What Makes A Good Game Companion?

[@DesignDoc]

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[@CozyOrSomething]

Nuh uh

[@Kafaldsbylur]

Were you in a coma for 40 days? I don't see any other way the Sticker Star cursing counter could go so high

[@adrianwoodruff1885]

Cursing to us maybe?

[@michaelmann7816]

Going off of other reactions to it, I suspect that at least 39 of those were spent pretending that it doesn't exist.

[@zaneheaston8254]

We are all allowed to have shitty opinions on the Internet

[@__dane__]

Sidekicks exist solely so we could experience Midna in Twilight Princess. Even if all other Zelda companions were bad, Midna would make companions worth it

[@chinesesparrows]

No, they exist to bypass your opponent whos blocking high kicks or low kicks

[@-memoria-2136]

I mean true, but I will not stand for this Linebeck erasure.

[@Atlas.Brooklyn]

Average Midna fan vs cultured Linebeck enjoyer

[@nerdkingalpha4958]

TRUE

[@blastdragon1991]

@@-memoria-2136 But is Linebeck even an sidekick? You only see him while traveling, and all sidekick named in this video are with you almost the whole game.

[@wouterW24]

What also helps with Midna is that her development is so gradual even before the sacrifice. During the castle escape and getting weapons she's hostile to Link and pretty much everything, By the time you enter the forest temple she's used to Link being reliable and dials down the contant jabs. She's more impressed by Link's resolve to protect the kids then she lets on, and after clearing the second dungeon she finally drops the icy act and tells Link Zants name and makes it clear she's come to respect Link. Up until the post third dungeon ambush she's starting to be kind of pleasant and does not question Links other objectives. Her near death experience has a deep impact, but it final step in the process. By the time it happens players also will be attached to Midna too because she has been changing so the drama is very effective.

[@shawntraub7249]

Plus at the start, I think a lot of Midna's arrogance is her putting on an act. She's in a cursed form and is likely very insecure about herself. So she has to rag on Link and ends most sentences with "Tee hee hee!" to cover up that fact. After the midway point, she drops the act. She no longer acts arrogant because she trusts Link completely. And when you enter the desert, possibly because of how far away from anything else the place feels, is where she opens up and tells you the darkest part of her story.

[@althelor]

​@@shawntraub7249yeah, when she opens up to you about the history of her people in the desert, it really feels like this is something she doesn't like to talk about, but feels like you deserve to know before you jump into her world. Which really feels like she has to have grown really fond of you to be willing to talk about it

[@FemboyLevi]

"that no one could possibly love .. turn on save search" had me choking on my food 💀

[@frogace55]

The partner poke in the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series are some good companions imo. In each game, your PC's goal is more or less "Figure our why I'm here as a Poke", but it's your partner's goal that pushes you towards finding the answer and getting to whatever the threat is. This is especially notable in the Explorers games, where while you are the protag and leader of the rescue team, the character arc is more about your partner growing up from a timid scarey cat to the hero of the world. . . but they wouldn't be able to do that without your presence.

[@daniel_361]

one of the best parts of the Explorer games was that in the whole second half of the game, it's made a big point that only the "Chosen One" can reach the Forgotten Land and save the world. With a bit of genre savyness you can gauge that obviously it's you, the protagonist, who is the Chosen One. But near the end it becomes clear that it wasn't you, it has never been you. _Your partner_ is the chosen one, and as you said they are in charge of saving the world.

[@cloudluigigreenblue9349]

I would also like to pitch in Gates to Infinity’s partner. I know that the 3rd entry in PMD is considered garbage but the partner in that game is the one who rallies the team in building a fun place. They aren’t just there, they’re an absolute close friend just like the other partners

[@amandaletcher1320]

And god they carry the emotional gut punches in game they're all great characters

[@b1uezer]

In regards to the bear and the bird duo, I don't think their seemingly lopsided contributions is really all that detrimental. In fact, I think that the contrast is actually quite good and is really what makes Banjo Kazooie a timeless collecta-thon nigh unmatched. While Kazooie may be the "tool," Banjo is the one who enables her. You can really see this in Banjo Tooie with the split up mechanic. Without Banjo's heft and leverage, Kazooie's firepower is actually quite low, in addition to not having honey covered grippers or the health pool to take hits. Likewise, Banjo no longer has a swath of movement options provided by his feathered companion. Honestly, making such a strong, deliberate distinction between the two and how they should function is what makes their abilities near seamless throughout the whole game. They balance each other out in a more dynamic way than Yooka-Laylee, by keeping the overlap minimal and really pushing the idea that they need each other to fulfill their quest.

[@arthurjeannin3357]

Now that's an eloquently written comment!

[@baileypalmer103]

I don't think anyone could have said that better honestly.

[@indigofenix00]

In theory this is what they were going for, though in practice I found myself ditching Banjo whenever the opportunity presented itself. The problem is that most of the gameplay is focused on exploration, and while Kazooie's solo abilities are great for navigating the world (especially the Glide), Banjo's abilities have very little "utilitarian" value; they mostly serve as a lock-and-key for specific tasks, and there is rarely any reason to play as him outside of these tasks. Technically Banjo does do more damage to enemies and can take more hits, but the combat system is so bare-bones and unfulfilling (and most enemies just respawn anyway) that 9 times out of 10 you're better off just avoiding any enemy that you can't one-shot, so this rarely seems like a disadvantage. I think the game would have made their dynamic a lot more two-sided if there was a more in-depth combat system to take advantage of Banjo's strength, and give him extra combat moves without Kazooie since he doesn't have to worry about hurting her.

[@Yze3]

Yeah no, the problem is that the game is still a platformer, and playing Kazooie alone in Tooie is better, because she moves faster, and jumps higher and further. Her power and health is irrelevant when you can ignore all the enemies, and move out of their ranges. And she can still do almost every puzzle, because she's the one who has access to eggs and the powerups. You basically only have to play Banjo or the duo when it truly is necessary.

[@Boomblox5896]

I like the way you say "enable" as if to say Banjo allows/encourages Kazooie to enact violence and extreme prejudice, despite Banjo being the straight-man of the duo.

[@Camkitsune]

Ralsei from Deltarune immediately comes to mind. He's a similar riff on the idea of the 'Overly Handholding Tutorial Character' that Toriel handled in Undertale - he will explain things to you like its your first time playing any videogame ever. And this is both completely the intent of the guy who wrote him and used to do a lot of heavy lifting for his character - everything about the manual he gives you, as an example.

