There aren't many games in recent memory that have had an impact close to that of Baldur's Gate 3. Upon its release in 2023, it instantly became one of the most beloved RPGs ever made. It features a jaw-dropping narrative that seemingly shifts with every choice you make, deep and responsive combat that encourages and rewards creativity, and a phenomenal cast of characters, both heroic and villainous.
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Larian Studios' next ambitious RPG, Divinity, should take these features from Baldur's Gate 3, but avoid one annoying detail.
Many of those characters (from across the moral spectrum) can become your companions under the right circumstances, and under the wrong circumstances, they might become your enemies, with some even starring in their own boss battles. Each of these companions is fully fleshed out, featuring a deep personal storyline with multiple quests and unique endings depending on your choices. While these characters are undoubtedly iconic, the following RPGs feature companions that are deeper, more likable, or affect their game world to a greater degree than even Baldur's Gate 3's companion characters do.
Tyranny
Everyone Is Evil, But You'll Love Them All Anyway
- Notable Companions: Verse, Barik, Kills-in-Shadow, Sirin
Tyranny is an oddity in the RPG space because it casts you not as a nameless hero or a world-saving legend, but as the agent of an evil emperor who has already taken over the world. As a Fatebinder under Lord Kyros' orders, you are dispatched to Vendrien's Well, the last bastion of resistance, to quell the rebel uprising or else enact one of Kyros' Edicts, which will demolish the region. Naturally, the companions who would follow you on such a mission are "morally gray," to put it gently, and that's what separates them from the companions in Baldur's Gate 3. It's also what makes them so fascinating, especially when, by the end of the game, you'll find yourself rooting for all of them. That is, if you don't upset them so often that they betray you.
There's Barik, a member of the Disfavored, Kyros' legion of knights. Barik was caught in one of Kyros' Edicts, and the resulting magical explosion fused his armor shut, from which no one has been able to free him. There's Sirin, the Archon of Song, kidnapped by Kyros as a child and trained to serve his goals. Sirin was born with the ability to use magic, and her voice can compel anyone who hears it to do her bidding. Then there's Kills-in-Shadow, a literal monster. She's sort of a were-hyena, the last of her tribe of Beastwomen, the rest of whom were wiped out by the Disfavored. You could make up your party with these three (although there will likely be some internal conflict among them), but there are still others whose personalities and questlines will entice you, like Verse, the Scarlet Chorus warrior, or Lantry, who just wants to catalog history, and doesn't really care if that history involves acts of genocide.
Mass Effect 2
They May Be A Group Of Misfits, But They're Your Misfits
- Notable Companions: Garrus, Samara, Jack, Mordin
The narrative of Mass Effect 2 is widely considered one of the best in gaming history. The game is BioWare's magnum opus, a perfect encapsulation of the studio's famed blend of RPG decision-making and cinematic storytelling. The central quest, to recruit a squad of misfit team members to take part in a self-professed "suicide mission" that will take down the Collector base, is one of emotional highs and devastating defeats, and it wouldn't be nearly as impactful without the characters involved.
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The most famous companions are Garrus and Tali, both of whom have fantastic and deep character questlines, but there are so many other noteworthy crew members of the Normandy. There's Modrin, the Salarian geneticist seeking to undo the Krogan genophage, and Legion, the sum total of over one thousand Geth minds housed in a single body. There's Jack, an extremely powerful biotic who was abducted and experimented on by Cerberus. Miranda, Grunt, Samara, every single companion who joins Shepard's cause is memorable, features a great questline, and contributes meaningfully to the narrative. Mass Effect 2 is about as close to a perfect sci-fi RPG as you can get. To be fair, Baldur's Gate 3 is right in that same tier, but its companion characters aren't all as fully-realized as the figures in BioWare's masterpiece.
