True Companions/Video Games


 * Mother 3 has DCMC, who are all true band bros. When their bassist, Lucky/ has to leave do to reasons of heroism and amnesia, they sing a heartfelt little song begging the "Big Guy in the Sky" to look out for their pal. Awwww.
 * Final Fantasy V. The four Light Warriors hold together through failure, poisonings, and without fail. Galuf even calls a retreat when he's  to go and rescue the other three, alone. And in the ending,
 * Final Fantasy VI has the quintessential Ragtag Bunch of Misfits that become True Companions.
 * Final Fantasy VII and Crisis Core both stress the importance of having True Companions. Cloud needs his friends and comrades to be a complete and effectual person.
 * In the FFVII: Advent Children movie, Cloud actually calls the other characters his 'true companions' in the dialogue, which is translated in the English version to "family."
 * Zack for Cloud after their escape from Nibelheim, although Cloud was in no condition to reciprocate.
 * It is revealed in Crisis Core that even Sephiroth had True Companions through Angeal and Genesis. Though that was not enough to stop Genesis and Angeal from leaving Sephiroth behind when they discovered their true origins and went rogue.
 * Final Fantasy VIII's main SeeD team, which the memebers rely on each other as they do tag-team missions,
 * Final Fantasy IX has this (it's even said by Zidane that they're "more than friends - we're a team"), even though most of the characters (namely Zidane & Steiner) don't get along with each other at first. When Zidane discovers his disturbing origin, he tries to leave the gang. Garnet/Dagger, however, convinces him that they'll stay with him no matter what.
 * Final Fantasy X. Although Tidus functions as the narrator, the story as a whole is centered around the exploits of Yuna's guardians, as mismatched and misfit as they were, in their efforts to protect her and defeat Sin. It's carried on to a lesser extent in FFX-2, with Yuna as the main protagonist, though much of the original cast has disbanded and moved on. Tidus' sword is even named "Brotherhood," and powers up as he grows closer to the party.
 * Somewhat played with in that most of the party were already True Companions to Yuna before her pilgrimage: Rikku is her cousin, Kimahri and Auron knew her father, and Wakka and Lulu grew up with her on Besaid.
 * The six main characters of Final Fantasy XIII form a powerful bond thanks to the fact that the entire world wants to kill them. Especially poignant with Fang and Vanille, who come from an egalitarian where everybody literally shared everything and took the same last name. At one point when Vanille's hit rock bottom, Fang encourages her by reminding her that they have a new family now.
 * Anyone who plays the Japanese version of Dissidia Final Fantasy will have this word and this Trope drilled into their head by the time they are done with the story portion of the game. The ten main heroes in this Crossover are not only true companions but several smaller, fluctuating ones as well and the concept serves as a major overarching theme across their stories.
 * Watch the Tomato in the Mirror revelation scene on the Ebon Hawk in the first Knights of the Old Republic sometime.
 * Digital Devil Saga is all about this, since the main characters are a group of warriors fighting to protect the MacGuffin Girl, adapting to becoming demons together and ascend to Nirvana. While they have arguments and fall out quite a lot, there are a lot of speeches about what it means to be comrades and instances of Fighting Your Friend.
 * Fire Emblem support conversations often develop into this. A more blatant example is the Greil Mercenaries from Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn. A notable part is a speech Griel gives before chapter 6 "In times like these, it matters not what our blood ties are. We are family." Right before the final chapter, Ike states in a Rousing Speech that he finally understands what it means.
 * Even among all of the memorable examples in that game, Leonardo and Edward stand out. Unlike most all of the other supports, their relationship is canon and non-optional.
 * Sakura Taisen takes camaraderie very, very seriously, with the main force, the Teikokukagekidan, having reinforced it to its most extreme in multiple games, blurring the line between friendship and family.
 * The level of friendship you form with your team in Persona 4 is truly heartwarming; not surprising in a game where building social links increases your potential and efficiency in battle. Most of the storyline, apart from being a supernatural/murder mystery, is about the bonds you share with others. At the last battle of the game,
 * That goes for its predecessor, Persona 3, as well, which was the game that first introduced the social link aspect. In regards to the actual storyline, the bond between the members of your team—SEES—grows stronger and stronger as you progress through the game. By the end, all the members of SEES have become True Companions.
 * Dingo from Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner says that BAHRAM killed his comrades so many times, it starts to sound completely ridiculous.
 * One character gives a passionate speech about what it means to be true companions to another character in Ever 17.
 * The chosen ones of the Red Night in 11eyes refer to themselves as true companions several times, though sometimes it feels like it's being used to hold team spirit together as the challenges get tougher. Their group even has a motto. "For our friends and tomorrow!"