[@sub-zero7061]

So moral of the story: Don't think of your side-kicks as side-kicks but as full on characters

[@Phoeboi]

Really just a good tip for any character in a story or game

[@swishfish8858]

That depends, of course. Not every game would be improved by a fleshed-out side character. It's nice as a novelty, and is necessary in higher-detail plots, but treating them that way doesn't always result in a better experience for the player. For example, I'd argue that Fi is given tons of narrative importance, yet she's one of the most hated characters in the gaming medium because she contradicts the player almost every step of the way. She's the spirit of the freakin' Master Sword, and I really love her "ghost robot that doesn't understand humans" schtick, but she bugs me every five seconds for no reason. An interesting character, ruined by bad game design.

[@sofer2230]

Goombella in Paper Mario TTYD gave exposition & enemy tattle a snarky personal touch that Goombario was sorely missing. Had strong "Legally Blonde" vibes with how she talks like a Valley Girl while being one of the smartest characters in the cast. Also she's an absolute *beast* in combat, which is always a plus.

[@hamstersandwich9917]

I just wish goombella had a role in exploration like the other partners did. Most folk who dont care for enemy tattles wont use her half the time

[@uejsilulja2699]

​@@hamstersandwich9917Personally I really love Goombella,Bobberry and Vivian.

[@hariman7727]

The best sidekicks provide a contrast to the main character and are part of the plot. Ratchet and Clank/Jak & Daxter, Amaterasu and Issun, Link and Midna, Wander & Aggro. They're all hero/sidekick pairs that stick with you.

[@kay_faraday]

Gotta second Clank.

[@aureliodeprimus8018]

Sly & Murray and/or Bentley.

[@Atlas.Brooklyn]

No no isn't there only 1 of the little guy?

[@leithaziz2716]

Clank's probably one of my favorite sidekicks period.

[@masterboa6321]

thats a horse

[@DragoSmash]

how about The World Ends With You companions? you really get to understand each of them, giving each of them their own arc and they are as important in combat if you really want to get the rarest rewards in the game, you have to learn to use both of them (in the DS version) the plot twist that one of them bring into story is just the cherry on the top for the awesome written game

[@MrDeldris]

I just want to say TWEWY is actually one of the greatest games ever made and never gets enough respect or recognition for it. Thank you for bringing it up.

[@lukedelameter7961]

Hell yeah! The entire game is about learning the value of others, and every single aspect of it is tuned to this message!

[@PhoenixWrightAceAttorney]

Nothing I could say would EVER do TWEWY justice. Probably my favourite game of all time. The side characters, the plot, the gameplay, everything is just perfect. I just wish more people would know that it exists and play it.

[@eddycabreja3332]

Speaking of Hi-fi Rush, we can also consider Peppermint, Macaron and Korsica as great companions. Not only are they a nice way to further develop the story, they're really useful in combat. Each one has a special ability (destroying blue panels, breaking shields and putting out fire), can attack and weaken the enemies and might follow up on your combos, dealing even more damage.

[@enteikarino6921]

808 is the best companion, and CNMN is great too.

[@supersmily5811]

And, importantly, their input isn't tied directly to staying on beat, letting you activate them between other moves (between beats). They stronk.

[@E_Fig05]

I think Tippi was a pretty good sidekick. Maybe even as good as Midna. I haven't played Super Paper Mario in a while, but if I remember correctly Tippi did a great job being connected to the story. Maybe not the hints and gameplay mechanics, but the story is the most important part of Super Paper Mario.

[@kay_faraday]

What kind of ruins it for me is her name being an expletive in my language when spoken out loud.

[@junkorivulets]

From what I recall she was fairly useful for hints and also giving the anemies' statistics when you pointed your cursor at them I find the Pixls in general to be rather charming, but I wish the ones that aren't Tippi could have spoken more beyond their introductions

[@E_Fig05]

@@kay_faraday That'll do it.

[@greenapple9477]

​@@junkorivuletsAgree. That was always a problem with the three Paper Mario games.

[@Driggsdamonstah]

Gameplay Mechanics wise, you’d be correct but she’s really good at giving hints for progress and for taking out enemies. And let’s be honest. What hasn’t been said about the story?

[@Lorraine202]

Zelda in Spirit Tracks was my first time in a Zelda game having a character as a sidekick rather than a battery detector. She has personality and breaks expectations of what a Princess should be. She’s stubborn and entitled which is a great contrast to Mr. Silent Link “I’ll do whatever anyone tells me without hesitation”. Her goal is beyond her role as Princess, it’s personal as the bad guy is planning to “use her body”. She has anger and panic and emotions. She’s definitely imo the best Zelda, and one of the best Zelda sidekicks.

[@jasonreed7522]

You showed a couple clips of him but Oatchi in pikmin 4 is a really well done sidekick. He may be silent (he is a space dog) but he's very expressive, and most importantly he is incredibly useful without feeling completely overpowered. You could argue that in pikmin 2 and 3 that the other captains are sidekicks, but since they are mechanically identical it feels more accurate to just call them multiple main characters in the party. (The way you wouldn't call Batman Superman's sidekick in the Justice League)

[@123goofyking]

Oatchi's charge and pikmin carry are probably the most overpowered things in the game. The only other thing probably being the fact you can easily collect tons of spicy spray and bombs

[@jasonreed7522]

@@123goofyking even then compared to everything else in the game they aren't that strong. Rush & Charge Horn are basically the same thing, they put all your pikmin on 1 enemy at once. The stun and initial damage is insignificant compared to 100 reds/purples/ ultra spicy sprawed pikmin. And without spoilers the riding Oatchi is mandatory for much of the late game's boss fights, especially the final boss. Also ice pikmin's freeze is functionally an ultra bitter spray. Purples and whites are back with onions, or just candypop buds since you can enter any sublevel of a cave from the entrance, and can quit to land back at the entrance, making this version of farming pikmin way faster than in 2. Overall with the general power creep of the game Oatchi's most overpowered abilities hardly feel game breaking. (Not to say the game is without flaws, just that i really enjoyed Oatchi, atleast more than i expected to.)

