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Top Ten Video Game Sidekicks | Culture of Gaming

Here are our Top Ten Video Game Sidekicks. Including all the usual suspects, but some may surprise you! (for real though, most hate on one)

Gaming is usually about getting to be the hero, or sometimes, the bad guy. But what about those handy sidekicks that feature in your favourite games? Here’s my list of the top ten video game sidekicks.

1. Sparx

Sparx is the adorable bug-eyed dragonfly who takes hits for you in Spyro games. He makes the cutest noises, and you actually get to play as him in a few levels in a couple of the games. Sparx can apparently point to hidden gems for you too, but personally, I’ve never been able to figure this out. I do love stomping much bigger bugs than me in the Sparx levels, though, and there’s no tricky platforming to worry about either.

Luigi’s Haunted Mansion 2: The Dark Moon and getting to play as Luigi really made that game for me. It could just as easily have been Mario, and I’m glad it wasn’t.

3. Claptrap

Claptrap, or CL4P-TP, is the real star of any Borderlands game. He is hilarious and reminds me of a character I hold dear to my heart — Marvin the Paranoid Android from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Some people find Claptrap irritating, but he makes me laugh, and any storyline with him in is my go-to on Borderlands. He’s super cheerful but claims to be lonely and depressed, and I just can’t help but love him.

4. Chloe

Chloe and Max took the gaming world by storm when Life Is Strange Season 1 came out. Chloe is the kick-butt character you usually get to play as in video games, but in Life Is Strange, she is the sidekick to Max’s depressed, lethargic hero. I love Max too, but Chloe really makes the game come alive. If she’d been the star, the game would have gone in a totally different direction, and I think the developers made the right choice to use Max, but that said, I’d love to see a full-length Chloe game.

5. Palico companions

How could I not include the adorable cats from Monster Hunter: World? I am the proud owner of a calico (or tortoiseshell, as we say here in the UK), and coming across these was one of the best moments of my gaming history. They’re cute, they’re helpful, and they give the game a unique flavor that sets it apart from other co-ops or adventure games.

6. Ray

Ray is your friendly neighborhood AI on Fortnite: Save the World. She is witty, quirky, and actually quite cute. Her relationship with her creator, Dr. Vinderman, is adorable, and it makes for a memorable video game storyline. There are a couple of other AIs, like Pop, who is equally adorable, but Ray takes the lead.

7. Toad

I see Toad (and all his friends), as a sidekick to Mario much more than Luigi. In Luigi’s games, he is a sidekick to him as well, which is a point I absolutely love. Toad makes the funniest noises, and I loved punting him across rooms with my Poltergust 5000. It was even better when you had more than one Toad.

8. Daniel

Another Life Is Strange character, but Daniel’s from Season 2. He’s your kid brother, after all, so he’s the perfect sidekick. As the big brother, Sean, you have to keep an eye out for him, but there are times when he can hold his own.

9. Firefly

A really old game from my childhood, the fireflies you get function a lot like Sparx, but you don’t have one all the time. Rayman is about as HeroTM as you get with shiny white teeth and dashing blond hair, but his neck (or lack of neck), is usually saved by Firefly.

10. Your main Pokémon

I’m admittedly a bit weird, but I usually get attached to one particular Pokémon really on in a Pokémon game. They become my own sort of sidekick, a bit like my cat. I guess Pokémon is all about sidekicks, really.

I don’t really have to explain this one, do I?

Well, there you have it. My top ten video game sidekicks. Who would make your list? What would make your list? Let us know in the comments. You can also check out our other editorials here! And don’t forget to follow us on Twitter @thecognetwork. As always, thanks for reading COG!

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