For fighter info, seeNess (SSB),Ness (SSBM),Ness (SSBB),Ness (SSB4), andNess (SSBU).

Ness
Official paper clay model of Ness fromMother 2.
Universe	EarthBound
Debut	EarthBound (1994)
Smash Bros. appearances	SSB Melee Brawl SSB4 Ultimate
Most recent non-Smash appearance	Mother 3 (2006, cameo)
Console/platform of origin	Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Place of origin	Onett,Eagleland
Created by	Shigesato Itoi
Voice actor	Makiko Ōmoto
Article on WikiBound	Ness

Ness (ネス,Ness) is the main character of the cult classic SNES RPGEarthBound, the most successful game in theMother/EarthBound franchise. As a member of the "perfect-attendance crew", Ness has been featured as a playable character throughout theSuper Smash Bros. series. He appears as the sole fighter of both the game and the series inSuper Smash Bros. andSuper Smash Bros. Melee. He appears inSuper Smash Bros. Brawl,Super Smash Bros. 4, andSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate alongside fellowEarthBound fighterLucas, who hails fromMother 3. In all five games, Makiko Ōmoto voices Ness in English with a false American accent.

Origin[edit]

Ness's in-game sprite fromEarthBound, the basis of his appearance in the originalSuper Smash Bros.

InEarthBound, Ness is a courageous, kind, and helpful boy from the fictional town ofOnett, located in north-western Eagleland. Hisfavorite food is steak and his signature PSI move, named for his favorite thing, isPSI Rockin. He possesses strong psychic powers, and in the year 199X, utilizes his abilities to defeat an alien invasion by the forces ofGiygas, the villain ofEarthBound Beginnings. Ness is the successor toNinten, the hero ofEarthBound Beginnings, sharing a very similar design and some abilities; however, the two are distinct characters.

On a dark night in the year 199X, Ness gets woken up by a meteorite crash. He investigates the crash site, where he meets his neighborPorky Minch and an alien namedBuzz Buzz. Buzz Buzz tells him that he is the boy who will save the world, and sends him on a mission to collect theEight Melodies that tie together the Earth's power. He is joined in this quest byPaula,Jeff, andPoo. By recording and collecting the Eight Melodies using hisSound Stone, Ness gains access to the realm ofMagicant within his mind and unlocks the power necessary to defeat Giygas.

Although capable of wielding several types of weapons, such asslingshots andyo-yos, Ness's signature weapon is abaseball bat. Ness's PSI powers includePK Flash, PSI Rockin,Lifeup, and a variety of status moves. Several PSI techniques used by Paula and Poo (PK Fire,PK Thunder,PSI Magnet, andPK Starstorm) would be borrowed by Ness for combat in the series.

Five years after the release ofEarthBound, Ness would make an unexpected appearance inSuper Smash Bros. and continue to be playable in the series, carrying his legacy. Ness's appearances in theSuper Smash Bros. series have considerably boosted his public image. His appearance in the very firstSuper Smash Bros. took fans by surprise, but his inclusion was massively applauded; thus, he's been in everySmash installment since. Through theSuper Smash Bros. series, Ness became more or less a mainstream character in gaming culture rather than remaining a curious cult character of Nintendo's '90s days who would be known only to the highly devoted Nintendo fandom.

InSuper Smash Bros.[edit]

As a playable character[edit]

Official artwork of Ness fromSuper Smash Bros.

Ness was a bit of surprise addition to the roster for the originalSuper Smash Bros. Many players had never expected such an obscure character to turn up in the game, which seems to be reflected in-game; he is a secret character, unlocked by completing the 1P Game on a difficulty of Normal or higher, using three lives or less and no continues.

Strangely, none of Ness's special moves are his own; his special attacks, thePSI Magnet,PK Fire, andPK Thunder, (down special, neutral special, and up special, respectively), were originally used by one of his party allies, Paula inEarthBound. A possible explanation for this discrepancy is offered in the sequel to this game,Super Smash Bros. Melee, which states that Paula may have taught him these techniques. Additionally, because Ness, in his origin game, was mostly the Healer and Defense member of the group (his moves being Healing, Shield, Paralysis, etc.), directly translating his abilities fromEarthBound would leave him with few offensive attacks.

Ness is ranked 10th out of 12 on the currenttier list.