[@chuckidalucki1967]

The entire justice league is batman's sidekick

[@FraldariAce]

Midna, Morgana, and Sothis weirdly have a lot of similarities: starts out where you don't really know what they are, says they're using the protagonist for their own gain, gradually learns to care about the goal and protagonist, (voiced by Cassandra Lee Morris and has amnesia). But Midna's always been my favorite just because of how genuinely important she felt as a character and that the focus could be more on her, whereas the other games had so many characters that they had to stretch the characterization across more people.

[@PlebNC]

I liked that Aloy vocalised her thoughts. I do that alot as it helps me think, manage and focus on things and I do it more when alone as I no need to worry about the stigma around talking to yourself. What Aloy does need to do is shut up in puzzle areas as she like to blurt out puzzle solutions almost immediately. She needs a hint button or something so players can opt into it

[@avereynakama9854]

I agree that there's nothing inherently wrong with saying things aloud to yourself. I mean, did anyone complain when Zagreus pointed things our in Hades? Some things said keeps you from wasting time, like telling you there's no way to heal normally mid run, so you don't smash the jars looking for non-existent health pick ups.

[@XanthinZarda]

Voicing thoughts is fine, but a running commentary track/walking audiobook is not what most people want.

[@hannahhrby1333]

Also, she is travelling completely alone for long stretches of time - it’s both natural and understandable she would talk to herself:)

[@Ariamaki]

The World Ends With You is a game entirely defined by its companions: The structure of the game literally changes and revolves around them, breaking up what initially seems like a short adventure into something sprawling and layered. They've all got mechanical nuance in gameplay and their own preferences for food, clothing, music, and how to resolve fights and non-physical conflicts. The way your main character associates with them develops along with the story, and you can see and feel in everything they say and do how they're spending time with (Character 3) but wish they could be applying what they'd learned to doing things better with (Character 1) who is no longer accessible in the story. It's a fantastic way to use partners and sidekicks to elevate the entire message, one of the dozens of factors that make TWEWY the single-greatest DS game of all time.

[@demonic_banshee]

Midna remains one of my favorite sidekicks ever and because of her, Twilight Princess remains my favorite Zelda title.

[@valiensr1037]

“Turn on safe search,” lmao! That got me 🤣

[@egebamyasi2929]

Love that you mentioned Ace Attorney as I loooove Mayas comedic timing. They did the Funny gal - Straight man dynamic the best, something I somewhat missed with Susato and Ryunosuke. Also, special shoutout to Ace Combat, especially Zero.

[@thantus9315]

The AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES series has these great titular A.I. sidekicks that exist as an artificial eye in the protagonists’ left eye socket. They act as the ingame framework of the game’s HUD and UI, displaying a cursor to point, menus to click, and special side views to provide contextual images. They have multiple gameplay mechanics such as a Zoom view, X-ray vision, night vision, predictive calculations, and (for more specific story convenience) can emulate voices. In instances where the AI runs out of battery, or is forcibly removed from your eye socket, you lose these abilities and the special sideview window (the HUD remains the same tho). The main gimmick of the game is diving into people’s dreams to hunt for clues, and the AI acts as your avatar in them. You give orders, they execute them, but sometimes with a little pushback, and occasionally they will reject orders if it does something unpleasant, giving the AI more agency and personality through these puzzle segments. In the first game, the sidekick acts as a straight man to the protagonist’s antics. She provides clues and information needed to proceed, and due to her semi-robotic and stoic personality, she shuts down the MC when he’s getting out of hand. The sequel adds a new companion for a new protagonist. Here, the roles are reversed, with the new companion being the one bringing jokes and getting out of hand, while the protagonist has to keep her in check. The AI becomes the comedian while the human becomes the straight man. And these sidekicks feel integral to the plot and world of the series. Not so much in the first game, but for the second game, the returning companion is introduced with a bit of an intriguing mystery: she was on a top secret mission during the first half of the game, but a backup memory saving error gives her partial amnesia and no longer remembers what her secret mission was; as such, the second half of the game uncovers new clues as to what she was doing during the first half of the game. The new companion, meanwhile, brings in the heart and emotional investment, providing conflict and tension to an unstable matchup, and forming the basis for the protagonist’s core motivation in helping her AI companion, driving several elements of the plot forward. The new pair are set up in a way where they proved dramatic/narrative irony to the story; he doesn’t know what the AI knows, the AI doesnt know what he knows, and the player occasionally doesnt know what either of them know. This makes for a fascinating story writing for the game and a way to invest in the characters in unique ways.

[@goranisacson2502]

I'm just here for the Aiba and Tama appreciation and how they're woven into the plot and gameplay to really make them feel important when they're not around. I never thought I could be so excited to learn bug facts as I was when a little hamster eyeball tells them.

[@stuartclack7523]

Yorda from Ico is a classic example of a sidekick as escort mission. She's necessary to progress, yet routinely has to be saved. She is sometimes helpful though, pointing at things to help the player in puzzles. She gets a lot more useful towards the end too.

[@alexanderthegreat4817]

My favourite sidekick is blue thief from everhood, such a great game and the fact that you carry him around in your inventory is such a cool touch

[@ElJosher]

Awesome game indeed

[@betzyellow]

definitely. the lowkey and subtle way i went from hating his guts to caring for him more than anyone else in the game before i even realised. i love him.

[@moosesues8887]

Why is he blue why can’t he be red and awesome like Mario who’s red and awesome

[@cosmicspacething3474]

Elfylin is a pretty good sidekick, not halting your progress unless you have absolutely no idea what you’re doing, he also give ideas of what to do next if you’re lost.

[@ventusse]

While giving us all trust issues after a certain egg did.

