Ness (EarthBound)

Ness (Japanese: ネス, Hepburn: Nesu) is a fictional character in the Mother role-playing video games published by Nintendo, created by Japanese video game designer Shigesato Itoi. His first appearance was in the 1994 Super NES game EarthBound (known as Mother 2 in Japan), the second game in the series, in which he serves as the game's main playable protagonist. He also appears as a playable character in the Super Smash Bros. series of fighting games where he is voiced by Makiko Ohmoto.

Ness
Mother series character
Ness' appearance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
First appearance
Created byShigesato Itoi
Voiced byMakiko Ohmoto (Super Smash Bros.)[1]
In-universe information
GenderMale
HomeOnett

Ness is depicted as a thirteen-year-old[lower-roman 1] boy residing in the fictional town of Onett in Eagleland who has psychic abilities referred to as PSI. In EarthBound, Ness teams up with several other characters to battle Giygas, the main antagonist of the game and a recurring character in the series.

Conception and creation

Ness is the protagonist of EarthBound,[lower-alpha 1][2] the second game in the three-part Mother series.[3] Upon lackluster sales in North America, EarthBound became the first and only game in the series at the time to receive an English-language release, and, subsequently, became a cult classic. The game presents a humorous parody of American culture and role-playing video game genre.[4]

Ness was created by Shigesato Itoi, the creator of the EarthBound series, who intended the character to be like an actual person: "I wanted to create a game (EarthBound) with real characters; characters whom players would recognize in the people around them."[5] but, Ness inclusion in Super Smash Bros. series made him more recognizable to the fighting game instead of his original game.[6] Ness's name is a reference to "NES", the abbreviation for the Nintendo Entertainment System.[7] In EarthBound, the player is able to rename all playable characters including Ness before beginning the game's story. Itoi has stated that by doing so, it allows the players themselves to decide if Ness is the same character as Ninten, the main protagonist of Mother, the previous game in the series.[7] Ness's favorite food and favorite thing are also decided by the player, although by default, his favorite thing is "Rockin", and his favorite food is "Steak". In the Japanese release of EarthBound, players could choose other default names for Ness, one of which was John (in reference to The Beatles' John Lennon). Players could also choose Honey Pie as their favourite food and LOVE as their favourite thing (in reference to The Beatles songs "Honey Pie" and "All You Need Is Love").[8] Players could also choose the default name Mario, based on the Mario series' star of the same name.[8]

Appearances

EarthBound

Ness appears in EarthBound as the main playable protagonist, living in the town Onett in Eagleland. Ness possesses extremely powerful PSI abilities latent from birth that develop as the game progresses. Ness primarily utilizes baseball bats as offensive weapons against enemies.[lower-roman 2] In the beginning of the game's story, a meteorite crash-lands near Ness's house. Upon inspecting the crash site Ness meets a time-traveling alien called Buzz-Buzz, who states that Ness is the "chosen one" that can defeat the entity named Giygas,[9] who in the near future destroys the universe. In order to prepare for the battle against Giygas, Buzz-Buzz instructs Ness to travel to eight sanctuaries in different areas of Eagleland, where he can absorb their psychic energies in order to unite his power with that of the Earth. During his journey, Ness teams up with Paula and Poo, who also possess PSI, and Jeff, a boy-genius. Ness's next door neighbor Pokey Minch, however, allies with Giygas and antagonizes Ness throughout the game.[10]

After Ness, Paula, Jeff, and Poo visit all eight sanctuaries, Ness falls unconscious and enters Magicant, a realm within his mind.[11] There, Ness vanquishes a personification of his evil thoughts. Ness's mind then clears, causing his psychic powers to unite with each of the eight sanctuaries and greatly expand.[12] Ness, now fueled with unlimited power, awakens, after which the four characters learn that to battle Giygas they must time travel to the past. The four-time travel to the past using a time machine built by Jeff's father Doctor Andonuts, where they confront Giygas and Pokey. Giygas is defeated but Pokey flees. The four characters return to the present, and the game ends with Ness returning home.[13]

Super Smash Bros. series
Ness in Super Smash Bros. fighting Kirby on the stage based on the Mushroom Kingdom from Mario.

Ness appears as a playable fighter in the Super Smash Bros. series. Though EarthBound sold poorly in the United States, Ness became popular through his addition to the Super Smash Bros. fighting game series roster,[4] where he appeared in all five games: the original Super Smash Bros. and its sequels Melee,[14] Brawl,[15] 3DS/Wii U,[16] and Ultimate.[17]

In these games, Ness possesses PSI attacks used by Paula and Poo in EarthBound; in Super Smash Bros. Melee which could be thrown at enemies and otherwise pushes items off the battlefield.[18] The description of a collectible trophy depicting Paula states that she had taught her attacks to Ness.[19] He can also use a PK Flash, a move that he uses in EarthBound. He was originally going to be replaced by Lucas, the main protagonist of EarthBound's sequel Mother 3, in Melee but was retained after Mother 3's development was delayed considerably.[20] Ness returned in Super Smash Bros. Brawl,[21][22] along with items, characters, settings,[23] and villains from Mother 3.[24] Ness returned again in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.[17] Ness is voiced by Makiko Ohmoto who also voices Kirby.