Dragon Age: Origins
A Team Of Lost Heroes Hanging By A Thread
- Notable Companions: Morrigan, Alistair, Shale, Leliana
Speaking of BioWare, the developer has another near-perfect RPG in its library, this one set in a fantasy world heavily inspired by, believe it or not, Baldur's Gate, which was originally developed by BioWare before making its way to Larian Studios. While there are now four games in this series, the first entry, Dragon Age: Origins, is still the most beloved, and, much like Mass Effect 2 and Baldur's Gate 3, it is considered one of the greatest RPGs of all time.
Some characters, like Alistair and Morrigan, became so beloved from their time in Dragon Age: Origins that they became recurring characters in the series; particularly Morrigan, the Witch of the Wilds, who appears in every game except Dragon Age 2 (and she's mentioned there as well), although she's only a companion in Origins. While those two typically steal the spotlight, Leliana is an underrated party member who is just as interesting. She's a bard and devoutly religious, coming off as well-meaning and genuine, which is why it's so surprising when she reveals that she was once an elite assassin. It's these kinds of layers that make each companion feel so alive. Not only do they avoid stereotypical fantasy tropes, but they will regularly surprise you as you learn more about their history. They also change and grow as a result of the decisions you make as a player, resulting in some unexpected, and sometimes devastating, character arcs when all is said and done.
GreedFall
It's Not Just You Reshaping The World; Your Companions Do, Too
- Notable Companions: Kurt, Siora
There's a bit of a caveat here. Overall, the companion storylines in GreedFall aren't as impactful or fleshed out as their Baldur's Gate 3 counterparts. The reason that they are being covered here is that they tie directly into the game's main narrative to a degree that BG3's companions do not. Sure, Gale's storyline has a big impact on the ending (once you get there), and Shadowheart, Wyll, and Halsin's questlines overlap at times, but they don't completely reshape the game world like GreedFall's companions do.
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Siora is a standout, acting as a fiery liaison between the natives and the colonists, and she plays an integral role in the story, especially as tensions between the two factions reach a boiling point. However, the main draw is Kurt. He's the first companion you'll meet in the game, a member of the Coin Guard. He seems honorable and reliable, and he approaches you early on with a companion quest that involves a potential coup brewing within the Coin Guard's ranks. Here's the thing: if you don't complete his early companion quests, not only will the coup take place, but Kurt will join in on it, betraying you at a key moment and shaking the foundations of the world in shocking ways. It's not only a betrayal; it permanently changes one of the two major cities in the game, all because you didn't earn Kurt's trust.
Pathfinder: Wrath Of The Righteous
The Weirdest Companions You'll Ever Meet, And There Are So Many Of Them
- Notable Companions: Arueshalae, Aivu, Ember, Finnean, Daeran
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous is also technically based on Dungeons & Dragons, albeit a descendant of 3.5e called (unsurprisingly) Pathfinder. It was developed by Owlcat Games, makers of Warhammer 40k: Rogue Trader and Dark Heresy, and the upcoming The Expanse: Osiris Reborn. Wrath of the Righteous was the studio's second release, but it immediately demonstrated their willingness to take traditional RPG elements and expand, innovate, and elevate them to a new level, just like Baldur's Gate 3.
Where Wrath of the Righteous sets itself apart is in the sheer number of companions available, and the unreal variety between them. There's Arueshalae, a succubus who you can recruit and either reform or corrupt, depending on how you handle her questline. You can recruit Ember, an Elven witch watched over by an Emphyreal Lord, whose storyline changes depending on your own character's moral alignment. There's Finnean, a sentient weapon, or Daeran, an oracle who is impossible to control and does whatever he likes. There are five undead companions exclusive to the Lich mystic path, and a havoc dragon companion named Aivu who is exclusive to the Azata mystic path. Aivu is particularly cool; while she doesn't have her own questline, she frequently joins in on conversations, especially during path-specific quests. As you level up, Aivu grows in size, and once she's big enough, you can ride her into battle. Baldur's Gate 3's companions are all great characters with wildly branching storylines and a vast array of possible endings, but none of them boast the same inspired creativity seen in Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous.
Baldur's Gate 3
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 96 /100 Critics Rec: 97%
- Released
- August 3, 2023
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Larian Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Larian Studios
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- RPG