[@WuhHuh]

@@ventussenever trust clowns, otherwise they’ll gain infinite cosmic power and give you a bad time

[@themanhimself1949]

my problem with elfilin is that he kind of feels bland. take this with a grain of salt, as i only watched several edited gameplay videos which may have skimmed over some details about him. (Also sorry this comment got LONG) i know the plot and how elfilin is relevant in it. i do find the [spoiler] at the very end of The Final Fight to be impactful, but thats pretty much all. :/ I kinda miss an interesting personality, and a reason why these two in particular travel together. and while elfilin is just as random as an encounter as, for example, magolor, elfilin has no reason to actually *tag along* the journey as he doesnt even fight. if elfilin were (able) to fight, ai or optional second player, itd feel much more intuitive to have him follow you into level. he wouldnt need to be very good, as he is definitely not a fighter, but having him try just to save others would fit his personality. ( i thought he was a "press x to talk" hint giver but i cant find anything about it online so maybe not. if thats the case, he provides even less support, so why should he come? ) bandana dee has more reasons to follow kirby than elf, but hidden plot reasons require the blue mouse to be present. yes, his design is a hint, but if he looked just a bit different, the [major spoiler] would feel extremely random and convenient. "This random dog I brought along for fun just turned out to be a Semi-God and only he can give me the power to defeat Actual God, who I didnt even know about until now? How convenient that I chose him over my trusted best friend!" again, change elfilins motivation to something unique to him and his story, which could also be a tool to have [major spoilers] be not too predictable, yet also like it was specifically related to him from the beginning. and/or have him fight, so his simple motivation of saving Waddles is put into action, both of which give him purpose to follow the story events. TLDR: i wish elfilin was more than "nice npc that follows you for no practical reason, also just happens to be Plot Relevant".

[@noahsabadish3812]

not sure if you’ve discussed it before, but THE LAST GUARDIAN has one of the most interesting examples of a sidekick

[@Game_Hero]

the sidekick is the whole game here

[@noahsabadish3812]

correct! @@Game_Hero

[@Stephen-Fox]

12:15 And in the case of Ace Attorney vs Professor Layton, having the sidekick lowered into a pit of fire (after being found not guilty) Because the crossover with freaking Professor Layton is when that franchise decided to up the stakes, apparently. (Also IIRC there's a short period where Mia basically becomes Layton's sidekick and Luke Phoenix's? And periods where each protagonist feels like they're almost understudying under the other. And of course the final trial segment has Layton as the prosecutor delivering on the vs. It didn't really live up to the 'this time the puzzles have contradictions' tag line used in the announcement trailer - I don't think there's a single puzzle that uses liar mechanics which are always a fun thing when they crop up, however the rules for the liar mechanics are formalized, which I think would be the minimum for 'the puzzle has contradictions' - but it's still a really solid introductory entry to both Layton and Ace Attorney, which is good because it's going to get an audience of people who are familiar with half of the crossover alongside folk knowledgable of both)

[@SlamBolts]

To me, Ring is probably the best sidekick in any videogame ever. Not only your powers come from them, but acts as a motivational guide through the world and journey of fitness, which many people really need in order to get anywhere. Takes away all the toxicity of working out and makes it all about pushing your OWN limits instead of meeting expectations. To me that's like the best adventure partner you could ask for, both in-game and IRL!

[@poisonedlava]

To be fair, I think the unbalanced nature of Banjo and Kazooie is intentional. Kazooie COULD save the world by herself... but she could give a shit. Banjo is pretty useless but he cares so he drags Kazooie along to save the world. I actually love that dynamic

[@SuperLufkin]

Also, Kazooie is not a sidekick. Banjo and Kazooie are the main characters. Don't call Kazooie a sidekick in front of her, she'd be mad. But yeah, the dynamic is 100% intentional and it's great. I won't have Banjo-Kazooie any other way.

[@tomas_iss7469]

Yeah the Banjo-Kazzoie/Tooie segment was really a rare (no pun intended) Design Doc L

[@Multimonata]

Issun is an amazing sidekick that is the actual protagonist ! He speaks for Ama, crack jokes, has a cute voice and a big personality. I love this tiny artist.

[@johndipietro9301]

A recent sidekick is Torval from FF16. In addition to being a good boy (yes he is!), Torval is helpful in a variety of situations. He can provide a low-level regen to a certain point, but more often in combat serves as a combatant, either hitting a foe or knocking them up for an aerial attack. You can also choose whether to control him or leave him on AI with one of the Timely Rings. But, he also acts as a diegetic clue giver on command - if you're ever lost in an area and unsure where to go, you can press in one of the control sticks to get him to guide you. You have that power without him, but it's still fun to have him go over to the right area.

[@Kabodanki]

That is more a character than a sidekick

[@Minochu96]

let's not forget about Clank Ratchet's robot sidekick and friend who's actually a lot more helpful and smarter as a sidekick than Daxter is and one of my personal favorite or Aku Aku for Crash, if you wanna count that, since he also works as a power-up (or Uka Uka for Cortex) but Midna is indeed an excellent example of an amazing sidekick, and who loved by pretty much the entire Zelda fandom, and everyone and myself included want her to return to much, in the main line titles, of course she did return in the spin-off Hyrule Warriors but that's not even part of the whole timeline you could also say Tails for Sonic and maybe throw Knuckles in there too, cause they're SONIC HEROES! *cough*

[@cericat]

Yes but be fair to Dax he did spend a year working towards finding and rescuing Jak stuck in the PSP.

[@smugsneasel]

05:03 Oh hey, you have that board too? Chuggaaconroy was giving them out at cons I hear.

[@TheLink128]

No companion will ever top Midna. They did it, pack it up, they created perfection. And as my boy Dagoth Ur would say, they knew what they were doing when they designed her.

[@NachoAdventurer]

I really Like the partners system on Sonic Advance 3. Here you can make your own Duo, and depending on your partner, your main character movement changes a lot. For example, going with Tails as a partner gives you a way to reach really high distance with his tag actions movement. Going with Knuckles boost your character power and makes all the attack actions be powerful, going with Amy will makes your main Character get a Hammer, but still has a downside because you need to manually roll, and of course her Tag Action it's a high jump or even a double jump. With Cream you get access to Cheese to attack enemies for you and also works a way to get height and Sonic, you'll be able to burst into the speed and get access to the Boost Mode. That's not all, there is some specific duos to gain their own unique abilities, that's something i really like and enjoy. You can do any stage with the characters you want, but still, there is some duos that are faster than others.

[@Triforce_of_Doom]

Definitely stretching a bit since each character in the pair basically gets equal billing, but the detective/AI-ball duos in the AI:The Somnium Files games. I'll use Date & Aiba from the first game for examples. For those who haven't played the games or seen gameplay, you'd probably think Date would be doing most of the heavy lifting with Aiba mostly snarking at his, rather unique personality (Date is a character you will both love & constantly go "I'm sorry what" at). Well that's not quite the case. In these games, the detective & the AI are *each other's* sidekick. In the real world, it's basically what I described earlier, Date doing investigations or just chatting with co-workers/friends while Aiba pokes fun at him or has her own unique traits pop up (Aiba is not immune to being weird herself). But then when investigations lead to you learning of someone who is a living lead, that's where the roles switch. Because then you use a machine to basically go inside the lead's head & control Aiba as she walks inside their subconscious to find the truth the person either doesn't quite remember, doesn't want people to know for various reasons, or repressed. So now Date gets to be the snarking observer while also sometimes being the player insert of "hey will this crazy multiple choise idea work?" to often hliarious effect. It's a great way to sell how both characters make up what feels like an inseparable duo, especially for when the stakes will inevitably raise near endgame.

