The ATM card (Cash Card in Mother 2) is an item in EarthBound. It is a card that allows Ness to withdraw or deposit money via Automatic Teller Machines throughout the world. Money is gained from selling goods at Drugstores or other vendors, and from Ness's Father inserting money into his account after he defeats an enemy. Upon being called, his father will say how much money he inserted, even though the money can be found at the account before the call.
The max amount of money the player can ever carry is $99,999, due to the ATM's limit of 5 characters. If the party is incapacitated, the accumulated cash-on-hand is divided in half, but the cash in the ATM is unaffected, making the deposit feature resourceful. Ness begins his adventure with the ATM card in their inventory, and are restricted from placing it into another party member's inventory, selling it, storing it, or dropping it.
Trivia[]
- It is unknown how Ness got his own bank account in the first place or when it was created.
- EarthBound Beginnings's equivalent is the Cash Card. It is functionally the same as the ATM card and appears in Ninten's inventory at the start of the game. Mother 3 lacks an equivalent item. Instead, Save Frogs act as the medium for currency.