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User:Cukie Gherkin/Ness

< User:Cukie Gherkin

Ness
Mother character
File:Ness (EarthBound).png
First appearanceEarthBound
Created byShigesato Itoi
Designed byKouichi Ooyama[citation needed]
Voiced byMakiko Ohmoto (Super Smash Bros.)[1]
In-universe information
Fighting stylePSI

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 entry from the series, in which he serves as the game's main protagonist and playable character. He also appears as a playable fighter in the Super Smash Bros. series of fighting games where he is voiced by Makiko Ohmoto.

Ness is depicted as a thirteen-year-old[i] 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 edit

Ness is the protagonist of EarthBound, the second game in the three-part Mother series.[citation needed] He was created by Shigesato Itoi, the creator of the Mother series, who intended the game to have real characters whom players would recognize in the people around them.[citation needed] Ness's name is a reference to "NES", the abbreviation for the Nintendo Entertainment System.[citation needed]

Appearances edit

EarthBound edit

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.[ii] At 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,[2] 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 (named "Porky Minch" in Mother 3), however, allies with Giygas and antagonizes Ness throughout the game.[3]

After Ness, Paula, Jeff, and Poo visit all eight sanctuaries, Ness falls unconscious and enters Magicant, a realm within his mind.[4] 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.[5] 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.[6]

Mother 3 edit

Ness appears in Mother 3 in a movie playing in the New Pork City movie theater. The movie shows shots of many moments in EarthBound, such as meeting Master Belch, meeting Dungeon Man and approaching the meteorite in Onett to get Zexonyte. In the same movie theater, players can buy a fake bat that looks like the one Ness uses in Super Smash Bros. series. Also purchasable is a red hat that looks like Ness's.

Super Smash Bros. series edit

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,[7] where he appeared in all five games: the original Super Smash Bros. and its sequels Melee,[8] Brawl,[9] 3DS/Wii U,[10] and Ultimate.[11]

Ness was considered a "surprise addition" in the original Super Smash Bros., being a hidden character with an unusual control scheme. Besides attacking with a baseball bat and a yo-yo, Ness' strengths revolve around his psychic abilities. One ability allows Ness to hit himself and propel himself forward or upward, resulting in both recovery and offense.[12] He was originally going to be replaced by Lucas, the main protagonist of EarthBound's sequel Mother 3, in Melee, but Ness was used after all when Mother 3's Nintendo 64 release was ultimately cancelled.[13] In Brawl, both Ness and Lucas became playable,[14][15] and various items, characters, and settings from Mother 3 were included.[16] In this game, Ness gained a "Final Smash" move based on Poo's "PK Starstorm".[17]

Reception edit

Ness has received generally positive reception, considered one of the best Nintendo characters by Destructoid writer James Herd.[18] ITMedia writer Mayumi Asai discussed how Ness' relationship with Porky, specifically how Ness views Porky in his own mind. Namely, she discussed how Ness' manifestation of Porky appeared as someone who was jealous of Ness and wanted to be friends with him. She analyzed this as Ness looking down on Porky, suggesting that Ness was ignoring Porky's feelings, and discussed how Magicant was used to show how Ness was more than just "good."[19] He has been a popular character in the Super Smash Bros. series.[20]

Notes edit

  1. ^ Swan, p. 120.
  2. ^ Swan, p. 6.

References edit

  1. ^ "Ness". Behind The Voice Actors.
  2. ^ "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Character Profiles: Ness". Shacknews. December 17, 2018.
  3. ^ Chan, Khee Hoon (February 1, 2019). "Piracy helped Earthbound become a cult classic". Polygon.
  4. ^ 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."
  5. ^ 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.
  6. ^ Says, Pirateprince (October 17, 2018). "Character Column: EarthBound's Porky Minch is puerile, selfish, and harrowingly real". Nintendo Wire.
  7. ^ George, Richard. "EarthBound - #13 Top 100 SNES Games". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on January 2, 2017. Retrieved January 24, 2014.
  8. ^ Walker, Ian (March 14, 2017). "Smash Bros. Players Are Desperate To Solve The 11-Year Mystery Of Ness' Super Yo-yo Glitch". Compete.
  9. ^ "Super Smash Con final results and placements". Dexerto.com. August 9, 2019.
  10. ^ 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.
  11. ^ Lee, Julia (December 14, 2018). "Smash Ultimate World of Light character locations and maps guide". Polygon.
  12. ^ IGN Staff (June 27, 2001). "Smash Profile: Ness". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 25, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  13. ^ Sakurai, Masahiro (July 17, 2001). "Super Smash Bros. Melee" (in Japanese). Nintendo. Retrieved September 24, 2013.
  14. ^ 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.
  15. ^ 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.
  16. ^ Gamin, Mike (February 12, 2008). "Super Smash Bros. Brawl". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  17. ^ 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.
  18. ^ Herd, James (November 28, 2023). "Top 10 Best Nintendo Characters of All Time". Destructoid. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  19. ^ Asai, Mayumi (October 4, 2018). "Is the main character of the game really "absolute justice"? Porky from "MOTHER 2/3" asks "Beyond good and evil"". ITMedia. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  20. ^ Ohbuchi, Yutaka (June 7, 1999). "Smash Brothers Fans Vote". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
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