Top 10 WORST Party Members in RPGs

“The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” (2011)

Not everyone in Skyrim is worthy of joining us on our adventures. One character that comes to mind is the Nord housecarl, Lydia. This walking piece of cardboard isn’t exactly weak, but she isn’t very smart, either. In fact, she’s not really much of anything. Nothing about her is remotely interesting, and during our travels with her, she states the obvious far too often. On top of that, you’ll find yourself having to save her tail in combat frequently, making her even more of a burden. With her repetitive dialogue, empty personality, and uselessness in combat, Lydia is one of those companions we’ll have to leave sitting at a tavern.

“Final Fantasy Tactics” (1997)

Cloud Strife will always be one of our favorite “Final Fantasy” characters, but “Tactics” has to be his worst outing yet. Unlocking him is a total pain in the backside, and your hard work won’t be over after recruiting him. You’ll not only have to grind to get him on the same levels with the rest of your party, but you’ll have to retrieve the Materia Blade if you want access to his Limit Break skills. He may have high Attack and Magic, but all that work leaves us questioning if unlocking him is worth all that effort. Spoiler alert; it isn’t.

“Paper Mario” (2001)

As much as we like the idea of having a Goomba for a friend, did we really have to have someone as lame as Goombario? Sure, he’s kinda cute, but the little guy just isn’t any good in combat. Well, …he’s alright in the first portion of the game, but it's highly unlikely that you’re going to use him later down the road, given his terrible moveset. Why do we need someone who plays like Mario when we already have the mustachioed man himself? Plus, his Charge move only increases his Attack by a very small margin. We know it stacks, but 10 damage in five turns isn’t worth the wait. Goombario is just weak sauce!

“Dragon Age: Inquisition” (2014)

We understand that you’re not supposed to like the villain, but when it comes to someone like Solas, it’s a completely different kind of dislike. In other words, he’s kind of an ass. As you might expect from a know-it-all mage, Solas comes off as pretentious and self-important. Joke’s on him, though, as we can make the claim that, without a doubt, he is the most boring character in the “Dragon Age” series. Just hearing him talk makes us want to take a nap.

“Final Fantasy XIII” (2010)

There are so many unlikable characters in “Final Fantasy XIII”, almost enough to make the entire list! However, if we had to choose just one, Vanille is the absolute worst. She falls into the trope of being so unbearably sweet and innocent that it quickly becomes annoying and frustrating. If her personality isn’t enough to irritate you, then maybe her voice will. Should she ever appear in future titles, you can bet we’ll be leaving her on the bench.

“The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion” (2006)

Some worshipper this schmuck is! Given how obsessed this guy is about us (since we’re the Arena Champion and all), you would think he would do our every bidding. Instead of aiding us in combat, the scoop of mustard runs away and cowers! Sometimes, he’ll run around in the middle of combat, nearly getting his whiny butt killed! Your patience will be severely tested, and you’ll soon find yourself wanting him to die. By Azura, by Azura, by Azura, look at all of the different ways we can get rid of this chatterbox…until he respawns a couple of in-game days later… crap…

“Fallout” (1997)

Its truly jaw-dropping how this guy has managed to survive the Wasteland. You’ll be regretting your decision in enlisting his help faster than Preston Garvey getting word about a settlement needing our help. Ian is a total idiot when it comes to combat. You can give him all the best weapons and ammunition, and the guy will never figure out how to reload, let alone how to switch weapons. He’ll quickly resort to fists and will chase the enemy to the ends of the world. So, if he dies in combat or you can’t seem to find him, your best option is to cut your losses and ditch him.

“Mass Effect 2” (2010)

Assembling your party in a “Mass Effect” game is about more than just combat ability - the characters you chose to have by your side will drastically affect your experience of the game’s story. Virtually the only thing wrong with “Mass Effect 2,” Jacob tries to act all brave and bold, but only ever comes off as thickheaded. It's like he’s trying to go out as the hero or something. “Mass Effect” tries selling us on the fact that he’s a strong soldier, but his bland personality is what keeps his butt on the bench. The only time we’ll bring him on a mission is when the difficulty spikes. Otherwise, he can keep the ship neat and tidy.

“Shining Force” (1992)

Look, we love Jogurt’s design. He’s an adorable little gopher-thing with a helmet! We would have loved to have him in the party if his stats weren’t so utterly terrible! Jogurt joins at Level 1, with 1 HP, 1 Attack, 1 Defense, and 1 Agility. His strongest stat is 7 in Movement. Here’s the kicker: no matter what you do, Jogurt can never level up - he’s permanently stuck at level 1. If - and this is a big if - you do manage to kill an enemy with this adorable weirdo, you’ll get a Jogurt ring, which you can equip to any character to make them look like Jogurt! Pretty useful right? Wrong. We hate to say it, but this little guy is going to have to sit out on this adventure.

“Final Fantasy VII” (1997)

He’s not only the worst RPG party member, but - by extension - he’s also the worst Final Fantasy character ever! Cait has no redeeming value to his existence, appearing only to serve as a comic relief. Surely, he has to have some use in combat, right? Well, if you’re a gambler! Most of Cait Sith’s Limit Breaks are based on luck, which means attacks range from unbelievably powerful to utterly weak, or it could lead to an instant game over for you and your party. Cloud’s better off without this weirdo Cat on his side - that is, unless you plan on exploiting his Slot ability to speedrun.