Why RPG Companions Need to Be Absolute Nightmares for Us to Truly Love Them

When diving into massive, sprawling role-playing games, we often expect our companions to be loyal, endlessly supportive, and eager to please our every whim. Yet, the characters who truly stick with us long after the credits roll are rarely the agreeable pushovers. As recent deep dives into modern masterpieces like Baldur’s Gate 3 brilliantly illustrate, true storytelling gold lies in writing characters who are obstructive, deeply flawed, and frankly, a little bit hateable. When a companion has the audacity to be petty, toxic, or outright annoying, they cross the invisible barrier from generic NPC into a living, breathing entity that demands our emotional investment.

The Beauty of Being Petty

Consider the sheer audacity of Gale from Baldur’s Gate 3. Following an intimate moment, a player might casually respond that his performance in the bedroom was merely “fine.” Instead of taking it on the chin, the wizard launches into a dramatic, brooding sulk, comparing his romantic adequacy to failed monarchies before throwing a subtle existential threat about blowing himself up into the mix. It is an utterly toxic, eye-rolling reaction. It is deeply unpleasant, borderline manipulative, and yet, it is precisely this petulance that makes him unforgettable. Nobody falls in love with a blank slate of perfection; we fall for the complicated disasters who challenge us and reflect our own messy humanity back at the screen.

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