9 Most Annoying Video Game Sidekicks

7. Dog (Duck Hunt)

Tails 25th
Nintendo

Failure is hard to accept at the best of times. Doubly so when there's a d**k-head dog getting right up in your face to remind you how bad you are.

To be fair to the tyke, he is a competent hunting dog, retrieving the dead ducks the player successfully shoots. But unlike most canine companions, he's there front and centre with his s**t-eating grin and Muttley laugh every time you miss. Is it a good idea to mercilessly take the pi** out of someone armed with a shotgun?

It's for reasons of pure catharsis that Nintendo included Duck Hunt's dog as a playable character in Smash Bros. 4. Animal cruelty can never be condoned, but you can hardly blame a generation of ticked off trappers for going to town on the impudent hound.

Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.