Reception

IGN called Ness "one of the biggest surprise additions to the original Super Smash Bros. lineup."[25] He was voted by fans as the second favorite character in that game.[26] Fans of Ness were anticipating a reveal of Ness for Super Smash Bros. Brawl; the reveal of Lucas as well as the similarities between their moves in the Super Smash Bros. series, however, caused fans to worry.[27] IGN expected that Ness would be cut from Brawl as a result of Lucas' inclusion, declaring "But we'd love to be wrong about that."[28] Thomas East from Official Nintendo Magazine ranked him eighth on his list of "Smash Bros characters who need to be dropped for Wii U and 3DS", explaining "Ness was considered to be an obscure choice back in 1999, it is perhaps more of a surprise that he is still hanging around."[29] Russ Frushtick of UGO Networks stated that Ness was cool because "Ness' childlike appearance belies his potent psychic abilities."[30] The same site later placed Ness' baseball cap on the ninth spot on its "Top 30" list of "The Coolest Helmets and Headgear in Video Games", and also ranked him as the 45th best kid in video games in their "Top 50", with the writer Marissa Meli saying "he is the best RPG star of all time".[31][32] He was named as the 17th best Nintendo character of all time by GameDaily.[33] A fan animator made a Super Smash Bros mini series about Ness story campaign.[34]

Ness was among the biggest surprise inclusions in the original 1999 Super Smash Bros.,[18] which gave Mother series fans "hope for the future".[35] His spot in the game was actually intended for Mother 3 protagonist Lucas, but the developers later fit Ness into the character design[36] when Mother 3 was delayed.[37] In the original game, some characters had move sets imported from their own games, while move sets for characters like Ness had to be invented.[38] Ness was a hidden character and had odd controls, but IGN wrote that he was "one of the most powerful characters" when players perfected his psychic power move set.[18] In Europe, which did not see an EarthBound release, Ness was better known for his role in the fighting game than for his original role in the role-playing game.[39] Screen Rant ranked Ness as 3rd most Worthless overpowered character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.[40]

Thomas East of the Official Nintendo Magazine blog suggested in 2012 that Ness should be removed from future versions of the fighting game due to his lack of popularity.[39] Ness was rated 14th most overpowered character in Super Smash Bros Ultimate by Polygon.[41] A variety of merchandise depicting Ness have been produced by Nintendo; this merchandise includes a figurine,[42] and an amiibo.[43]

Notes
  1. EarthBound is known as Mother 2 in Japan.
  1. Swan, p. 120.
  2. Swan, p. 6.

