PK Rockin (PK キアイ PK Kiai, lit. PK Fighting Spirit), sometimes referred to as PSI Rockin, is a PSI ability in EarthBound and is Ness's signature move. Ness's Nightmare and Giygas (before Pokey turns off the Devil's Machine) are also capable of using PK Rockin. It deals damage to all enemies and has the possibility of decreasing one of the targets' Psychic Shield strength by 1.
When used in battle, it displays a series of psychedelic lights and sounds, and inflicts high damage on all enemies based on the level of PK Rockin used. At its Omega (Ω) level, its power is rivaled only by PK Starstorm Ω, and (to an extent) PK Freeze Ω and PK Fire Ω. It cannot be used out of battle.
Like the four main characters, King, and Ness' favorite food, the player can give a unique name to PK Rockin before the story begins by entering their "favorite thing."
The Virtual Console re-release of EarthBound alters the animations of PK Rockin by significantly blurring them. This is done to reduce the risk of epileptic seizures, a standard precaution in re-releases of older Nintendo games. Meanwhile, the Nintendo Switch Online re-release does not have this filter.[1]
| Level | Users | Level | PP Cost | Target | Effect | Comments | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| α | Ness | 8 | 10 | To all enemies | Deals 40 - 120 damage | Ness' special PSI that is named for his favorite thing. It affects all enemies on the battle screen and decreases one enemy's Psychic Shield strength by 1. | A deadly PSI attack which only Ness can use. It's a psychokinetic wave generated by concentration that deals with each enemy about 80 points of damage. |
| β | Ness | 22 | 14 | To all enemies | Deals 90 - 270 damage | Ness' special PSI that is named for his favorite thing. It affects all enemies on the battle screen and decreases one enemy's Psychic Shield strength by 1. | A deadly PSI attack which only Ness can use. It's a psychokinetic wave generated by concentration that deals with each enemy about 180 points of damage. |
| γ | Ness | 49 | 40 | To all enemies | Deals 160 - 480 damage | Ness' special PSI that is named for his favorite thing. It affects all enemies on the battle screen and decreases one enemy's Psychic Shield strength by 1. | A deadly PSI attack which only Ness can use. It's a psychokinetic wave generated by concentration that deals with each enemy about 320 points of damage. |
| Ω | Ness | 75 | 98 | To all enemies | Deals 320 - 960 damage | Ness' special PSI that is named for his favorite thing. It affects all enemies on the battle screen and decreases one enemy's Psychic Shield strength by 1. | A deadly PSI attack which only Ness can use. It's a psychokinetic wave generated by concentration that deals with each enemy about 640 points of damage. |
Trivia[]
- Using the Don't Care naming option, possible names for PK Rockin (or "your favorite thing") are "Rockin", "Hammer", "Love", "Gifts", "Slime", "Gaming", and "Boxing".
- "Love" is the default Don't Care name of the special attack that only Lucas can use in Mother 3. It could also be a reference to John Lennon, the frontman of the Beatles, where references to the band can be seen in many places in EarthBound.
- PK Rockin is one of the only offensive PSI moves in the game that can miss, besides PK Flash. The chance of missing is dependent on Ness's speed compared to the enemies' speed.
- For EarthBound's Virtual Console release, the visual effects of PK Rockin were significantly toned down so as to lower the risk of epileptic seizures.
- PK Rockin's Japanese name is PK Kiai (lit. "fighting spirit"). A possible reason why it was changed to Rockin is because "kiai" can also be interpreted as a battle cry, and rock singers often scream during songs.