[@equinox-XVI]

Forgotten game, I know, but I think Trico from The Last Guardian was an amazing way to go about a companion. Unlike most other games with animals used for gameplay, (to which they are usually trained to follow your every command) Trico feels unique because it refuses to do exactly that. You can point and try to guide it, but ultimately you're at its mercy for whether it decides to listen. Taking that level of control away from the player is a bold move to make, but in doing so, they really emphasized the importance of the bond between you and it. It also makes it feel that much more rewarding when it begins to listen to you more often as you continue to look after it. (Giving it food, calming and removing spears after battles, breaking things that scare it, etc.) Turning that subconscious trust into an actual benefit in gameplay was a genius way to go about making it feel like progress while still being true to the natural-ness of Trico. So overall, despite how divisive its AI might have been for reviews, Trico easily takes the cake for my favorite video game companion precisely because of how alive it feels.

[@TheKarishi]

The Kingdom Hearts series had a lot of interesting angles on this. Even just within the first game you had Donald & Goofy who could help keep combats moving forward but could also make enemies less predictable (in a Monster Hunter multiplayer kind of way; by making it so enemies' wide-swinging attacks might not be aimed directly at you where you can respond easily). They also had bad defensive AI, leading to battles where they immediately used up the healing items you gave them and then fell unconscious. The other characters specific to worlds could be interesting for a change of pace but were only rarely as good - especially once you unlocked teamwork attacks that could clear waves of enemies and made you completely invincible. KH2 brought in teamwork attacks for individual worlds, so Donald or Goofy often took the bench during Space Paranoids when I was playing. KH1 also has that one point where you're literally unable to fight and get to see how valuable a companion is - a point that would have been better made if the Beast's AI were just a tad more robust and aggressive.

[@-memoria-2136]

Recoded has that segment of KH1 spread out to cover almost that entire world, and I like what they do with your command deck affecting Donald and Goofy's movesets.

[@pcachu]

Design Doc: [zeroes out the "days since cursing Sticker Star" counter] Chuggaaconroy: "Ah, I see you are a man of culture as well."

[@supernovero]

I was praying throughout this video that you knew about Malroth from Dragon Quest Builders 2. I honestly thought he could have showed up in over half of these categories. In my opinion, he is the epitome of sidekick characters. He serves as the storys main character, an important gameplay addition that gets separated from you (and you definitely feel it), and most importantly, ties together the story, gameplay, and themes in a way i haven't seen before. Absolutely one of my most favorite characters ever

[@LightHelco]

Grimoire Weiss from Nier is an amazing sidekick, his personality and constant drag and pull with Kaine was making me smile and recover from all the traumatic moments the game has. Loved that floating book and his spells.

[@TheEmraldz]

BOOK!?!? How dare you refer to him like a common paperback!

[@GmodPlusWoW]

Oh man, Kersti. Her character makes me wish I could make my own Paper Mario game, where halfway through the game you discover that the big bad (let's say Princess Plum from Mario Golf) is actually being manipulated by Kersti, who's trying to conquer the Mushroom Kingdom as part of an ill-conceived Star Empire. After the reveal, you can gradually pick up on hints that imply that Sticker Star was an "inside job", with Kersti having masterminded that whole game in order to set herself up as a world-saving hero for interstellar clout.

[@stevejakab274]

There's a rarely used option not mentioned: the sidekick and the main character swap places. In Nier Automata you play as 2B, and your sidekick is 9S. On the "B" run of the game, their places switch, and you play 9S while your sidekick is 2B. Then things get... complicated.

[@dooperdooper6679]

Route C: “Oh I didn’t realize it was going to take place after the other…oh no…oh no no no…”

[@brookiecookie7465]

in final fantasy xiv, ever since they started the duty support/trust feature that allows you to enter dungeons with the members of the scions of the seventh dawn rather than other players, i have always chosen to play through them for the first time that way. each character has their own unique dialogue to play off of each other during the duty, and they also act completely in-character too when it comes to the gameplay mechanics! as an example, whenever the limit gauge fills up, alisaie will always jump the gun and immediately use it up for her own big attack, when other characters would be more patient and calculating about when to use it

[@עומרשרייבר-ל4ר]

Probobly one of my favorite sidekicks from recent games is Oatchi from pikmin 4. Like yeah he dosnet really talk (neither is the mc) but his playfulness and how useful he was made me really like him.

[@Cheese-c2l]

A great sidekick i can think of is Telly-Vision, Simple yet appealing design, Doesn't interrupt that much, And has some great dialogue, Made Chibi-Robo an even more charming experience

[@Daniel_Coffman]

I always wished Rui in Pokemon Colosseum could be more of an actual sidekick rather than just a glorified Scouter to find out what Pokemon are Shadow Pokemon and what aren't. I especially hated the fact that there was no hint system in it, let alone Rui, the very person you're hanging out with for your entire adventure, not being one, so if you'd not been playing for a long time and forget where to go like happens to me a lot because I'm always busy, welp, I guess it's time to start all over from the beginning! How fun! As a character, though, due to having almost zilch dialogue, she was very forgettable, as well, and very much, as one of the enemies actually points out, a wallflower. I can see potential in her, but it didn't even get close. They could either just stick Wes with an actual Scouter and a journal and have him hang out with Espeon and Umbreon all game; oh look, that's what XD actually did most of; or they could give Rui some actual personality and use outside of just being a makeshift Scouter and otherwise being only a bit less mute than Wes through the whole journey as far as I can recall.

[@XanthinZarda]

Rui is a better sidekick than the handfuls of times the game forces Jovi along side you in the sequel.

