn of Hinawa's offscreen death. The music cuts out to add weight to the grim situation, and Flint doesn't take the news well at all. Although he has no dialogue for this part, his body language and actions, even for a small GBA sprite, effectively communicates his anguish. He literally goes insane with grief, pulling a flaming branch from a nearby fire and randomly attacking anyone who gets close to him, before furiously slamming it into the ground while [[LimpAndLivid taking on a truly enraged, yet equally broken stance.]]

-->'''Alec''': Flint! Don't do it! That won't solve anything! You'll only make its child go through what Claus and Lucas had to!

-->'''Claus Hallucination''': Everyone's waiting for you. Everyone's waiting to throw rocks at you, spit on you, and make your life hell. Who's "everyone"...? Everyone you love.

-->'''Flint Hallucination''': I’m gonna beat you. I’m gonna beat you, boy. Daddy’s gonna beat you.

* In ''VideoGame/EarthBound1994'', two sesame seeds- one white, one black- can be found in desert. They're each only one pixel big, and if you talk to them, they'll ask you to help them find each-other, because they're in love. The sesame seeds cannot be interacted with beyond this, and they're on completely opposite sides of the desert. Twelve years later, ''MOTHER 3'' came out. In the last chapter of the game, you can find a single black pixel and a single white pixel sitting on a stand, side-by-side.
* The final boss fight was probably the biggest example here. You find out that the Masked Man is Claus, your brother who you haven't seen in three years. Then when he tries to use PK Love Omega, Flint jumps in front of Lucas to save him. Then when Lucas is about to give up, Hinawa's ghost comes back and convinces them to stop fighting. We see a flashback to when Lucas and Claus were babies and Hinawa was still alive. After realizing who he is, Claus kills himself to be with his mother. It also doesn't help the Love Theme is playing the whole time, which is a sad song on its own.

** Once you persevere and reach the end of the fight, the theme changes to ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tjabm0kM-k It's Over]]''. Initially sounding like a horrifyingly-mechanised version of the Love Theme, it eventually dissolves into a quiet and somber rendition of the same piece played by a full orchestra as the theme proceeds, before eventually quietening again, leaving just an electric piano left. The theme is perfectly designed to represent Masked Man's realization of who he really is, and it's almost guaranteed to turn on the waterworks for those who listen to it.

* In ''VideoGame/EarthBound'', two sesame seeds- one white, one black- can be found in desert. They're each only one pixel big, and if you talk to them, they'll ask you to help them find each-other, because they're in love. The sesame seeds cannot be interacted with beyond this, and they're on completely opposite sides of the desert. Twelve years later, ''MOTHER 3'' came out. In the last chapter of the game, you can find a single black pixel and a single white pixel sitting on a stand, side-by-side.

** At the beginning of the fight Lucas can only heal to keep himself alive, unable to bring himself to attack Claus. [[BerserkerTears After Flint is struck down, however...]]
** Once you persevere and reach the end of the fight, the theme changes to ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWWlRKyYdgs It's Over]]''. Initially sounding like a horrifyingly-mechanised version of the Love Theme, it eventually dissolves into a quiet and somber rendition of the same piece played by a full orchestra as the theme proceeds, before eventually quietening again, leaving just an electric piano left. The theme is perfectly designed to represent Masked Man's realization of who he really is, and it's almost guaranteed to turn on the waterworks for those who listen to it.

* The first Chapter doesn't pull any punches -- midway through, you learn of Hinawa's offscreen death. The music cuts out to add weight to the grim situation, and Flint doesn't take the news well at all. Although he has no dialogue for this part, his body language and actions, even for a small GBA sprite, effectively communicates his anguish. He literally goes insane with grief, pulling a flaming branch from a nearby fire and randomly attacking anyone who gets close to him.

** During the destruction sequence, a Clayman is visible at one point, slowly walking to his death among the flames while carrying a rock. Being created solely to work for the Pigmask army, [[UndyingLoyalty he doesn't know anything else but to carry out the tasks given to him]], even though doing so will result in his end...

* Giygas's cries of pain from a mind so utterly broken, alone and lost in a void he doesn't even understand are heart wrenching. All he wanted was a friend, and all he felt was fear.

!Administrivia/SpoilersOff for Moments page. You have been warned.

When a game series' taglines are [[VideoGame/EarthBoundBeginnings "No crying until the end"]], and [[VideoGame/{{MOTHER3}} "Strange, Funny, Heartrending"]], this makes it undoubtedly one of the most [[TearJerker emotional]] franchises of all time.

!Administrivia/SpoilersOff for Moments page. You have been warned.
->''No crying until the end.''

* The fight with Mecha Drago. Even though it ''did'' kill Hinawa, fighting it feels more like a MercyKill than a real battle, since it's been made mechanic against its will and due to the boss music also carrying some tragic notes. Then, after the Drago is defeated, it sheds a single tear and dies in front of its little child. It's an almost perfect parallel of what happened to Hinawa, as pointed out by Alec when Flint goes for the final blow: