20 Games With The Cutest Companion Animals

It’s surprisingly easy to find games where animal companions play a meaningful role! Many titles now design gameplay – like quests, movement, and battles – around these faithful friends. We’ve gathered twenty games where your animal companion is more than just for show. They’ll help with things like spotting enemies, collecting items, or simply joining you on adventures. You’ll encounter dogs that highlight targets, cats for cooperative play, horses that become easier to ride, and even magical creatures that unlock new ways to get around. We’ll explain exactly what each animal does and how to get them as a companion, so you can quickly find your perfect sidekick.

Monster Hunter: World

Your Palico is a customizable feline companion who fights with you, sets traps, and uses gadgets to heal – you unlock these through research. You get a Palico at the beginning of your journey and can improve its abilities by leveling it up and crafting new gear. During hunts, your Palico can team up with Grimalkynes to learn new support skills, changing how it assists you. With the Iceborne expansion, your Palico gains even more powerful gadgets to help control enemies and stay alive.

Fallout 4

You can get Dogmeat very early in the game, and he’s a helpful companion. You can tell him to fetch things, follow scents, or even distract enemies, making them easier to hit. The best part is, he doesn’t count towards your companion limit, so you can have him alongside a human companion if you have the right perks. You give him commands through the companion menu to have him search containers or find hidden items. You can also equip him with armor to help keep him safe in combat.

Fable II

Your dog companion joins you from the start and grows alongside your decisions and how you play the game. You can teach it new skills by finding training books, allowing it to discover treasure, find keys, and locate hidden chests. In combat, it can knock down enemies and finish off those who are nearly defeated. As you gain reputation and make moral choices, its appearance will change to reflect your journey through the world.

Torchlight II

Choose a companion like a dog, cat, or ferret to automatically sell your collected items back in town while you continue your adventures. These pets can be equipped with spells and transform into powerful forms with unique abilities. They also function as mobile storage for your gear and can use scrolls, helping you keep up the pace in dungeons without constantly returning to sell items.

Stardew Valley

If you welcome a dog or cat onto your farm, their friendship level will grow over time. Regularly petting and feeding your pet increases this friendship, which is considered when your farm is evaluated after two years. Your pet will explore your farm and interact with the buildings and decorations you place. Future updates and modifications will add more breeds and unique behaviors to make your companion even more special.

Red Dead Redemption 2

Horses are valuable companions, offering unique abilities like quick maneuvering and helping you stay calm in combat. You can collect different horse breeds and customize them with equipment like saddles and bags to improve their stamina and speed. Simply whistle to call your horse, and it can carry your weapons and supplies. Regularly grooming and feeding your horse keeps it healthy for long journeys between towns and completing missions.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Roach is your reliable horse, always ready when you need a quick way to travel or fight from horseback. You can improve Roach’s stamina and bravery with saddles and blinders, letting you battle while riding at full speed. Completing races and quests earns you equipment that makes Roach handle better on all kinds of terrain – from swamps to mountains. Be careful around monsters though, as Roach can get spooked, so managing your distance is key.

The Last Guardian

You’ll guide Trico, a huge creature, using your voice and by pointing, working together to solve puzzles. Giving Trico food refills its energy and builds trust, allowing it to understand and follow more complicated commands. You can climb onto Trico to reach high places, cross gaps, and activate things in the environment. As you work with Trico, your bond grows, and it learns new abilities through teamwork.

Shadow of the Colossus

Agro is crucial for getting around the game’s world quickly and helps keep you steady during some of the boss fights. Learning how to speed up, steer, and stand on Agro lets you position yourself perfectly around the massive creatures you’ll face. You can use whistles and the direction controls to guide Agro along narrow paths, over bridges, and across open fields. Plus, Agro acts as a moving base for shooting arrows while riding.

Spiritfarer

Daffodil, the cat, follows Stella’s actions and allows a friend to join the game as the cat in local co-op. Daffodil assists with navigating levels by gliding and jumping alongside Stella, especially during ship upgrades and when exploring islands. The cat can interact with passengers and even participate in hugs, which can improve the mood of everyone on board. Importantly, the game’s progress isn’t tied to the second player, making it easy for friends to jump in and out of the co-op experience.

