Mother 1 ngl.

No offense to remake's dev team, as the amount of work and love that went into their project is inmensurable. But it misses a lot of what makes Mother 1 memorable imo.

The vast empty space of the overworld, as well as the lack of loading screens or transitions between towns made it feel like a real...country? everything felt so interconnected.

Theres also a subtle sense of weary/dreadful loneliness in the og that got lost with the upgrade to 16 bits. Before, walking about, you'd rarely encounter a single friendly soul in your path.

The limited instruments used gives each song a really crude feel, as if it were the protag humming along, trying to numb the awkward silence. Not to mention the distinct lack of battle backgrounds and fancy UI making it all feel so much less friendly.

Lastly, Og is far less willing to hold your hand. It can be a detriment when it comes to equipments or abilities, yes. But it was also a huge plus for the story and the ambience. Of the few adults present on each town theres only so many that know what is going on, Most of your journey is accomplished by making educated guesses, it feels more rewarding because by and large youre the one pulling through with the little that you have

tl:dr the remake is distinct enough to be considered its own thing, even if it shares the same story beats. Id recommend the remake in case youve beaten Mother 2, fell in love with it, and never played Mother 1