[@cullenreeves3108]

An interesting sidekick that led into a full series system is Cha Cha in Monster Hunter Tri. You had palicoes in other MH games previously, but Cha Cha was really the first character driven sidekick. He was useful for drawing agro and had some niche support functions, and also had some story beats. Now in monster Hunter you have a ludicrous amount of side kick customization and function, as well as the entire suite of quests devoted to taking NPC hunters with you in Sunbreak.

[@absolembum6399]

My personal favorite type of sidekick is the one in RPGs that allows you to have a short reminder on what you just did and where you’re aiming, which is a nice reminder in case you did a long break playing the game and got lost in the story. There’s a fairy character in DQ IX that is so lacking in character that I forgot her name, but I think Airy from Bravely Default is a great exemple, even ticking one other category you mention Bravely Second’s return of Agnes is a similarly good sidekick, and also acts as a damsel in distress to keep you focused on your main objective

[@Dr_shooty]

While it may be a bit weird for Alloy to monolog, she was raised in isolation with only her father to talk to most days. And it does get called out, her self talking with the companion Erand has him respond then ask if she's doing that talking with herself thing. The games make it feel the self talking out loud is a quirk of character instead of just we need hints

[@Kabodanki]

Or its just a lazy way for the writer to find an explanation for that

[@Mick-wick]

Was it really that lazy

[@ultimate_pleb]

In midna's case it's not being annoying and being based. That's more i can say for most Zelda sidekicks

[@element895]

15:27 “Turn on Safe Search” IS CRAZY 💀💀💀💀

[@SincradTB]

I think TWEWY does a decent job of having useful sidekicks. Heck, the entire game is built around the idea you are with them. They fill the role of the “Story Wingman.” I recommend playing it. The game is all about learning to trust your partner and learn more about them, but they are stuck in the Reapers Game too, and you both are trying to get your life back. You first start out as a character who trusts nobody, however through your time together both figuring out this reapers game, Neku learns trust. He eventually finally trusts his partner, and then she gets captured. He must then find trust again in his new partner, which starts the process over again. However, your partner grows too, as well as push the plot along. Shiki finally gets over her envy, and the third and final partner admits faults and finally fully teams up with you to put an end to this sham of a game and get their entry fee back.

[@richardx1157]

Midna alone made me love Twilight Princess.

[@goodpuppii]

This is so cool. I love your channel, and I JUST released my devlog all about the playable character design in my sidekick, action-adventure, platformer. You’ve been such an inspiration to my dev work, and this video just reinforces all the stuff I want to make sure to consider as I finish developing my characters. Thank you!

[@TeckGeck]

I think Crash and Cortex in Twinsanity is my favourite example of a sidekick character The dialogue from Cortex is easily the best in the series, and from a gameplay perspective, it's interesting and unique

[@PokeCastle]

Ace attorney is a series that is nothing without its sidekicks. Overall story of cases is much dark but characters like Maya and Kay never fail to give humour once in a while. It's perfect. Only instance I can remember the series being without a sidekick is in Turnabout sisters. And I like how in trials they even change the sidekicks to help us like Mia in trilogy and Phoenix In AJ. They act as serious companions that help you build the logic while others like trucy and maya are mostly there to have fun investigating. I like despite what the character is they always make it likeable. We have bunch of sidekicks including obscure ones like grossberg and byrde, yet they too help us. In a nutshell - I love ace attorney.

[@MarcusTalks1]

Except in AJ Trucy is the one that takes over for a whole case almost. Basically buying time, and teaching Apollo about his Focus ability.

[@aureliodeprimus8018]

Same goes for Ghost Trick. Sissel as an amnesiac has a hard time commenting on things, but every other character makes him look like the straight man. Even the absolutely serious characters like the Pigeon Man usually get a reaction out of him.

[@PhoenixWrightAceAttorney]

Dammit, Maya that's a *step ladder*

[@MarcusTalks1]

@@PhoenixWrightAceAttorney but it serves the same purpose. What’s so different about a step ladder?

[@danielrhouck]

12:12 I haven’t played the whole series, but in the 5.5 games I’ve played, 4 of them have your sidekick accused of murder (Maya, Maya, Maya, the flight attendant who’s a sidekick for the first part of Investigations 1-2) and one has your mentor accused of murder (Defense Attorney Gavin). Only the first Great Ace Attorney game doesn’t, as far as I recall, have your sidekick accused of murder, but it starts with you *being* the side kick accused of murder.

[@Justin-kl7mp]

Personally, the best sidekick I've encountered in a game was Elizabeth from Bioshock; she is most integral to the story, she's actually helpful in multiple scenarios, she doesn't need protection nor help, she's helpful but still vague enough for you to still figure things out, she has an actual character arc despite the short campaign, her dialogue is great and is on brand with her personality. She's a lovable and charming multiverse explorer. Basically she's a competent damsel in distress who then becomes a companion which actually does helpful things. Special mention: Tulin from TOTK because he snipes much better than I snipe. IYKYK.

[@Mimiyan_or_Pikapikafan]

I find it interesting that Ceila was brought up, yet Ghost Zelda in Spirit Tracks wasn't. Definitely one of the best sidekicks in Zelda tbh

[@Lorraine202]

4:10 “Ah yes, the oral tradition” never fails to make me snort

[@Slimeonian]

What about 9S in Nier Automata? At the start of the game he’s just there with 2B, telling us tutorial info, giving dialogue and helping in fights. He’s the more chipper out of the two, with 2B being the more serious one and 9S just wanting to do his own thing. There’s a nice contrast between the two. There’s a point in the game when he goes missing, and 2B is genuinely worried for him and wants to find him ASAP. You can tell both characters really care for each other. But then in the final act of the game, 9S’ personality does a complete 180, due to story reasons. He becomes uncaring and cold, and honestly a bit scary. He becomes more than a side kick during the final act of the story, he becomes one of the two Protagonists. But nevertheless, I think he’s one of my favourite “side kick” characters in any game I’ve played.

[@carvedmoth4779]

True NieR Automata is a hidden gem of a game

[@amymialee]

Portal 2 is a game from 2011 with only robot side characters and yet it has some of the most impressive and evergreen facial animation in any game I know of. They way they emote and their body language is so incredibly expressive, it's crazy that few games manage to hit those levels after so many years. Photorealism always struggles to hit the highs that some stylized metal can do, and the writing too, portal never misses a beat while so many new games slip up more times than they can count trying to emulate the style.