 * Star FOX has this for both teams: the main team Star Fox are like family to each other, but on recent plot themes, they have then become disbanded or at least one of them would leave to fly solo. Ironically, Star Wolf experiences this in reverse - Star Wolf originally has Wolf, Leon, Pigma, and Andrew. The last two were kicked out because of the lack of loyalty and code of honor, and were replaced by Panther. Panther is then a permanent member, and the trio have become so closer than ever.
 * Chapter 8 of Valkyria Chronicles has Welkin refer to the main players in Squad 7 as a family, with himself and Alicia as the father and mother, Rosie and his sister Isara as the daughters, and Largo as the grandfather. This scene is referenced again, as well as the reactions they all have to certain events in the game.
 * Sly, Bentley and Murray from the Sly Cooper series of games. The team does expand by the third game, though in the cases of Dimitri and the Panda King it's mostly a case of Enemy Mine.
 * Most likely Neku and the other protagonists from The World Ends With You, given everything they went through, and the Summed up nicely by Neku in the epilogue.

"Shepard: Shepard and Vakarian, storming Heaven. I can think of worse things. Garrus: Heh, I'll meet you at the bar."
 * The protagonists from the Sonic the Hedgehog series exhibit this, especially with Sonic and Tails. Their team in Sonic Advance 3 is even called "Unbreakable Bond".
 * Guild Wars uses this Trope as a game mechanic: if you can't gather enough human players for your party, you can hire NPC henchmen to fill the empty spaces. The same group of henchmen can be found in every town in the game and it's implied that all of them, including the ones the player never literally uses, are progressing through the story with the player. The latest two releases, Nightfall and Eye of the North, take this even further with heroes, a type of customisable henchmen that permanently join the player's party.
 * If a character is recruited into the main character's workshop in Mana Khemia: Alchemists of Al-Revis, expect them to stick by him even during the last part of the game (be it a Cute Ghost Girl, an alien and even The Rival).
 * Sora of Kingdom Hearts has a very large true companionship group, though the most obvious central examples are the Sora-Riku-Kairi and Sora-Donald-Goofy trios. Also Mickey-Donald-Goofy, and Axel-Roxas-Xion (at least it looks that way). The most close-knit trio, though, is Terra-Aqua-Ven, who are like siblings or two parents and a child, depending on the situation.
 * In Tales of Symphonia, towards the end of the game, the main party is split into multiple groups as a result of a trap. Lloyd and his Soul Mate go and rescue their friends, and Lloyd goes to each event, where the characters are being tormented by their own fears and demons. He accepts them for who they are and they manage to break the trap. This is most prevelant in Genis & Raine's torture, where they are singled out for being half elves. Lloyd disperses their fears and returns them to the group.
 * Star Ocean: The Last Hope. Edge has this strange way of insisting people he has literally met five minutes ago are his 'friends' and basically coercing them into joining him, then devoting as much of his time as possible to driving them away, then doing ludicrously stupid things that typically have horrific consequences in the name of comradeship.
 * The party in Star Ocean the Second Story
 * Planescape: Torment, if one plays it with a team.
 * Very significant is a moment when Sarhava Vhjull, a young, arrogant, drunken noblewoman, insults Annah, who is at first more flustered than angry. Not only the Nameless One (player's character) stands up for her, but even Morte (always rude towards the tiefling), if the player let's him, does the job of insulting back said NPC.
 * If Fall-From-Grace is with you, she will give Sarhava (who, it turns out, was raised at her brothel) such a talking-to for being a disgrace and an embarrassment she basically shrivels up. That's fun to see, but it's notable that Grace is defending Annah, who is cold at best towards her.
 * A noteworthy subversion:
 * Fatal Fury has a few, which led into the King of Fighters series. First and foremost, the Bogard brothers, Terry and Andy Bogard, Joe Higashi, and Mai Shiranui. We also have the Hero Team with Kyo Kusanagi, Benimaru Nikaido, and Goro Daimon. From the Ikari Team, Colonel Heidern, Ralf Jones, Clark Still, Leona Heidern and Whip. And one evil example, The Howard Connection, Consisting of Geese Howard, Billy Kane, Raiden, well sometimes, and much later, Kain Heinlein.
 * Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story revealed Bowser and his various minions to be this. Although one wouldn't think this because of Bowser's nature as an Evil Overlord, the game makes it very clear that a large part of the troops have more respect for him than fear. In fact, during . In the epilogue,.
