Ninten (known as Ken in the novelization and Doug Halloway in the choose-your-own-adventure adaptation) is the primary protagonist of MOTHER/EarthBound Beginnings. He is a rambunctious asthmatic youth with an adventurous spirit who lives in the northern outskirts of the small American town of Podunk. He is a formidable fighter, wielding baseball bats with surpreme skill and uses PSI, albeit only supportive type moves, like Lifeup, Hypnosis, and the escape move 4th-D Slip (perfect for getting out of particularly sticky situations). His adventure began as America was rocked by supernatural phenomena (courtesy of Giegue), including a poltergeist which invades his home, bringing his lamp and one of his sisters' dolls to life. After putting down the possessed lighting fixture and demented doll to rid his home of the specter, he finds a music box within the doll that plays a curious melody which he memorizes. His father then calls the home, telling Ninten to go on an adventure to realize his PSI skills, and to stop the invasion Giegue has begun!