Some of the best video game sidekicks are the ones who help out, add entertainment value, add to the gameplay in a meaningful manner, or just generally stay out of the player's way. Sadly, video game sidekicks are terrible as often as not. It's a rare occasion when a sidekick turns out to be helpful or even wanted.
Players consider themselves lucky if a useless sidekick is easy to ignore. The worst video game sidekicks are the ones who constantly infringe on the player's progress, make the game more difficult with their stupid behavior, and prove generally annoying. The most frustrating part of it all is that these annoying sidekicks are found in games that are otherwise some of the best ever made.
Anyone: Dead Rising (2006)
Dead Rising is a surprisingly realistic zombie game in that many of the survivors are panicking and driven to making stupid decisions. Either that, or it's just atrocious AI. Part of the core Dead Rising gameplay is rescuing survivors in the mall and bringing them to safety.
However, these survivors don't know how to use weapons and often run full tilt into hordes of bloodthirsty zombies, who of course tear them to shreds in a matter of seconds. It's such a problem that many players simply refuse to rescue the survivors. Either that, or they only rescue the ones who can be piggybacked.
Natalya: GoldenEye 007 (1997)
GoldenEye 007 is not only one of the best shooter video games based on a movie, but it's one of the best shooters, period. However, there was always one major tarnish on the otherwise excellent game, and that was the presence of Natalya. Natalya is easily one of the worst video game sidekicks of all time, and she certainly exhibits the primitive nature of late '90s AI.
She was horrifically dumb, and it didn't take much to accidentally shoot and kill her. That tends to happen when she aimlessly wanders into swarms of enemies and doesn't do anything to evade their attacks.
Claptrap: Borderlands 2 (2012)
This is one of those instances when a sidekick nearly ruins an entire game. Borderlands 2 was a lot of fun, but its legacy is nearly tarnished by the horrifically annoying sidekick that is Claptrap.
Claptrap is an enormous whiner, and he constantly freaks out over every tiny thing. His constant pessimism and grating personality really tends to grate on the nerves, and it serves as a major tonal whiplash with the otherwise goofy tone of the game.
Navi: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998)
Ocarina of Time is one of the best games ever made, and it's a sequel that was far better than its original. There's just one tiny problem (aside from the generally dated nature of the game), and that tiny problem is Navi.
Navi serves as Link's fairy sidekick throughout Ocarina of Time, and her constant interjections of "Hey!" and "Listen!" have been permanently engrained into our brains. She could very well be the most annoying sidekick of all time, as there's nothing worse than her unbearable shrieks interrupting the flow of the game.
Baby Mario: Yoshi's Island (1995)
Yoshi's Island is undeniably one of the greatest Nintendo games of all time. It helped popularize Luigi and introduced the character of Baby Mario. However, it was an introduction that many despised. Once the player is hit, Baby Mario floats off into the air in a little bubble and begins wailing. If he is not rescued in time, he is taken away and the game resets.
The constant screaming is enough to give players headaches. People play video games to escape and have fun, not to listen to a baby scream its head off for eight straight hours.
Roman Bellic: Grand Theft Auto IV (2008)
Like all Grand Theft Auto games, GTA IV is a relatively solo experience. However, this game also introduced the concept of friends, which means players are constantly bombarded by the annoying Roman Bellic. Roman has a penchant for calling at the most inopportune times, typically because he wants to go bowling or something.
His irritating presence was so bad that Roman eventually became a meme, as millions of players the world over released their pent-up frustrations.
Marines: Halo (2001)
Some of the worst habits that Halo players have is relying on the AI marines. This is especially a problem in the very first game, which was released back in 2001. Artificial intelligence was still in its primitive stages, and it shows in the behavior and skills of the marines.
These marine companions are totally useless. Not only do they die within seconds, but they often do no physical damage whatsoever. Master Chief might as well be a lone wolf for all the good these marines do.
Ashley Graham: Resident Evil 4 (2005)
If there's one stain on the otherwise flawless Resident Evil 4, it's the presence of Ashley. Ashley has long been regarded as one of the worst and most annoying sidekicks in gaming history, and it's a shame that she is nestled within one of the best games of all time. Ashley is present throughout most of the second half, and she makes the game nigh unbearable at times.
She's stupid, she gets herself into constant danger, she's utterly useless as a companion, and, worst of all, she is incredibly annoying. Gamers can hear her yell "Leon!" only so many times before they begin to lose it.
Sheva Alomar: Resident Evil 5 (2009)
Unfortunately, the Resident Evil series didn't learn its lesson for Resident Evil 5. In fact, they doubled down on the whole AI partner concept and introduced Sheva Alomar. Sheva was a little more useful than Ashley at least, as the player could command her and cause her to perform certain actions.
However, she still proved more of a nuisance than a help. She had a penchant for dying easily, and she often expended health, ammo, and resources at incredible speed.
Donald Duck: Kingdom Hearts (2002)
Donald Duck is quite possibly the worst mage of all time. The concept behind the Donald Duck character is that he would heal Sora when requested or needed. Unfortunately, he had a strong penchant for just doing a whole lot of nothing.
He wouldn't heal Sora , and he would often just sort of stand around and watch the action. By not doing his one and only job, it made a lot of people question why he was even there in the first place.