In-game description:

Ness was a seemingly-average kid fromOnett, but in truth, he was destined for much more. When a strange meteorite landed near his hometown, the little boy with psychic powers set out to save the world. Little has been said of Ness' character, and much remains hidden.

Works:

• EarthBound (SNES)

InSuper Smash Bros. Melee[edit]

As a playable character[edit]

Ness, as he appears inSuper Smash Bros. Melee.

Ness returns inSuper Smash Bros. Melee, though this time as a default character. He keeps all of his special moves and, as all other veterans, gains a fourth one:PK Flash, which is assigned as his neutral special move. PK Flash is Ness's first "true" special attack, as his other special moves were not used by him inEarthBound. PK Fire was also changed to Ness's side special.

During the development ofMelee, Sakurai was going to remove Ness from the roster and includeLucas instead, despiteMother 3 (Lucas' debut game) being unreleased at the time. However, due toMother 3's release on the Nintendo 64 getting cancelled, Ness got to stay in the game.

Ness was mostlynerfed fromSmash 64 toMelee, similar toKirby,Pikachu, and arguablyYoshi. One major reason is his very weakgrab range. Though his nerfs were not as drastic as Kirby's, his tournament representation is weak and his viability is still poor. He is ranked 23rd out of 26 on thetier list in D tier, somewhat lower than his placement in the originalSuper Smash Bros.

Trophies[edit]

As a playable character, Ness has three trophies - a normal trophy won beating theClassic Mode with Ness on any difficulty, and "Smash Red" and "Smash Blue" trophies are acquired by beating the Adventure and All-Star modes, respectively.

Ness's Classic Mode trophy inMelee

Ness

Ness is a young boy who's mastered the psychic power known as PSI. Ness was living a normal life in the suburbs of Onett until a meteor crashed into a nearby mountain and sent him on a wild adventure. Believing in the ultimate powers of wisdom, courage, and friendship, Ness proves that some heroes come in small packages.

EarthBound (6/95)

EarthBound (Not Released in Europe)

Ness's Adventure Mode trophy inMelee

NessSMASH

The key to mastering Ness is controlling his unique midair jump, which makes up for what he lacks in speed. His PK Flash attack may seem weak at first glance, but it grows more powerful the longer you hold down the B Button. To do a lot of damage with PK Fire, try to burn your opponent as many times as possible.

B: PK Flash

Smash B: PK Fire

Ness's All-Star Mode trophy inMelee

NessSMASH

Ness's mind is his best weapon. PK Thunder is a PSI missile weapon that can be guided using the Control Stick, and if Ness hits himself with it, he turns into a living missile capable of doing massive damage. This move can also be used for recovery. PSI Magnet turns energy missile attacks into health; try out certain Pokémon for stamina replenishment.

Up & B: PK Thunder

Down & B: PSI Magnet

InSuper Smash Bros. Brawl[edit]

As a playable character[edit]

Ness, as he appears inSuper Smash Bros. Brawl.

On January 20, 2008, Edible, aGameFAQs member, made a topic in the site'sBrawl message board about an official trailer on the Japanese Wii website that leaked Ness (as well asLucario andJigglypuff) being playable characters in the game. Inthis screenshot taken of the video, a Ness icon can clearly be seen in the lower right hand corner when the Claus sticker is selected, confirming Ness's return as a playable character. The video in question can be viewedhere.

Ness returns as an unlockable fighter inBrawl after a brief stint as a starter character inMelee. Ness was officially revealed to be a playable character inBrawl on February 1st, 2008, the day afterBrawl came out in Japan.

Ness is ranked 26th on thetier list in D tier, beingbuffed fromMelee, with a general increase in the power and speed of his attacks and a vastly superior grab. However, he gained a major flaw in the additional 10 frames of lag he gets when grab released, making him very vulnerable tograb release combos, most infamously thezero-to-death grab releases fromMarth andDonkey Kong.

Trophy[edit]

Ness's trophy inBrawl

Ness

An average boy whose life changed when he found a meteor and an alien on a nearby mountain. The alien warned him of a future threat, and adventure ensued. He can use psychic energy known as PSI and also wields a bat and yo-yo. This brave youth gives his all to defeat the evil Giygas.

:EarthBound

:Super Smash Bros.

:EarthBound (Japan and US Only)

:Super Smash Bros.

