The player
 | Spoiler warning:this article or section may contain major plot or ending details! Proceed with caution. |
The player is simply whoever is playing the game, and can be given their own alias in-game. They are mentioned in all three games, and play a vital part inEarthBound andMother 3. In the Japanese versions of the games, the player is asked to name themselves in both Japanese and English to allow them to appear in the credits.
InEarthBound Beginnings
The option to name the player is first presented inside of thehealer's house inSnowman. IfNinten uses the phone, his father will ask for the player's name. If he does not use the phone in Snowman, another opportunity arises in theswamp east ofYoungtown, whereLloyd's father asks for the player's name if they have not entered it in yet. If they already have, he allows them to change their name one last time before confirming it. The land mine in theYucca Desert refers to the player's name, but only if they have entered it by that point. If the player's name has not been entered, it is omitted. If the player simply chooses not to talk to Ninten or Lloyd's father, the default name is "NO NAME".
Unlike the two games after it, however, the player is not acknowledged by the in-game characters. The player's name does, however, appear in the ending credits, even if they have not entered their name.
InEarthBound
The first time that the player is ever mentioned is inToto byTony on the phone. He breaks thefourth wall by asking the player to say their name and to make sure to take care ofJeff for him. Later, afterNess and his friends cure theTenda of their shyness problem, the Tenda chief asks the player to sign their name, giving them one last chance to confirm their alias. In the final battle, afterPaula runs out of people topray for, the player prays for Ness and his friends, dealing the final damage needed to defeatGiygas. Finally, the player is given a special thanks in the credits.
In the Japanese versions of the game, the two times to enter one's name serve slightly different purposes. In Toto, the player's name is given in English letters for usage in the game's all-English credits, while the Tenda Village instance asks for the spelling in Japanese characters for usage in the final battle's text. Since both usages are obviously in English in the American release, the second instance was relegated to simply double-checking the name.
InMother 3
The player is first asked for their name inChapter 1 whenFlint offers aprayer before entering theSunshine Forest. The name is later confirmed inChapter 4 byMr. Brown. The player's name is used at the very end of the game, which is only activated if the player moves the END? message as if it were a character in the story. They speak to everyone who survived the awakening of theDark Dragon.
The two opportunities for entering one's name in the Japanese version of Mother 3 function similarly to the two instances in Mother 2, asking once for the name in English and once for it in Japanese. TheMother 3 fan translation edited this to match EarthBound, with the second input being just a double-check.
Hard Mode
In theMother 3 fan translation, if the player names themselves "HARD MODE" at either time in the game, the difficulty of enemies will increase, including a raise in enemystats, lower experience gained upon winning, etc. If done inChapter 1, it can be reset inChapter 4 if the player enters any other name when speaking toMr. Brown. To get a message informing the player how to access hard mode, all enemies must be recorded in theBattle Memory before speaking to the finalSave Frog in the game. The enemy's alternate sprites do not need to be recorded, however. Despite this, Hard Mode can be accessed even without seeing this message.
