I had just finished reading the SM.net Debate over the "Most Important Character" featured in Earthbound when the inspirational idea behind this article struck me. It was this portion of CPTCrunch's "consummation" of the debate that stood out as I read it.

"Paula's prayers don't in themselves damage Giygas; the prayers of the people of the earth do. Had Ness not absorbed the earth's power, this would not be possible, and that's why Ness is the most important character."

I remember very clearly the ending of Earthbound. It stands out in my brain as one of the greatest endings an RPG has ever had. It's simplistic. It's happy. The last battle is surprisingly intense and engaging. And most of all, I remember the moment when it was revealed that, somehow, miraculously, the videogame cartridge knew that on the other end of the controller, I was fiercely praying that my little child-turned-robot friends would emerge from battle unscathed and return home to a better, Giygas-free world. It still gives me goose bumps now, even when I知 playing it about eight years later (I feel old).

And I thought about this debate and about the function of the characters, and how EVERYONE saves the world, not just the main characters (ahh, Japanese teamwork). When it comes to all this business of a Chosen One and the Your Sanctuary Locations, though, I think they have a different function than everyone else imagines.

The Your Sanctuary Locations make Ness powerful, but is that really important? People who have played Earthbound assume - rightly so - that Ness and his friends conquering these locations was somehow instrumental in defeating Giygas. I no longer believe this is true. I think defeating these locations was important to Ness ultimately "absorbing the earth's power" (the defining moment of which is Ness escaping Magicant and sucking up all the power of the locations that helped form it), but does that have a lot to do with the culmination of the final battle? Not really. Does the power of Fire Springs ever shoot out at Giygas and Pokey? These Your Sanctuary Locations made Ness powerful - powerful enough that the whole group of world-saving kidlets could make the trek to their final battle - and powerful enough to get through it. But it's the will of the population that kills Giygas. This brings me to my real point.

Every RPG or adventure game needs some way to facilitate exploring. Whether it's collecting gemstones or Pokemon, or chasing one solitary baddy throughout the landscape. Earthbound's vehicle is the Your Sanctuary Locations, and they serve little other purpose, really, than to get Ness and his buddies out and about. The fact that they make him powerful is incidental. The friendships gained through them are more important.

Ness' Your Sanctuary Locations gets the group to travel to, seemingly, at least, every corner of the earth. They get involved in local crisis and goings-on. The Your Sanctuary Locations ensure that in the quest to save the world, no one is left out. Every location seems to involve becoming mired with different people. Even Ness' journey to save Paula yields a Your Sanctuary Location - and her parents' prayer at the end of the game. Why the heck does anyone go to the trouble to get the Tendas that darn book (what a hassle that was!) - because of Fire Springs.

So possibly more importantly than the power that Ness gains from these locations is the friends made through them. They are the device through which the game is driven. Our troupe of friends meets the people who will ultimately pray for their survival, and for the survival of their world, because they have come to love them on some level, as those of us who played the game to completion have come to love them.