Sticker[edit]

Name	Game	Effect	Fighter(s)
Ness	EarthBound	Attack +33	Ness Lucas

Ness (EarthBound)

InSuper Smash Bros. 4[edit]

As a playable character[edit]

Ness, as he appears inSuper Smash Bros. 4.

Ness was leaked as a playable character inSuper Smash Bros. 4 via theESRB leak, and later through twitch.tv streams. He remains an unlockable character in the 3DS game, but is part of the starting roster on Wii U, making it the first game sinceSuper Smash Bros. Melee where Ness appears as a starter character. He also sports an updated appearance and all new voice clips.

Ness ranks 28th out of 54 on thetier list (being tied withLucas). He has been heavily buffed from hisBrawl incarnation, with not only his extra grab release frames removed, but also the general changes brought about bySSB4, such as the removal ofhitstun cancelling andedge-hogging, proving beneficial to him as well, as now he possesses an efficient and strong aerial combo game, and he can more easily recover with PK Thunder, since he can grab hold of an edge regardless of whether or not an opponent is hanging from it. Slamming into a wall duringPK Thunder 2 no longer leaves Ness immediately helpless, as he is now capable of initiating PK Thunder a second time, and PK Thunder's projectile now goes through opponents until its "tail" leaves Ness' body, improving his overall recovery further. Yet, his reliance on using PK Thunder to recover is still susceptible to being intercepted and foiled, especially by newcomersRosalina andVillager. Nonetheless, as a result of his vast improvement from the three previous games, Ness has gained decent results in tournaments.

Trophies[edit]

Ness's trophy inSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

Ness's trophy inSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U

Ness

Hailing from Onett, a small town in Eagleland, this young boy's ordinary looks hide his psychic powers. Ness fought against the evil Giygas in EarthBound, and in Smash Bros. he unleashes some of the same PSI moves. Watch out for PK Thunder, a guided attack that can also launch Ness like a rocket!

Hailing from Onett, a small town in Eagleland, this young boy sports ordinary looks that hide his psychic powers. Ness fought against the evil Giygas in EarthBound, and in Smash Bros. he unleashes some of the same PSI moves. Watch out for PK Thunder, a guided attack that can also launch Ness like a rocket!

:EarthBound (06/1995)

From Onett in Eagleland comes this young lad. He may not look like much, but he has powerful psychic abilities, and they really come in handy in EarthBound. They come in handy in this game, too. Did you know you can control his PK Thunder bolt? Aim it at Ness himself to send him flying, absolutely clobbering anyone in his path!

:EarthBound (1994 (JP))

:Mother 1+2 (2003 (JP))

Ness (Alt.)'s trophy inSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

Ness (Alt.)'s trophy inSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U

Ness (Alt.)

Ness may have psychic powers, but that doesn't mean he shies away from getting physical. His side smash packs a real punch if you hit enemies with the end of his bat, and it can even deflect projectiles! His up and down smashes also have a lot of range—Ness can land his strikes with ease!

Ness may have psychic powers, but that doesn't mean he shies away from getting physical. His side smash packs a real punch if you hit enemies with the end of his bat, and it can even deflect projectiles! His up and down smashes also have a lot of range—try giving them a spin!

:EarthBound (06/1995)

Ness may have psychic powers, but that doesn't mean he shies away from getting physical. His side smash packs a real punch if you hit enemies with the end of his bat, and it can even reflect projectiles! His up and down smashes also have a lot of range, meaning when you play as Ness, it's always easy to land hits on your foes!

:EarthBound (1994 (JP))

:Mother 1+2 (2003 (JP))

InSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate[edit]

As a playable character[edit]

Ness, as he appears inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Ness returns as a playable character inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate. He retains his status as an unlockable character like inSSB,Brawl, andSmash 3DS. Many of his attacks now feature effects that are more reminiscent of theEarthBound games, such as PK Fire having diamond-shaped PSI effects. Paula and Poo now accompany him for his Final Smash. As both the first character faced in timed encounters and the first character inKirby's unlock tree, he can potentially be the first character to be unlocked.

Ness was greatly buffed in his transition toUltimate, with his speed and power increased. The return of directionalair dodges provides Ness with a reliable mixup in place ofPK Thunder for a saferrecovery. Not only do his up and down yo-yo smash attacks function the way they did prior toSSB4, but they now also hang offledges, providing him with a new powerfuledge-guarding technique. His special moves have also been improved, withPK Flash no longer making him helpless,PK Fire having less endlag,PK Thunder dealing more damage and knockback, andPSI Magnet receiving a damaging hitbox.