[@rmt3589]

Very inspirational. One game I'm working on (idk if my computer can handle making it, but I'm worldbuilding anyways), the main companion doesn't become sentient until certain stat milestones are reached. But once it does, it acts more like a metroidvania device. Allowing access to more dialogs, new hacking chips, and locating otherwise undetectable secrets.

[@onijester56]

Midna is cute, even in her impish "cursed" form. And it's funny to mention Aloy, since she's a technically-earnable character in the game I'm playing now, Genshin Impact. As part of a promotional push for her game, she was made a winnable-by-gacha character in Genshin for one of the monthly banners... so I'll never be able to get her, but my roommate has her. But, in Genshin, the player character is an interdimensional traveler. Before you do anything in the world, shortly after getting cast into the mortal realm by a heavenly guardian, you catch/rescue Paimon. In-game, it's seemingly her filling out advice or location/item data about things you find or collect, or the enemies you defeat. But, above that, there's the cutscene content and additional dialogue which can be viewed in the Character Profile menu. Some dialogue choices reflect the interaction...and my Roommate will never fail to insult Paimon, while I can't bring myself to be mean to my first friend in this mysterious world.

[@snicks34]

I'd like to see more on optional / disposable companions like those in Skyrim, KOTR, and other RPG's. It's interesting how different sidekicks can be used to round out the strengths and weaknesses of different player characters, and how they can react to your decisions as well as the decisions of other characters, including your other companions. There's also an argument to be made for how going solo in a game that offers additional help can be a sort of built-in difficulty slider for players who want to challenge themselves.

[@Kooptj]

Midna is the best zelda companion ever

[@joseluispcr]

I prefer navi

[@soninhodev7851]

i remember playing zelda minish cap, and that game has Ezlo the talking hat, you can press select to ask ezlo for a hint, but none of them where ever useful, i guess they are good as a reminder of your next objective if you dont remember? anyway, midna is cool.

[@JimmySchlosser]

This made me think of Tippi in Super Paper Mario; while not super helpful or necessary to most of the game, losing her in the story end I really felt and made my game feel a bit lifeless (even though I had the other sprite dudes) UNTIL I went back to the nerd chameleon to buy a robot version of her. I liked that it was an additional secret option post game.

[@cantonnierbethcepourlavhy6343]

Kim Katsuragi has been the most effective Karma system i've ever seen implemented in a game. The shit i would have pulled in Disco Elysium if it weren't for the risk of disappointing Lieutenant Kitsuragi...

[@gqphoenixclops3056]

"Dethroy" is the sidekick to Nene in Blue Dragon, but in the end, reveals itself to be the cataclysmic entity that destroyed the planet in events before the game begins.

[@sinofsanity6593]

There's not many antagonist sidekicks but one that comes to mind for me is the fairly indie anima. Long time since I last played that yet I still remember the 3th wing on the map. Yes, that's what it says on the map So long ago that I've played anima that I forget names, but one name isn't important. I believe the protagonist is just called the bearer and she has to carry around the book the antagonist is sealed in, making them a bit of an odd couple. He also ate the bearer's name and nobody knows her name He's a bit of a... I don't know how to tone down what he is. I remember one of his flavour lines about him being strapped to the bearer's hip, something about banging the bearer's ass, that's how helpful he is outside of the player having limited use of him as a brawler The game has multiple endings depending on how you tackle the main tower in the game. Go to all rooms in the right order and you could get the intended ending or skip rooms and possibly get a bad ending In some of the bad endings where the antagonist breaks free or the bearer dies the antagonist is not sorry, pretty much conquers the world as soon as he's free and stays irredeemable My guy, someone took your shit for more than 5 minutes and you won't mourn them? Those bad endings are harsh

[@alexleavitt7590]

BD-1 comes to mind for me. Character with their own wants, friends, and desires, and almost immediately endearing to you as a player. I'll steer clear of spoilers, but when the final boss back hands them across the room, I legitimately felt angry.

[@mitchmcnair4222]

What is this ‘God of War’ you speak of? Kratos stars in Dad of Boy

[@goranisacson2502]

I don't feel like I got a lot to add that hasn't already been said in the video because the sidekicks I feel the strongest for tend to be sidekicks in narrative games like Ace Attourney where they're just, you know, CHARACTERS, and so I've never really reflected much on them as helpers to the player / means to emphasize and explain gameplay. My favorite games tend to be character action where you're usually solo so everything you learn is up to you and you alone... so all I can add is that I am no coward, I will NEVER have SafeSearch on when looking up pictures of Midna.

[@Kyzoren]

15:20 "terrifying impish form, that NO ONE COULD POSSIBLY LOVE! turn on safe search..." 😂 Ah yes... Just like in the game, Midna lurks within in my own shadow, and refuses to leave... but jokes on her, I'm into that! ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

[@HitPointPersonal]

It has been said before, but Midna is the pinnacle of sidekicks.

[@CrazedSeer]

I think Tales from the sonic series is a fantastic companion/sidekick. He drastically alters game play in sonic 2, and his development as a character over the years has been fantastic

[@ikagura]

He's annoying in Sonic 2...

[@traviscunningham7062]

Ahem, Sonic Forces

[@TheSPY1997]

One of the best sidekicks in gaming is Kim Kitsuragi from Disco Elysium. Compared to other CRPG companions he's much more fleshed out (since hes the only one in the game), and he serves multiple purposes. He's useful as an exposition delivery device for the game's world, he serves as a straight man to the protagonist's wacky and clownish antics, he is trustworthy in a world where you can trust no one, and his characterization makes him likeable to players/characters of every political affiliation, which is hard considering how politically dense the game can be. Even people who hate cops and centrists love Kim Kitsuragi, because he embodies the best qualities of both with none of the negatives. He's loyal, dependable, pragmatic, and has a strong sense of duty, without all that impeding the player's self expression.

[@GrouchyGander]

"Turn on SafeSearch" You're not the boss of me!

[@linkjag]

Kazooie is everything. Banjo is just Ken

[@TenshizakiN008]

Some of my favorite sidekicks are still the partners of The Word Ends With You. They just ooze personality and do their sidekick jobs SO well.

