Fallout: New Vegas gives us a great roster of companions to choose from. And honestly, it’s very hard to pick a “worst” one because they’re all amazing. Without these characters, it simply wouldn’t be the same game. So I’m ranking them simply by how compelling I find their story!
Your mileage may vary, of course. And if you ask me, the best way of playing Fallout: New Vegas is to play it through with a different companion each time and see which one resonates with you the most.
Rex
Do you know how much it pains me to give a dog the bottom ranking? I’m sorry, Rex! [How dare you – Ed.]
Rex is the 209-year-old robot dog belonging to the King in New Vegas. He’s starting to suffer from neural degeneration and it’s your job to help fix him. But don’t wear a hat around him! He hates hats.
The way Fallout: New Vegas is set up, you can have one humanoid companion and one non-human companion (see below for the other one of these) follow you around. So many people team Rex up with another companion and that’s what I almost always do because how can you resist that face??
ED-E
ED-E is the other of the non-humanoid companions you can recruit in Fallout: New Vegas. He’s an Eyebot built by the Enclave who, thanks to his creator Dr Whitley, ended up in Primm. Once he’s fixed up, his quest will trigger if you talk to an NPC about the Enclave or technology.
There’s something very cute about ED-E despite his lack of facial features. The little noises he makes are adorable. And he shoots your enemies with a laser gun!
Raul
Raul is voiced by none other than Danny Trejo! He’s a gunslinger, the only companion who has even a vaguely positive view of Caesar’s Legion, and the proud owner of (unsurprisingly) a tragic backstory. He’s an old school ghoul who’s been around for a looong time and lost many people. And yet his sarcastic dialogue choices are usually lots of fun.
Raul will repair items for you if you go back to his shack, though you need to make sure he isn’t an active companion at the time.
Lily
Poor Lily was a human, but horrible experiments warped her into a Nightkin, a being created by and for the evil Master. After his death she ended up in Jacobstown with schizophrenia and a voice in her head she named “Leo.” Her story is of course a very saddening one, but there are things you can do to help her.
Lily was someone’s grandmother once upon a time… play your cards right and she can be like a grandmother to you too. And she’s a great bruiser in combat! Many people like the combination of teaming her up with Rex.
Boone
Boone is a … complicated guy, let’s say. He was a soldier of the New California Republic Army and he’s embittered over an incident where he followed bad orders and killed innocent civilians. As if that wasn’t enough, he’s also lost his wife Carla, who was sold into Legion slavery by [spoiler!] after moving to Novac.
Boone is no doubt one of the most traumatized and messed-up people you’ll meet in the game, but he’s a great character even if he’s not a good person. And he’s a badass too, of course. Take some time out of killing Radscorpions to unlock the many layers of his backstory.
Cass
Rose of Sharon Cassidy, to give her her full name, is a hard-drinking gun-toting lady with a heart of gold. You can get her by completing the quest “Heartache by the Numbers” and helping her take revenge on those who have wronged her. Fun fact: She’s the daughter of John Cassidy from Fallout 2!
Cass is the woman behind one of the most iconic Fallout: New Vegas lines: “Nobody’s dick’s that long, not even Long Dick Johnson, and he had a fucking long dick. Thus, the name.” It’s a wittier, snappier apocalypse with Cass around.
Veronica
You’ll meet Veronica at the 188 Trading Post. Be careful not to insult the Brotherhood of Steel in front of her, and she’ll join you as a companion.
She’s a positively adorkable young Brotherhood scribe who sadly gets broken down a lot by the events of the game. It’s painful to watch, since you’ll probably come to love her and her snarky-but-not mean quips. As you travel with her you also learn that she’s gay, was in love with a woman who left the Brotherhood, and adores both pretty dresses and getting to punch things.
Felicia Day was nominated for a Supporting Performance in a Drama NAVGTR Award for Veronica, and it was very well deserved. She’s a lot of people’s favorite character in the game.
Arcade Gannon
Kind-hearted doctor Arcade Gannon is my personal favorite of all the New Vegas companions. He has it all: snark, spirit, smarts, daddy issues. And if you speak to him enough you’ll learn that, like Veronica, he’s gay. When New Vegas came out in 2010, having not one but two gay companion characters was a big deal.
Arcade will tell you he’s boring, but in truth he’s anything but. His conversations and dialogue choices are all fascinating. He is rather fragile in combat, though, so get him into some heavy armor. You’ll want to keep him safe!
(featured image: Obsidian Entertainment)
