Time to get subjective, gang! So I like RPGs, I've said it before and I'll say it again, and one of the aspects about Role Playing Games that I love so much is the way that they invariably invest heavily into characterisation. This could mean that you get a well-rounded arc for the main cast of the story, or simply a bevy of diverse and unique friends to hang out with, either way it helps for the story to stick in your mind for longer because you actually care about the cast. As a fellow who's never had a large group of friends, it's fun to interact with a group of virtual friends in a simulated environment that I can come back to again and again. (Yes, I know that sounds unhealthy and pathetic, that's because it is.) As such I thought it might be fun to asses whom I personally consider to be the 'best' companion in the various RPGs that I play.
There is one thing to establish before I start, however, and that's the fact that I currently have absolutely no iron-clad reference sheet to assess with. That's because as I said at the beginning, this is going to be a hugely subjective topic wherein a lot of what I discuss will be down to personal whims and interests. This may mean that I'll come across some times when I celebrate a companion for being particularly powerful whilst admonishing another for the exact same thing, you'll just have to put up with all that. Essentially what I'm trying to say is that there is no logic to be gleaned from reading this blog so be wary all ye who read further.
First off, I wanted to discuss an easy game to explain as I'm fairly certain most people have either played it or are familiar with it anyway. Fallout 3 is a game that take place in a post apocalyptic Washington DC which is ruled by roving bands of raiders, Mutants and Power Armoured Authoritarians. And the Enclave. (See what I did there?) Perhaps the thing to note about Fallout 3 which sets it apart from all the other Fallout games in the series (apart from 4) is the way that the Capital Wasteland is a cracked and broken land for the entirety of the game. That is to say, there are pockets of society scattered here and there but they are the exception rather than the rule, meaning that Fallout 3 is less about a 'post apocalyptic society' than almost any other Fallout title. (Especially New Vegas.) So that inherently means that any companion who joins you along that quest is going to have to be able to protect you whilst serving to make the long journey's across the wastes just a bit less lonely.
Now the thing about Fallout 3 when it comes to how Companions are handled, is that this was a game that was developed a long time before Bethesda really knew what they were doing with such an aspect of their RPGs. However, they still clearly wanted to do something significant with companions and so they dedicated more effort into implementing them than they did for Oblivion. (In which those you meet are so empty that they don't, in my mind, earn the title of 'Companion' and are just temporary followers.) This does mean that a good deal of them are woefully underdeveloped, however, and all of them are lacking in something unique to them like a companion quest. (To be fair Mass Effect only came out a year beforehand, so one could argue that developed side characters was a somewhat new prospect.)
There was also this little quirk in how they worked on a gameplay level, specifically when it came to interacting with companions. You see, for some reason they were all fitted with a moral leaning that preferably had to be inline with your own moral leanings in order form them to join up with you. The intention of such a system was to allow for the player to have a couple of companions at their disposal no matter what morality they pursued, but in practice it just made it so that players had to jump through several stupid karma-altering hoops in order to get the companions that they wanted at any given time. This was most annoying for those folk who would inexplicably only join up with your cause if you had a 'Neutral Karma'. "So you want me to help people but not all people? Murder some but not everyone? Pick a side you damn fence-sitting arse-hats!" Only Dogmeat is immune to a Karma requirement, which makes all the sense as he's such a good boy that no one should be blocked out of the chance of playing with him.
For those of good Karma you have the companions of Star Paladin Cross and Fawkes, who also just happen to be rather important to the storyline. Cross has the benefit of family history, having known your father, and Fawkes is the world's friendliest Super Mutant. (Although he does get on my nerves with some of his more contrived logical fallacies.) For evil players you have Jericho the retired raider (Can you really *retire* from murdering and robbing folk?) and Clover the psychotic slave. With his weapon I'd say that Jericho is certainly one of the most powerful possible companions, but he's an arse so I don't like him. (Clover, meanwhile, just makes me uncomfortable to be around.) On the neutral side of things there is Sergeant RL-3 which is a Misty Gutsy with a behavioural disorder which makes him care about your moral leaning for some reason, and your old bully Butch, who honestly shouldn't even be a companion, it doesn't really make any sense.
So sure, there isn't much to go over to describe why Charon is so good in my eyes, but there doesn't really have to be when you think about it. Plus, this will make for a nice and simple baseline for when I get into the more involved video games and companion stories down the line. Of course, I'm sure someone out there would disagree with me for whatever reason, (Likely because we see Charon murder the last man he was contracted to. Doesn't really bode well for the player.) but that is the fun of a subjective opinion piece: everyone has their own. In the future expect things to get a bit more involved as I go take a look at the single best Fallout game of all time; New Vegas.
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