For some reason many RPG games have seen fit to come up with an animal like sidekick, or at least a sidekick that is not a human being.

• They are not playable characters, however the hero to which the sidekick belongs does often have spells which do call on this creature

• They are often bound to the main character, but not necessarily.

• Quite often they have a human kind of mind and are even able to talk, but not always.

In this list I'm gonna show you a few.

Nall - Lunar: Silver Star Story

Nall is a create with many cat-like characteristics, like a love for fish, but he claims himself not to be a cat. Nall is not playable, but he does function as the party's vault as he can carry far more items than the other characters can. In combat he may randomly even revive fallen characters.

t is later revealed that Nall is actually a dragon. In Lunar II we can see Nall in human form, although he's still a dragon.

Ruby - Lunar Eternal Blue

Ruby is Hiro's side-kick in Lunar Eternal Blue, which is the second game in the Lunar series. Ruby claims to be a dragon, but Hiro doesn't believe her. Ruby is very extremely annoying, especially due to her jealous behavior towards the character Lucia, on whom Hiro is clearly developing a crush. Nall was not nearly as annoying as she is. Ruby can attack enemies at random in battle, which is nice at the start of the game, but as the game goes on, her attacks become useless.

Like Nall, Ruby is in fact a dragon, and over the course of the game, you'll gain a crest allowing you to make Ruby take on the shape of a fully matured dragon who can burn the crap out of your enemies.

Interceptor - Final Fantasy VI

Interceptor is the giant dog of the character Shadow. According to Shadow Interceptor eats children. The dog is actually very very smart, and even hints towards many things.

Interceptor is very extremely kind to the little girl Relm, despite Shadow's claim that Interceptor eats children. This is a hint to the fact that Relm is actually Shadow's daughter. Somehow Interceptor must have sensed this connection.

Sulphur - Mana Khemia

Sulpur is Vayne's only friend at the beginning at the game. Sulphur is believed to be Vayne's mana. This is based on how Vayne is able to use Sulphur as his weapon and also the fact that Vayne can understand what Sulphur is saying. In the voice acting all you hear is "meow" though, although what Sulphur wants to say is written in text so the player can understand him too.

It is later revealed that Sulphur is not a mana bound to Vayne, but that Vayne is a mana bound to Sulphur and that Sulphur is just a normal cat.

Uryu - Mana Khemia 2

Now Mana Khemia 2 is a dual game, in which you can play the same plot-line but from the perspective of either Razeluxe or Ulrika. When you pick Ulrika, she'll be given a mana egg, by an old man. This egg eventually hatches and the mana that is born is named Uryu by Ulrika. Uryu is a very powerful mana, but with the mind of a child, looking up to Ulrika as a child can look up to their mother. In combat Ulrika can summon Uryu in its true form when the game allows you to do a finishing attack... the most powerful attacks of the game.

Hanpan - Wild Arms

Hanpan is an Elf Rat. A creature of human intelligence and able to talk. It is not fully revealed how he and his human partner Jack met. Hanpan is the calmness and the brains, where Jack is rather impulsive, immature and rash. Jack hides a horrible past, and it's clear that Hanpan is not aware of what actually happened, indicating clearly that the two must have met while Jack was on the run after these events. Jack became a treasure hunter and partnered with Hanpan. During the game Hanpan does more of the thinking work for the group and sometimes he comes up with the brightest plans.

In the game, Hanpan can be used in the game's puzzles to reach places a human can't get to. In combat Jack can use the move "Trickster" to make Hanpan search the enemies pockets while he attacks them, which actually allows you to steal. In the Alter Code F remake, the stealing move went to Jane, however Hanpan can still assist Jack in some attacking moves, and he also appears when Jack uses an item.

Pooka - Wild Arms 2

Where Hanpan was loved by the Wild Arms fans, Pooka was hated. Pooka serves as a sidekick for the character Tim and is a kind of a spiritual guardian. He has no "self" and as such it can shapeshift. In Wild Arms 2, the guardians, who are a kind of gods, cannot materialize in the human world, but Pooka can take on their shape performing an attack or assist move as the guardian would do, effectively working as a kind of summon. Tim can also use Pooka to reach spots in puzzles humans can't reach, although this works different than Hanpan works.

Puffy - Grandia

In Grandia everything is about adventuring. Puffy is a creature Justin's father brought home from his great adventures. The creature attached itself to Justin's friend Sue and he always rides on her head. Puffy is very loyal and devoted to Sue and even very protective of her, and Sue is only happy to return the affection. Puffy is very intelligent and does understand human speech, but cannot talk himself. In combat Sue can perform some special moves with Puffy's assistance.

Skye - Grandia II

Skye looks like a gigantic bird of prey, but he's actually very intelligent and able to talk. When Ryudo goes into exile due to horrors in his past, Skye seems to have found him and takes Ryudo under his wing. Ryudo developed a very cynical personality over time, and Skye tries to keep Ryudo on the right path. Although Ryudo always insults Skye, he knows he'd be nowhere without him. Skye does know what horrors Ryudo has sealed in his heart and eventually reveals them to Elena, allowing the player to get a more proper view on Ryudo.

In combat Skye can life the enemy so Ryudo can hit it extra hard.

Reggie - Star Story

Yes, my own game Star Story features Reggie as Foxy's sidekick. Reggie was created in a laboratory when scientist tried to play god. They did successfully create Reggie, but neglected to raise him and teach him manners, leading into Reggie being extremely rude, often being sexually insulting, causing Foxy to kick him. Foxy is able to use Reggie in combat, in order to put the enemy on fire.