 * Cave Story shows this forming, but it only comes to fruition if you get One Hundred Percent Completion. and Curly Brace go from fighting each other, to fighting side-by-side, and they even convince Recurring Boss Balrog to help them at one point. In the Standard Ending, this is as far as it goes. But if   saves Curly after the Core battle, and then restores her memories, she gives him the Iron Bond: "Your tie to Curly Brace, the only warrior you would trust your back to." The endgame then involves them fighting the True Final Boss together as Back-to-Back Badasses, with
 * In the Jak and Daxter series, we start with Jak, Daxter, Keira and Samos. After the second game, Torn, Ashelin and Sig join and the seven of them form the "official" party, as seen in Jak X. Tess is usually included in the roster by fans because of her status as Daxter's Love Interest. Sometimes Pecker and Onin are thrown in the mix as well.
 * In the Japanese version of Castlevania 3, Akumajou Densetsu, the uber-genki pirate/freedom fighter Grant Danesti immediately declares himself and Trevor Belmont to be true companions. The sequel game, Curse of Darkness, proves him right. As soon as Hector stats flailing about Trevor having beaten Dracula, Trevor immediately says he couldn't have done it without his friends. (Judgment's continuity twists this, for better or worse, by suggesting that Grant grew distant from Trevor due to a Love Triangle with Sypha and continued on his own path even after reconciliation. On the brighter side, Alucard remembers his teammates well even after centuries have passed.)
 * Aria of Sorrow has a great scene. Soma, about to challenge Chaos, worries about that thing, only for everyone he's befriended throughout the game banding together to telepathically contact him and say, "Okay, ... so what? You're our friend, and we think you can do this, and we're here for you." Once he wins, they all congratulate him, and they all return in Dawn of Sorrow to cheer him on and help him out again.
 * ''Mass Effect 2':
 * Shepard views turian squadmate Garrus Vakarian and quarian squadmate Tali'Zorah as such in terms of them watching his/her back when walking through hell. Dr. Chakwas, the Normandy's medical officer, considers Shepard, "the center of her galaxy," a true companion. Chakwas also considers Joker a true companion, in terms of helping Joker with his brittle bone disease when he needs her. Joker views Shepard as his true companion in terms of being on Shepard's side 100% despite the occasional sass-laden conversations. In-universe example: Krogans use the term "Krantt" for true companions that serve as battle-brothers. By the end (provided you've gained their loyalties), all of the crew members and squadmates feel like this.
 * Although it isn't as focused on in the first game, it's still there for many players, particularly those who are strongly paragon. This feeling of camaraderie—and absolute loyalty to one another—only serves to make  that much more difficult to go through, even if you never liked   in the first place.
 * Mass Effect 3 takes it further, especially considering that of your possible 7 squadmates, 4 of them are your original crew, plus Joker, Chakwas and EDI. The final conversations you have with them  are especially memorable


 * Dragon Age: Origins also has this to a lesser extent, many of the recruitable party members loathe each other (Morrigan & Alistair being the most prominent example) but at the same time can all form friendships/romances with the player character and trust eachother enough to fight alongside one another. Even Sten, who remains The Stoic and a Proud Warrior Race Guy for the journey states that one of the reasons he's so harsh on you is because he trusts his life to you.
 * After spending the entirety of Origins griping about Dog Morrigan is actually happy to see him at the end of Witch Hunt.
 * Hawke's group in Dragon Age II, fit this trope well, with their conversations showing that each are willing to support each other. Varric looks out for Merrill, protecting her at night when she walks alone, drinks often with Carver, even as they rail on each other. Aveline and Isabela become Vitriolic Best Buds by Act III, and many of the characters display an uncommon tenderness towards Bethany. Like the first game however, several of the team simply do not get along, especially in the case of Anders.
 * Metal Gear series: Solid Snake has one of these with Otacon, primarily, and later Sunny. Even more so, his father Big Boss in Metal Gear Solid 3 and especially the PSP spin-offs.
 * The Adventurer's Guild ("the Group") from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is indicated to be something like this, an idea frequently expanded on in Fanon.
 * In The Wind Waker, Tetra and her pirate crew are true companions, with Link added during the course of the game.
 * In the Pokémon games, much emphasis is placed on the bond between Pokémon and their Trainers. Everyone feels this way for at least one specific Pokémon.
 * The Nuzlocke Challenge puts severe limitations on what Pokémon you can catch, and forces you to release or permanently box any Pokémon that gets KO'd for real. Several players, including the creator who initially challenged himself for the lulz, have admitted that the challenge actually makes them feel much more passionately about the few, fragile Pokémon they have, especially breeds that they would normally pass over without a second thought.
 * Also the rescue team and the Guild of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon.
