BioWare have graced our screens for more than 25 years. In each game they produce, they provide some of the most unique and exciting characters in games. These are the best of them.
BioWare has worked on so many titles in so many different genres. Creating unique, breathtaking worlds (and galaxies) that players can get lost in. From the muddy lands of Ferelden in Dragon Age to the sleek metalwork of the citadel in Mass Effect. From the sandy dunes of Tatooine in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, to the Forgotten Realms of Baldur’s Gate.
But the thing that has established BioWare as such a powerhouse in the gaming industry, particularly when it comes to RPGs, is their Characters. BioWare games have some of the best characters in gaming, and this list is designed to essentially look at the very best.
The criteria for this list are not based on gameplay, so don’t expect a mention for how powerful a certain character is; this is purely based upon their character arcs, story beats, personality, and general relevance to the story of their gam, etc.
Warning: There will be spoilers ahead for the following BioWare games:
- Star Wars: Knights of The Old Republic I and II
- The Mass Effect Series
- The Dragon Age Series
If you don’t want any games of the series above to be spoiled, then look away now. If not, then enjoy the top ten best companions in BioWare games.
10. Canderous Ordo/Mandalore (Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic & Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords)
Canderous Ordo is the BioWare companion whom we start off this list with.
Now, Star Wars inherently has a reputation for the utilisation of character archetypes. Essentially, the basic ideals of a character are bundled up into a common combination. For example, Han Solo is a stereotypical Brigand or smuggler; he is witty and snarky, but deep down has a heart of gold.
Because of this, the expectation for Canderous was that he would end up like the majority of the common bounty hunters found throughout Star Wars… and that is wrong. Canderous is one of the more interesting companions in KOTOR because of how unique he is. Canderous is innately flawed.
His side mission later explains that Canderous was a commander and was responsible for the deaths of many of his men. Canderous claims it was to win the battle, but this surviving soldier blames Canderous for ‘seeking honour’. It is one of the more interesting arguments to be had in KOTOR I, and it also shows a deeper side to Canderous, the brutal mercenary who, all of a sudden, displays a crack in his shell.
9. HK-47 (Star Wars: Knights of The Old Republic & Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords)
HK-47 is a strange character to be seen in the Star Wars universe. Every droid that the player has seen ultimately has been kinder or neutral. The droids that don’t follow that principle are Sith droids, but that is anticipated.
BioWare, however, quickly flipped the ideal on its head. Described as a serial killer version of C3PO, HK-47 is one of the funniest characters in any game ever. Period. That is enough to make him one of the better characters anyway, but what makes him better is his connection to the Main character. It turns out that HK is Revan’s personal assassin droid, which suddenly connects HK to the story in a more fixed manner. He has some illuminating (and hilarious) stories about Darth Malak, and while he lacks the depth that other characters may have on this list, he provides some ironic levity to the game, which is sorely needed.
8. Urdnot Wrex (Mass Effect)
The best character in Mass Effect 1, Urdnot Wrex.
Wrex is a unique character. He is a Krogan (the battle-hardened warrior race of Mass Effect), and in the first game, he has completely abandoned all hope for his people. The Krogan suffer from the Genophage, a disease that infects every Krogan with a “reduced Krogan fertility rate”. What it does is make breeding for the Krogan near impossible, and many Krogan face the terror of stillborn children.
Wrex is such a great character because of his perspective. BioWare ensured that He was portrayed as a cynic, believing that his race has no way to continue or thrive. He also points out the incredulous decisions that the Krogan make: “If you ask a Krogan, would he rather cure the genophage or fight for credits? He’ll choose credits every time.” However, upon discovering a cure for the genophage in ME:1, there is a shift in Wrex. Instead of a cynic, there is a passionate, potential leader.
This is who we go on to see in the following entries, and his arc is one of the best in the ME trilogy. His change throughout the 3 games embeds Wrex into the memory of all Mass Effect fans and is why he’s on this list.
7. Dorian Pavus (Dragon Age: Inquisition)
Dorian Pavus, the best character in Dragon Age: Inquisition (in my opinion). Dorian is a great character because of his attitude throughout the game. He is a charming and witty companion and also provides insights into the Tevinter Imperium, a faction that throughout the Dragon Age series has only had a negative reputation. Dorian has a great perspective shift in Dragon Age. Unlike most Tevinters met in the series, Dorian is far less uptight, and yet he keeps his powerful patriotism.
His romance in Inquisition is also one of the best in the series. Dorian sells himself as a debaucherous rabble rouser. When in reality, he is a very soft-hearted man. His companion quest, where you meet his Father, is one of the more emotionally charged in Inquisition, and you see a side to Dorian that is uncommon throughout the rest of the game. This gives him so much depth and allows him to stand as one of the best-written Dragon Age companions.
He is a very unique character in the menagerie of BioWare characters, and every Dorian fan should be ecstatic that Dragon Age 4 is most certainly going to include him.
6. Morrigan (Dragon Age: Origins)
We have another Dragon Age character. The snarky, contemptible, sometimes cruel witch of the Kocari Wilds. Morrigan is a great character for a variety of reasons. She is the second companion that you meet in the game, and she has one of the stranger perspectives in all of Dragon Age. She claims to know many things, and yet similarly has a very ‘fish out of water’ type narrative. A plot that BioWare carefully threaded throughout the story for some of the funnier moments in the game.
She is very relevant to the plot of Dragon Age: Origins and is one of the few companions in a BioWare game to just straight up leave, regardless of the player’s actions. When you reach the end of the game, regardless of your choices, decisions, or thoughts, she leaves, even if romanced.