Baldur’s Gate 3

During Act 1, you can invite Scratch the dog to join you. He’ll come to your camp to bring you things and participate in some scenes. You can also befriend an owlbear cub who will hang around camp and interact with your party. Both Scratch and the cub create special events, give you small presents, and appear in unique camp scenes based on your decisions. Importantly, they don’t take up spaces in your combat party – they’re companions who add to the story.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

D Dog is a skilled scout, similar to a trained wolf, who automatically identifies enemies and points of interest. You can customize him for stealth or combat by equipping different gear. You get D Dog by first rescuing a puppy and then completing a series of missions to fully train him. You can give him commands to focus on specific targets, distract enemies, or quietly subdue them without causing serious harm.

Far Cry 5

You can hire animal companions – like Boomer the dog, Cheeseburger the bear, and Peaches the cougar – to help you out. Each animal has unique abilities, such as marking enemies, reviving you when you’re down, or taking enemies out silently. They understand basic commands like move, attack, and stay, making teamwork easier. You improve their skills by completing special quests for each companion in different areas.

Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin

Monsties are creatures you can ride and battle with, using a turn-based combat system. You can customize each Monstie’s abilities through gene channeling, creating unique skill combinations. Exploring the world, different Monsties allow you to overcome obstacles like swimming across water, scaling cliffs, or destroying rocks. You’ll also manage a stable and send out expeditions to collect eggs and resources as you advance the story.

World of Warcraft

Hunters can tame a wide variety of creatures as pets, each with its own special skills and characteristics. You can customize your pets with talent trees, assigning them roles like tank, damage dealer, or healer for group adventures. The game also features collectible battle pets that you can train and battle against other players in turn-based combat. Stable masters help you manage and switch between your many companions to suit any situation.

The Sims 4: Cats & Dogs

The new expansion introduces cats and dogs with unique personalities and needs that fit into your Sims’ daily lives. You can even open and run a vet clinic, diagnosing and treating pets as they get sick. The expansion also features a detailed pet customization tool, allowing you to create incredibly specific breeds with unique appearances. These pets will build relationships with your Sims and impact what happens at home.

Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Let’s Go, Eevee!

Travel with your Pikachu or Eevee as a companion, who learns special moves from in-game trainers. You can interact with them using motion controls – pet, feed, and even dress them in fun outfits! A friend can join in as a supporting Pokémon to help with catching and battles. Plus, Pokémon you encounter will follow you around the world, and can even discover hidden items along the way.

Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective

Meet Missile, a clever dog with a unique ability: he can magically swap the insides of two objects. This power is essential for solving puzzles, letting you move heavy items that are otherwise out of reach. Talking to Missile also provides helpful hints and new insights when investigating crime scenes. Throughout the game, Missile will continue to help you discover even more uses for his special swap ability.

Dragon Age: Origins

Okay, so the mabari war hound is a full-on party member – you can actually equip it with gear and level it up with its own talent tree! I got mine pretty early on through a quest, and it’s awesome to customize with runes, collars, and even warpaint. It’s super useful in combat too – it can track enemies by scent and knock them down, and it really benefits from gear that boosts its strength. Plus, it’s not just a combat buddy; it has unique barks and interactions at the campsite, and it’s actually woven into the story in a few places, which is really cool.

Far Cry Primal

With the Beast Master ability, you can tame animals like wolves, bears, sabertooth tigers, and owls to help you scout areas and fight. Each animal is good at different things – some are stealthy, some are fast, and others are very tough, making them useful for different situations. You can tell your animal companions to attack, stay put, or even help revive you, and you can craft bait to attract new types of animals. Owls are especially helpful as they can fly ahead, mark enemies, and even drop bombs during battles.

Share your favorite animal companions and the moments they helped you most in the comments.

2025-11-18 05:18