The Best and Worst Video Game Sidekicks

Sidekicks are an important part of any game and can turn any kick-ass character into a bad-ass machine. There are bad sidekicks however; this can be because they are annoying; don’t improve the main characters personality or just suck to have at your side. I have made a list of my 5 favourite sidekicks and my 5 worst sidekicks seen in videogames.

5 Worst Sidekicks

Tails (Sonic the Hedgehog 2)

While Tails is known for being actually useful as a sidekick there are instances where he isn’t and is just plain in the way; I am talking about Sonic 2 especially for the Mega Drive. Unless you plan on playing with an actual friend rather than a computer and keeping up on the same screen then expect Tails to fuck everything up. Most of the time he will come flying in from the top left hand of the screen after he’s fallen in a pit of spikes but instead of jumping out decides to run on the spot until he dies of stupidity. The bonus stages are a real pain because they require you to get a set number of rings and if Tails gets hit which he will then your chances of getting any chaos emeralds are slim to none. If you have somehow accomplished this impossible feat then kudos to you. Tails fails!

This Bipolar scrap of metal does not win any awards as a good sidekick. He is installed with the most overenthusiastic personality aswell as showing signs of cowardice. While all the characters of Borderlands do have distinct personalities; Claptraps for me was just on the border of annoyance. When I would occasionally go out from the Fyrestone and I would hear random generic quotes such as “Yoo hoooo!” and “I’m over here” and while he would just zoom off getting into all sorts of trouble and then has the nerve (or the wire) to say to me “Wow! Your not Dead?” Sorry Claptrap unfortunately you are not the best robot.

Yuffie Kisaragi (Final Fantasy VII)

Ugh the pain of getting Yuffie alone was enough let alone her later betrayal to you later in the game. While Cait Sith’s betrayal to the party was more heartbreaking than an annoyance, Yuffie’s takes it to a new level. When you first beat Yuffie she is initially angry and wants a rematch. Dare you pick the wrong choices or use the Save Point or Menu as she will take off with some of your Gil and you will have to fight her again. Once she is in your party she takes off again; that is if you take the optional quest of going to her home town Wutai but this time she takes every piece of your Materia! You chase after her only to confront a previous crime lord known to the party to save her. When she is saved she proves herself and comes to an understanding and then joins your party again. While this is initially a small portion of the game I found it extremely annoying fending off normal enemies with Grenades and using up rare Elixirs as I couldn’t afford normal supplies especially on the quite formidable opponents in Wutai. Yuffie may suffer with motion sickness but she permanently burned the Game Over screen into my Retina.

Sheva Alomar (Resident Evil 5)

While I absolutely loved Resident Evil 5 and welcomed it as a worthy addition to the franchise I despised Sheva Alomar as a sidekick. So much so that I went through the game in Co-Op mode with a friend until I finished it. As hordes of Zombies surrounded me and I was running low on health Sheva was a few yards away shooting away with our limited ammo supply at a Zombies leg while consuming a medicinal herb as soon as she took a hit. Even playing Co-Op with someone who plays well made this a pretty tough game so you can imagine how difficult it was for someone going Solo with a badly programmed AI. It’s a shame really especially seeing as she is portrayed as a strong and beautiful women. Sorry Sheva I think I will let Jill be my Valentine.

Navi (The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time)

Navi or (Nagi) as most would call her is a flying blue glowball with wings of annoyance. Firstly she does not initially believe Links capable hands of a task set to him in the Ocarina of Time by the Great Deku Tree; secondly she annoys Link throughout the game with “Hey Listen!” at the most inappropriate of times and last she leaves Link at the end of the game with absolutely no reasoning behind it. “HEY ARE YOU LISTENING!?” is what she would be saying to me right now as I am writing this article.

5 Best Sidekicks

Coco (Crash Bandicoot)

The smaller sister of Crash Bandicoot. She is highly intelligent and finds out what nemesis Cortex is really up to when he has Crash collecting Crystals for him. She becomes a playable character in Crash Bandicoot 3. She rides her pet Pura through oriental themed levels and riding on a jetski through the ocean in and around pirate ships aswell as shooting down planes and blimps in the sky. Although Pura is a tiger, he purs and meows like a cat; you know like how the Polar bear that Crash rides barks like a dog. Coco really helps out and if it wasn’t for her then who knows Cortex may have actually succeeded in using Crash to his advantage. Silly Crash.

Clank (Ratchet and Clank)

Clank is the trusty companion of Ratchet who he saved after crashing on his home planet. The two become the unlikeliest of companions but one of great magnitude. They have such a charming and witty relationship with one another and help each other. Clank can become a helipack allowing Ratchet to double jump to higher places aswell as have a small series of small levels where you play as Clank to activate a switch that allows Ratchet to pass through an otherwise impossible path. Also not forgetting his name is in the actual title of the game and plus he even got a game where you play as himself. Lombax and Robot happy together.

Baby (Guardians Crusade)

Baby is a cute pink monster with ears and wings and soon becomes your companion very early on in the game. Not only is Baby an integral part of plot itself it is also a very trusty and powerful companion (when treated right)
As Baby starts out very weak it requires training to grow stronger which of course means more experience. Baby does it’s own thing in battle but that is if you leave it to; you can command Baby to help you but only if you look after it. You can send Baby to fetch items for you and have a choice on how to treat Baby depending on the results. These effect you and Baby’s relationship. It is also important to feed Baby; if you don’t he will end up going against you and may even end up attacking you in battle. You can even fly on baby after a important story event unfolds. Speaking of Guardians Crusade we also have Nehani who is a small flying fairy who is the absolute opposite of Navi from the Zelda games; not only does she have useful hints she helps turn the tide in an important story battle and doesn’t ever leave your side; even after the game is over.

Angelo (Final Fantasy VIII)

Man’s best friend is also the trusty companion of Rinoa from Final Fantasy VIII. While the current party participates in battle to the full Angelo comes in during certain parts most notably during Rinoa’s Limit Break. Angelo will perform one of many aggressive tricks from charging through an enemy or being blasted into a group of enemies. While only starting with these two tricks Angelo can learn a small catalogue of other tricks by the party finding the remaining set of Pet Pals magazines. What makes Angelo’s more special is that some are not even triggered by manually using a Limit Break. Angelo will come into battle when a party member gets KO’d and will use Angelo Reverse to revive them or use Angelo Recover on anyone with low health. And what does Angelo get in return for all this? Love and companionship of course oh and a dog biscuit when the deed is complete.

Ellie (The Last of Us)

To begin with Ellie is far from useful as a sidekick but progressing through The Last of Us she changes and becomes a lifesaver. As she initially feels sick from shooting someone to save Joel she is given the opportunity to help him and is given a gun for emergencies; although born and stuck in a quarantine she really grows character quick in the outside world and will help you out even if things look dire for Joel. If you are stuck in a headlock she will jump and knife or shoot a clicker coming towards you; she will even give you ammunition and bandages. Unless you’re playing through the Grounded difficulty it’s difficult to see how useful she actually is especially when you’re saving ammunition. Where she really stands out is when you play her as she is trying to save Joel after she just saved him after being impaled. There are far too many reasons why she is worthy of this list and while I have listed most of them there probably is more.

There are many other good and bad sidekicks but there are only so many that can create an endless memory; good or bad. Do you agree or disagree? Let me know what you think.