References
  1. "Ness". Behind The Voice Actors.
  2. "How EarthBound transformed video games as an art form". Nintendo Wire. August 27, 2019.
  3. Garst 2019-07-27T00:24:34Z, Aron. "Let the developers of Earthbound know that you want them to localize Mother 3". gamesradar.
  4. George, Richard. "EarthBound - #13 Top 100 SNES Games". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on January 2, 2017. Retrieved January 24, 2014.
  5. "Shigesato Itoi Quotes". Retrieved March 22, 2011.
  6. "Smash Ultimate celebrates Mother's 30th anniversary with Spirits". Nintendo Enthusiast. July 24, 2019.
  7. "Weekly Famitsu – June 19, 1992". Retrieved September 29, 2013.
  8. Mandelin, Clyde. "New Game". Legends of Localization. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  9. "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Character Profiles: Ness". Shacknews.
  10. Chan, Khee Hoon (February 1, 2019). "Piracy helped Earthbound become a cult classic". Polygon.
  11. Ape, HAL Laboratory (June 5, 1995). EarthBound (Super Nintendo Entertainment System). Nintendo. Level/area: Magicant. Star Master: "Ness, you've stood on the eight power spots of the earth. From these, you created Magicant, the realm of your mind."
  12. Ape, HAL Laboratory (June 5, 1995). EarthBound (Super Nintendo Entertainment System). Nintendo. Level/area: Sea of Eden. Instantly, Ness's mind cleared, and he realized that he had possessed great power! At that moment, Ness's psychic powers radically expanded! [...] Ness made all the hidden powers his own. Ness absorbed the power of the land into his heart, and Magicant was no more.
  13. Says, Pirateprince (October 17, 2018). "Character Column: EarthBound's Porky Minch is puerile, selfish, and harrowingly real". Nintendo Wire.
  14. Walker, Ian. "Smash Bros. Players Are Desperate To Solve The 11-Year Mystery Of Ness' Super Yo-yo Glitch". Compete.
  15. "Super Smash Con final results and placements". Dexerto.com.
  16. Macy, Seth G. (October 3, 2014). "NINTENDO REVEALS SECRET SMASH BROS. FIGHTERS COMING TO WII U". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 4, 2014. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  17. Lee, Julia (December 14, 2018). "Smash Ultimate World of Light character locations and maps guide". Polygon.
  18. IGN Staff (June 27, 2001). "Smash Profile: Ness". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 25, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  19. Nintendo (December 3, 2001). Super Smash Bros. Melee (GameCube). Paula: Paula is a PSI master who used her incredible psychic abilities to call Ness from afar. Ness rescued Paula from the blue-stained clutches of the Happy Happyist cult, and she became integral to his EarthBound adventure. Originally, Ness didn't know either PK Thunder or PK Fire, so Paula probably taught him these techniques.
  20. Sakurai, Masahiro (July 17, 2001). "Super Smash Bros. Melee" (in Japanese). Nintendo. Retrieved September 24, 2013.
  21. Thomas, Lucas M. (February 1, 2006). "Smash It Up! – The Final Roster". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on February 23, 2014. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  22. Thomas, Lucas M. (November 16, 2007). "Smash It Up! – Veterans Day". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on November 3, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  23. Gamin, Mike (February 12, 2008). "Super Smash Bros. Brawl". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  24. East, Tom (March 17, 2008). "Smash Bros. Boss Screens". Official Nintendo Magazine. Future Publishing. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  25. "Smash Profile: Ness - Cube Feature at IGN". IGN. June 27, 2001. Retrieved March 22, 2011.
  26. Ohbuchi, Yutaka (June 7, 1999). "Smash Brothers Fans Vote". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
  27. Thomas, Lucas M. (February 1, 2008). "Smash It Up! - The Final Roster". IGN. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  28. Thomas, Lucas M. (November 16, 2007). "Smash It Up! - Veterans Day". IGN. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  29. East, Thomas. "Smash Bros characters who need to be dropped for Wii U and 3DS". Nintendo Official Magazine. Retrieved January 23, 2014.
  30. Frushtick, Russ (February 12, 2008). "Ness - Smash Bros. Characters". UGO Networks. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  31. Meli, Marissa (March 4, 2011). "The Coolest Helmets and Headgear in Video Games". UGO Networks. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  32. Meli, Marissa (April 29, 2011). "E For Everyone: The Best Kids in Video Games". UGO Networks. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
  33. Workman, Robert (August 22, 2008). "Now You're Playing With Power: Top 25 Nintendo Characters of All Time". GameDaily. Archived from the original on August 29, 2008. Retrieved April 21, 2013.
  34. "This talented animator is making a Super Smash Bros. mini-series". Nintendo Enthusiast. May 19, 2019.
  35. Thomas, Lucas M. (August 17, 2006). "RETRO REMIX: ROUND 25". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved June 15, 2014.
  36. "速報スマブラ拳!! : ネス" [Breaking Fist Smash Bros.:! Ness] (in Japanese). Nintendo. July 17, 2001. Archived from the original on December 30, 2007. Retrieved July 6, 2014. 実は当初、MOTHER3の主人公に変更する予定でしたが、いろいろあって遠回りしながら、元のさやに収まりました。
  37. Kolan, Patrick (May 31, 2007). "SUPER SMASH BROS: EVOLUTION". IGN. Ziff Davis. p. 3. Archived from the original on November 6, 2012. Retrieved November 16, 2014.
  38. Kolan, Patrick (May 31, 2007). "SUPER SMASH BROS: EVOLUTION". IGN. Ziff Davis. p. 1. Archived from the original on December 14, 2014. Retrieved November 16, 2014.
  39. East, Thomas (September 11, 2012). "Smash Bros characters who need to be dropped for Wii U and 3DS". Official Nintendo Magazine. Future Publishing. Archived from the original on September 15, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  40. "10 Smash Bros. Characters Who Are Overpowered (And 10 Who Are Completely Worthless)". ScreenRant. December 7, 2018.
  41. Parish, Jeremy (December 3, 2018). "We rank the Smash Bros. (and friends)". Polygon.
  42. "Earthbound Figures Of Ness, Paula, And Mr. Saturn Coming Out In Japan". Siliconera. July 8, 2014.
  43. Life, Nintendo (November 24, 2019). "Guide: Best amiibo For Nintendo Switch". Nintendo Life.
  • Swan, Leslie; Pelland, Scott; Munson, Terry; Lindblom, Marcus, eds. (1995). EarthBound Player's Guide. Nintendo of America, Inc.
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