Best of friends: video game buddies
Next Tuesday is International Friendship Day. It’s a time for celebrating the positive effect your friends have had on your life and showing your appreciation, as well as participating in activities which bring people from different backgrounds together.
Good pals are just as important in video games as they are in real life. When you consider all the situations that could be thrown at a protagonist – armed enemies, deadly curses, scary monsters and more – it makes sense they’d want someone along for the ride who’s got be their back. So in honour of the event, I’ve put together a list of some my favourite friendly people. These guys are always there for each other through whatever digital dangers thrown at them.
Ben and Dan from the Ben There, Dan That series
You know there’s always that one friend who’s completely on the same level as you? One who knows what you’re thinking, can finish your sentences and snorts at your crude jokes? Well that’s Ben and Dan. Whether they’re attempting to fix a broken television antenna so they can watch Magnum, P.I. or interrupting their time-travelling future selves in achieving world domination, you can guarantee they’re having a laugh while doing it. You get the feeling that they’re still going to be the best of friends and causing mayhem well into old age.
Ico and Yorda from ICO
Commander Shepard and Garrus from the Mass Effect series
Friends should be there for you no matter what and this is proven by the undying loyalty between Commander Shepard and Garrus. From saving the world from an evil alien invasion to uncovering the secrets behind the fabric of our existence, whatever is thrown at them brings these two even closer. They tend us that true friendship doesn’t look at sex, race, species or any other differences – all that matters is that you’ve got someone you trust completely. As the Commander says: ‘There’s no Shepard without Vakarian.’
The stranger and Atrus from the Myst series
Sam and Max from the Sam & Max series
In some ways these two couldn’t be more different. Sam is a verbose anthropomorphic dog who stays calm in most situations and rarely loses his temper. Max on the other hand is a ‘hyperkinetic rabbity thing’ who’s impulsive and indulgent, and loves nothing more to solve any problem in front of him with violence. They may be like chalk and cheese in terms of their personalities, but when they come together they form one of the best crime-fighting teams either – along with one of the strongest friendships we’ve ever seen in video games.
Mae and the rest of the gang from Night in the Woods
That’s not all you’re getting for International Friendship Day because there’s another post coming next week! While you’re waiting, share the love by telling everybody about your own favourite video game duos in the comments below.
Kim View All
Video game lover, Later Levels blogger and SpecialEffect volunteer. Big fan of wannabe pirates and fine leather jackets.
I have to go with my favorite classic duo: Sonic and Tails!! My friend and I played Sonic 3 & Knuckles all the time cooperatively thanks to the 2 Player feature, and it cemented those characters as two of my permanent favorites!
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The Sonic games remind me of playing video games with my brother when we were kids, and fighting over who was going to get the first go or which characters we were going to choose. 😀
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Nice choice! I would second Sonic and Tails. Although I would like to add in Jak and Daxter too! They are a very hilarious duo in the first game.
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There’s an international friendship day? Good to know, I’ll make sure to invite a few of my friends and we’ll make a crapton of burgers!
In video games I like friendships that are formed over the course of the game, because I get a better understanding of what it is that the characters respect about each other.
One that I particularly liked (even though the game was mediocre at best) was the friendship between Styx, the Goblin, and Arkail, the Orc Berserker in “Of Orcs and Men”. True, it is presented in a pretty cliche buddy-movie style, but I still think it was implemented in a neat way.
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Burgers and video games, what more do friends need when they get together? 😉
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The hero and her dog in Fable 2! It might not be the perfect game, but that relationship within it is. ❤🐶
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Why did I not think of this one when writing this post? That dog was the only reason I made the choice I did at the end of the game!
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This is so sweet 🙂 I have absolutely loads of pairs of friends in video games that I love, including the pair I’ve picked for Blogger Blitz. Like Cary above though, one of my favourite friendships in video games involves a dog – and that is Repede and Yuri from Tales of Vesperia. There is a kind of unspoken acceptance and understanding between them which I find beautiful!
I kinda want to write one of these of my own now!
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Do it, Pix! International Friendship Day isn’t until Tuesday next week, so there’s still time… 😀
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Yayy so nice to see Myst get a shout out!
One of my more recent favourite duos was Brok and Sindri from God of War. When they finally start working the forge together at the end of the game it’s just so damn heartwarming.
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Opposites attract, and there are two complimentary sides to every relationship. ❤
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Jak and Daxter!!! (My answer to every video game question whenever possible 😂) But in this case it actually applies. They have each other’s backs and are hilarious together.
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I’m ashamed to admit I’ve never played any of the Jak and Daxter games! I’ll look at setting that right as soon as possible. 😉
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Reblogged this on DDOCentral.
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