Because of this, we, as the player, see multiple sides of Morrigan. She can be cruel when she wants to be, but it is rather obviously a defense mechanism. As a romance option, she doesn’t know how relationships work. She refers to her ‘love’ as if it’s an illness, asking the player to ‘release her’. She feels closed in, but if the player says okay, she’d be upset. It’s one of the more complex romances because of how much Morrigan questions herself, and it only increases the level of her complexity and makes her one of the best BioWare companions in general, never mind just Dragon Age.
5. Bastila Shan (Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic)
Bastila is the most important character in KOTOR. She is the most relevant and the most interesting. She is a Jedi Sentinel and was said to be one of the more instrumental Jedi generals in the war against Revan. Because of this, she has a sincere amount of arrogance. This arrogance comes through quite often, and while at first she appears one-note, she is hiding layers of herself beneath this falsehood. She is also voiced by BioWare phenomenon Jennifer Hale (Voice of female Commander Shepard).
She often expresses that she still does not feel ‘ready’. Her emotions are in disarray, and despite being a well-trained Jedi, she still feels like she is straying from the path. This is further expedited if she should become involved with the player (which is the best romance in the game).
Her turn to the dark side is unexpected, and because of its shock and her excellent character, several players have turned to the dark side at that very moment, despite being a light-sided character throughout the entire game. That’s how you know she’s a good character.
BioWare toiled over this character long and hard, and she eclipses almost every other KOTOR character by a long way, leading to her remaining in the echelon of great BioWare companions.
4. Tali’Zorah Vas Normandy/Vas Neema/Nar Rayya (Mass Effect)
Tali had been with Shepard since Mass Effect 1, and while in the first game she serves more as BioWare’s exposition dump for the Geth and Quarians, in the following 2 games she becomes one of the best characters in the trilogy.
She matures in the following games, BioWare realising her true potential, and because of this, she has one of the best companion quests in Mass Effect 2, showing the introduction to Quarian culture, all the while showing Tali’s depth and the care she feels for the Quarian race. The loss of her Father impacts her immeasurably, and you also get an insight into her as a person, as she does not wish to tarnish her Father’s legacy by revealing what he did.
In Mass Effect 3, she is integral to the Quarian/Geth Conflict and again shows another change, as due to the time spent with Legio, she suddenly has different viewpoints regarding the Geth and trusts them more than her Quarian counterparts.
All of this, and she remains one of the best romances in the trilogy; she has heartfelt moments between her and Shepard, and due to the fact that she is present in all three games, it truly feels like the player and she have been on an immense journey together.
3. Alistair (Dragon Age: Origins)
This guy is the best Dragon Age companion hands down. He is one of the funnier companions in the game; meanwhile, he also hides one of the best character arcs in gaming. The player as ‘The Warden’ can affect the outcome of Alistair, and not simply the fact that he can become King, even down to his ideals.
BioWare thought this through for Alistair, and if the player wishes, they can decide that Alistair should be more hardened and cruel, or maintain his somewhat naive, but cheerful view of life. He is a character with a vast amount of backstory and intrigue; he holds the grief over the loss of the rest of the Grey Wardens primarily on his shoulders.
Not to mention the fact that he is woven into the story throughout, whether it’s about his adopted Father (Arl Eamon) or his true Father (King Maric). In addition to this, his romance is complex and interesting; his former life with the chantry leads to his naive views on romance and leads to one of the more endearing romances in any BioWare game.
He is not only one of the best BioWare companions, but one of the best game companions ever seen in an RPG.
2. Liara T’soni (Mass Effect)
Dr. T’soni is one of the best characters in gaming. She has the widest and most in-depth arc of any of the characters in the Mass Effect Trilogy; she is present in all three games (she is only a temporary companion in ME:2), and she has one of the best romances in any RPG. Period.
She is one of BioWare’s most complicated characters. Her beginning as a Na’vi archaeologist scouring Prothean ruins in Mass Effect 1 is a great beginning. After having one of the more emotional standoffs in Mass Effect 1, we see a setup for her development into the next game.
She shifts gears into a more ruthless information broker in the following game, before finally, at the end of ME:2’s DLC Lair of the Shadow Broker, she becomes the Shadow Broker. She is a character assembled from broken parts. She overworks herself looking for answers when it comes to pretty much anything, and she has some of the best writing in any BioWare game.
1. Garrus Vakarian (Mass Effect)
Of course, it was gonna be Garrus. The best bro/romance in the galaxy. BioWare’s magnum opus… Garrus Vakarian. The scarred turian stands at the pinnacle of character development. In the first game, his character is not very complex. He has a very defined goal and hatred of ‘red tape’, believing that all it does is halt his progress. It’s a pretty good arc. However, his story picks up in the following game.
Making Garrus into an epic vigilante was the best decision they could have ever made. Not only does it deepen Garrus as a person, but it also widens his perspective. He travelled to the worst place in the galaxy and has seen terrible things. He becomes far wittier, but it’s hiding his deep self-loathing, he feels for failing his men. His companion’s mission is less combat-focused and more narrative-focused as he attempts to get revenge. Shepard can either egg him on or convince him otherwise, but regardless, he is left with a bitter feeling.
In the third game, he cements himself as the best character, being Shepard’s most trusted confidant. He is always the first character who comes and talks to Shepard, and one of the only ones who truly asks the question, “Are you alright?”
Not to mention, regardless of whether you romance him or not, he has some of the most heartfelt scenes in the trilogy, whether that is from levity like the bottle shooting scene in Mass Effect 3, or the very end of the game speech that he gives to Shepard. He is one of the best characters in any game ever, and he stands at the apex of BioWare’s best characters in gaming.
Those are the 10 best companions in a BioWare game. If there is someone you feel was left out, be sure to comment below.
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