Competitively, Ness was a relatively popular character for many years, spearheaded by players such asGackt,Scend, andSyrup. However, his reputation remained contentious depending on the region, and as such, he is ranked 44th out of 82 characters on the current tier list.

Spirit[edit]

Names in other languages[edit]

Language	Name
Japanese	ネス,Ness
English	Ness
French	Ness
German	Ness
Italian	Ness
Chinese	奈斯,Ness 内斯
Korean	네스,Ness
Dutch	Ness
Russian	Несс
Portuguese	Ness

Trivia[edit]

• Starting inMelee, the texture on Ness' yo-yo says the release year, withMelee's saying "HALLAB NINTENDO 2001 DOLPHIN LOOP". FromBrawl onward, this was changed to "SUPER NINTENDO (year) MOTHER", with year referring to the corresponding year the respectiveSmash game was released; 2008 forBrawl, 2014 forSSB4 and 2018 forUltimate.
• The "PK" (standing for "Psychokinesis") prefix in most of Ness's (as well as Lucas's) special moves originates fromEarthBound Beginnings, where it is used to denote PSI moves that directly inflict damage on an enemy. Moves that affect healing and PSI Point (PP) restoration instead start with "PSI", such asPSI Magnet. In the American localization forEarthBound, however, translators changed this naming convention and all offensive moves start with "PSI" rather than "PK". Therefore, the names "PK Flash" and "PK Starstorm" (which did not appear inEarthBound Beginnings) are actually different from what those moves are named in their only official English-language games from theMother/EarthBound series.
• While Ness' game (EarthBound) was released in North America and takes place in a stand-in for America, his in-game voice inSmash Bros. has a Japanese accent, whereas Lucas, whose game (Mother 3) was released only in Japan, speaks using an American one.
• Ness's "OK!" taunt is based on a voice line inEarthBound, prompted once the player confirms a name given to something when creating a new save file, sayingOKですか (Is it OK?). The line was provided by Shigesato Itoi during the game's development, after his voice was being unknowingly recorded. It also appears inMother 3 with the exact same purpose.
• Ness was considered being replaced byLucas inMelee andBrawl, andJigglypuff was also considered to be cut in those games,^[1] making them the only known members of the "Original 12" that were considered being cut at certain points in the development of subsequent games in theSuper Smash Bros. series.
• Ness andCaptain Falcon were the first characters to debut as unlockable characters before becoming starters in the next game.
• Ness, Captain Falcon andTerry Bogard are the only characters to be voiced by Japanese actors and speak English in all language tracks.
• Whenever Ness is an unlockable character, he is always the first one to be unlocked from playingVs. Mode (excludingSmash 64, which does not feature this method of unlocking characters).
• If the lineup at the beginning ofBrawl isn’t counted, Ness is the onlySmash 64 unlockable fighter to appear in all theopening movies.
• Ness,Lucas,Min Min, andKazuya are the only characters to have areflector outside ofspecial moves. Coincidentally, all (except Kazuya's) are asmash attack.

References[edit]

v • d • e EarthBound (Mother) universe
Fighters	Ness (SSB ·SSBM ·SSBB ·SSB4 ·SSBU) ·Lucas (SSBB ·SSB4 ·SSBU)
Assist Trophies	Jeff ·Starman
Boss	Porky
Stages	Onett ·Fourside ·New Pork City ·Magicant
Items	Mr. Saturn ·Franklin Badge ·Ramblin' Evil Mushroom
Enemies	Devil Car ·Starman
Other	Boney ·Flying Man ·Kumatora ·Paula ·Poo ·Porky Statue ·Rope Snake ·Ultimate Chimera
Trophies,Stickers andSpirits	Trophies (SSBM ·SSBB ·SSB4) ·Stickers ·Spirits
Music	Brawl ·SSB4 ·Ultimate
Masterpiece	EarthBound
Related content	Home-Run Bat ·MEGALOVANIA

• Characters
• EarthBound universe
• Ness
• Trophies (SSBM)
• Trophies (SSBB)
• Trophies (SSB4-3DS)
• Trophies (SSB4-Wii U)
• Stickers
• Spirits