[@griffinblade]

I truly think Midna is one of the best characters in all of fiction

[@arthurdutra3432]

kid icarus uprising is kinda interesting in this regard, since as the story goes on the dynamic kinda shifts, for instance you might have palutena acting as both of a guide and comedic foil to pit but sometimes other characters will butt in to provide more dialogue

[@diogosalgado]

I knew I somehow missed Twilight Princess, but the outro was like a gut punch. Oh boy

[@The7thDraconian]

My personal favorite sidekick was Midna for a long while, but after playing Disco Elysium, it's now Kim Kitsuragi. He's a great help gameplay wise as he can provide hints, back you up in conversations, and can fill you in on bits of the world if you haven't put many points in Encyclopedia. However, he's also a well realized character in his own right, and getting to learn more about him is just as engaging as with any of the other NPCs. The fact that he puts up with the ridiculous bullshit your character is allowed to pull enders him to a lot of players, but is also revealed as a personal flaw the more you learn about him. I love him, Kingdom of Comsciense and all.

[@NikkiTheViolist]

ever notice how similar 'sidekick' and 'psychic' are

[@thatonestarmanintorobotics4319]

As an aside for Ace Attorney, the Investigations duology has a thing for changing up who accompanies Edgeworth, somewhat changing up the mood of the situation by how the pair interact with the evidence and discoveries at hand, paired by the fact you can ask them about the current situation at any time. When it's Gumshoe, his unending loyalty and hardworking bravado will give fuel to their Boss-Subordinate dynamic, when it's Kay, her hi-jinks and hankering for small crime will compell rigid ol Edgey to scold her and bring her down somewhat, when it's young Franziska the dialogue will be filled with their *refined* sibling banter, and (Investigations 2-4 spoilers) when nobody is accompanying him or somebody isn't feeling quite ok, like Kay, Miles finds himself having to be the kind person in the room to lift his own or other people's spirits up... Or having to act fast and rash because nobody will do it for him. In short, Ace Attorney is a series based for the most part in the main (and not so main) characters being motivated and driven by their companions, and the Investigations games show this tenfold. Oh I love these games

[@MrJechgo]

I'm surprised you didn't cover "sidekicks who are playable"... - Atreus in God of War Ragnarok - Morgana in Persona 5 - Teddie in Persona 4 - Tails in the Sonic series - Even Clank (Ratchet & Clank), Daxter (Jak & Daxter) and both Bentley and Murray (Sly Cooper) got some playable portions and even spin-off games. I get that they have similar abilities, but sometimes, they don't... and their OWN sidekick abilities changed completely.

[@XanthinZarda]

Let's just remove Teddie from that list, he's stinkin' up the place.

[@DeathLadyShinigami]

Nier Automata where your protagonist 2b and sidekick 9S switch roles a third of the way thru but we also have additional sidekicks in the form of the Pods who unexpectedly take center stage at the very end of the whole games story.

[@Officialencode]

the Palicos (cha-cha in tri, and palamutes in rise/break) in the MH series!! They're purely utility AND optional. They do offer some characterization via text boxes in the field sometime, but it's pretty shallow, probably to no distract from the hunt itself. Despite that, theyre really endearing, ESPECIALLY in MHG when you can play as the very palico you've been taking on hunts.

[@CiromBreeze]

Plus, the Palicoes in the Mainline games (Tri/3U/4U/World) actually have a fair bit of story to them too. Cha Cha and Kayamba are obvious stand-outs with a full-on story arc to themselves, but you also can't discount the Ace Palico and the Sapphire Star's Palico. The Ace Palico being the player Hunter's initial link to the Ace Hunters, while the Sapphire Star's Palico being the primary translator for the other Lynian tribes, unlocking a nice bonus for solo players which helps fill the gap of the missing player slots. Heck, the Sapphire Star's Palico will even help out during the siege hunts too, loading cannons and firing ballistae just like players would. On the flipside, the Portable series... seems to never do anything with Palicoes - at least, the *player's* Palicoes, anyway. GenU's Palicoes and Rise's Buddies are simply a combat sidekick, and - other than their recycled dialogue from 4U - don't really add much story-wise. Ironic, considering the Portable series was the one that invented Palicoes in the first place.

[@Nyahahameha]

I don't think Tatl should just be lumped in with Navi so haphazardly. She has so much more charm and character than Navi when you actually take the time to listen to what both of them have to say. Just look at the difference between what they say about Deku Babas: Navi: "Hit it when it lunges at you, and it will stand upright. Cut it quickly to get a Deku Stick!" Tatl: "Don't tell me you don't know about the Deku Baba! Cut it down when it has extended its body and Deku Nuts or Sticks will come out." Heck, you didn't even touch on her great interactions with Skull Kid or her protectiveness of her brother Tael!

[@Megamean09]

"The main villain can be your buddy too." Oh, there's no way he's got the balls to discuss Monster Girl Quest on this channel.

[@plplplplplpl7336]

12:55 actually i think Aloy makes sense talking to herself. When youre raised an outcast and can only talk to your father figure or to nature I think you would think out loud as you just want to hear something

[@mallardish1764]

Six from the second Little Nightmares game might be one of my personal favorite side kicks of all time. It’s one of the few times you can really their presence, or in turn the lack of it, even if there’s no dialogue between the main characters. Not only does she serve a purpose gameplay wise, but she also plays a majorly important role in the story, where letting the player actually get attached to her as a character is absolutely crucial. I think one of the main pulls for great character depth is the fact she’s given multiple scripted sequences to just do her own thing, instead of standing around statically like most other characters in games. It’s a really handy strategy, especially when keeping the gameplay and story pacing smoothed with the emersion.

[@AubriGryphon]

Portal 2 contained my favorite redundancy joke ever. Glados: "Well, this is the part where he kills us." Wheatley: "Hello! This is the part where I kill you!" Chapter 9: The Part Where He Kills You Achievement Unlocked: The Part Where He Kills You (This is that part.)

[@samuellima6193]

Music: the part where he kills you

[@dannyinferno6747]

tbh, hal from astral chain is a pretty good side kick, he’s basically your bro. hal may not have anything to offer gameplay wise, but in terms of story, he does a LOT for you. not only does he help you in exchange for helping him when you first meet him, he also helps you try and discover what’s really going on behind the scenes, as well as give you a safe house when you’re laying low, plus he gets you to safety right before the final boss fight begins. hal literally asks you for nothing in return for helping you, even when he gets labeled a criminal.

[@1on95]

This was a wonderful video that made me think a lot about elements of video game narratives I'd never consciously noticed

[@turbo558]

Lovely timing with starfield coming out with total control over who is or isnt with u!