 * Knights of the Old Republic is all about this. In the original game and the Sequel you have a team of misfits (some of whom have very good reason to resent each other), and yet the team sticks together by the player character's leadership. Then the sequel turns right around and Deconstructs it by giving a slightly discomforting reason as to why your party forms around you.
 * NieR: Neir forms one with the maladjusted but sympathetic freaks he meets along his journey, extending his Papa Wolf nature onto them. Even the arrogant Grimoire Weisse sees the group as friends.
 * Exit Fate: To varying degrees, the Elysium Army—particularily Daniel, Ljusalf and Ayara, who join together early on. At one point, when you've amassed many followers and generals, Ayara runs off, believing that you don't need her anymore, and you have to track her down and convince her that she's important too. And then there are Daniel's friends since childhood, Angel and Jovian - much of Daniel's grief stems from his fear that Jovian betrayed him due to their conflicting ideals.
 * Professor Layton: The Professor's true-companion group consists of a pair of children—his apprentice, Luke, and his ward, Flora.
 * Leonhardt and his true companions (Borgnine, Ellis, Vira-Lorr, Zerva, and Winfield) in Agarest Senki have a bond that is so strong, that they actually stick together with the descendants of Leo for four more generations. And this group is one of the few Combination Attacks that are EX Combos.
 * Numerous Touhou characters have formed what are probably the most bizarre crews of true companions in existence, a combination of a regular dysfunctional family, disgruntled employees, and a Badass Crew that will brutalise anyone that dares harm any of their fellows. Let's analyze them one by one.
 * The House Scarlet folks are united against all threats, especially because they are the obviously-Western supernaturals in a Japanese settings.
 * The Yakumo household blur the line between true companions and actual family. Chen is often depicted as having two mommies, Ran and Yukari, in fan works. Official source states that Chen is not just Ran's student, she's like a daughter to her.
 * The Eientei household will defend their members viciously from any external threats, especially due to their circumstance: they house at least three wanted Lunarian fugitives, two of which are eternal enemies of the state.
 * Say what you want about the atrocious beginning of Kanako-Suwako relationship, but in this modern time, they are Sanae's two mommies.
 * Subterranean Animism plays with this. The Komeiji household is an example of true companions, but the justification for this is because the Komeiji sisters can read into any sentient beings' mind, which is how they won the loyalty of their pets: they are the only ones who can understand their pets' feelings.
 * This is one half of the Player Punch of fighting Byakuren's followers, the other half being Fantastic Racism. They aren't some kind of crazy cultists seeking to release a nasty sorceress sealed in the demon realm, they are Fire-Forged Friends who aim to liberate their saintly leader.
 * Super Robot Wars usually play this one straight. Super Robot Wars Z however deconstructs the idea of true companions. It's perfectly justified too seeing as you really can't mix military fashioned men with loose cannons.
 * The Survivors in Left 4 Dead (even though certain characters won't admit it). It can be summed up in  final message to the group "Take care of each other, you guys are the only family I've got left!"
 * In the first Baldur's Gate game, the canonical party of Charname, Imoen, Jaheira, Khalid, Minsc, and Dynaheir were true companions. Charname and Imoen were foster  siblings raised together their entire lives, Jaheir and Khalid are Happily Married and were friends and comrades of Charname's foster father Gorion, and Minsc and Dynaheir also have a close though nonromantic relationship as per the customs of their people. This is what makes the first part of the sequel Shadows of Amn especially painful.
 * Golden Sun games have a very strong focus on family and on friends that are like family. It gets lampshaded in Dark Dawn when an NPC comments on the wide variety of friends you have with you from so many different backgrounds, and how close-knit you've become anyway, and draws a comparison to family.
 * The sum up of Inazuma Eleven's theme and moral lesson.
 * While Suikoden often consists of many combinations of the Five-Man Band, each army of 108 stars ends up being a macro version of this trope. They fight, go on adventures, drink, party, and even judge cooking contests together as a sprawling enclave.
 * In The Reconstruction, though your guild doesn't start off like this, it eventually ends up this way by the end.
 * Team Fortress 2 has a rather... odd band of brothers, but they nonetheless remain surprisingly civil towards each other and always work for the benefit of the team.
 * Resident Evil series: Despite the tease found in some of the games, Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield are like this.
 * The general theme of the Mega Man Star Force series is The Power of Friendship, so it's not surprising that Geo, Sonia, Luna, Bud and Zack form one of these.
 * Guy from Final Fight has this relationship with Cody Travers, Mike Haggar (and arguably his daughter Jessica too), and likely with his sister-in-law Maki.
 * The Street Fighter series adds Rose. (Though fandom would say otherwise.)