5 dynamic duos in video games from 1990s and 2000s

Character duos in video games are an age-old tradition, offering two protagonists for the cost of one. These pairs work together to take on different challenges in the story and rely on each other to have their backs when things get tough and the odds are stacked against them.

This arrangement will generally be in the form of a companion character, which players can control and direct in some sort of cooperative action. Sometimes they may even play just one half of this duo while an NPC fulfills the other. These may lead to some iconic pairings seen throughout video game history.

Regardless of how the duo is represented, this trope of having more than one protagonist arose early in the 90s and still exists.

Note: This article reflects the writer’s opinions.

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Five iconic duos in video games from around the turn of the century

1) Mario and Yoshi

Mario and Yoshi have been together since the 1990s (Image via Nintendo)

While Mario and Luigi are the most iconic duo in the Mario universe, during the 1990s, the pairing of Mario and his faithful dinosaur companion Yoshi saw a rise in popularity. This was hugely thanks to the release of Super Mario World, which introduced the green dinosaur to the Mario canon.

Yoshi was a rideable NPC in the above title and could eat enemies using his tongue and gain different abilities by taking in Soopa Shells. Since then, Mario and Yoshi’s teamwork has become legendary in the franchise and has appeared in several installments.

Aside from serving as a rideable mount, Yoshi has also made several appearances as a partner or fully playable character in the Mario series. The most recent was Super Mario Odyssey, released in 2017.

Yet, fans are always happier when they can get a piggyback from this green dino than when simply controlling him.

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2) Ratchet and Clank

Ratchet and Clank began their journey in 2002 (Image via Insomniac Games)

Ratchet and Clank is a series of platformer and third-person shooter video games from Insomniac before their Marvel’s Spider-Man days. First launched in 2002, this series featured a pair of protagonists known as Ratchet and Clank.

Together they thwart the plans of the villainous businessman, Chairman Drek, and his evil minions.

Ratchet is a Lombax species member and hails from his homeworld Veldin, where he meets Clank, a robot. After their first adventure together, the two heroes have featured in numerous video games leading up to the most recent one, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, in 2021.

In their dynamic, Ratchet is generally the character that users control directly, and Clank offers additional support via dialog and occasionally acting as a jetpack. When Ratchet is unavailable, they may get control of Clank, who can utilize ‘Gadgebots’ to perform different actions.

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3) Banjo and Kazooie

Banjo and Kazooie are controlled as a single unit (Image via Nintendo)

Developed by Rare, Banjo-Kazooie is a series of video games featuring an anthropomorphic bear and a large red bird named Kazooie. This series first launched with Banjo-Kazooie in 1998, featuring the two protagonists having to rescue Banjo’s sister Tooty from the evil witch Gruntilda.

The duo made their second appearance in the sequel video game, Banjo-Tooie, and again in Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty’s revenge. The final title arrived in 2008, with Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts.

Since then, this franchise has gone dormant. However, the inseparable duo has made other appearances in Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

In the main series, gamers controlled Banjo and Kazooie as a single unit, the latter resting on Banjo’s back as they traveled across various platforming levels.

There are no independent controls for either of them, although specific actions like flying and rolling are performed with the help of Kazooie, while Banjo does most of the rest on his own.

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4) Master Chief and Cortana

Master Chief and Cortana have had a complicated history (Image via Bungie)

One of the newer partnerships in the scene, i.e., from the 2000s, was between Master Chief and his AI companion, Cortana, as featured in the Halo series. This was first seen in the Halo: Combat Evolved video game, where the two were first paired up and went to the Halo ring.

This partnership has lasted a long while, with Chief and Cortana almost working in sync like a single being. While the two have parted ways on more occasions, they always find their way back to each other.

By Halo 5, however, things turned sour between the two, which saw Cortana go a little power crazy. However, after some redemption in Halo Infinite and sacrificing herself to help the Master Chief, Cortana seemed to have gone forever.

Except that Chief’s new partner AI, known simply as The Weapon initially, turned out to be a full copy of Cortana from before she had met Chief. So it looks like these two will be saving the galaxy again for the foreseeable future.

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5) Agent 47 & Diana Burnwood

Agent 47 and Diana form one of the best and most precise instruments of death ever seen in video games (Image via IO Interactive)

Hitman: Codename 47 from 2000 launched a series of stealth titles that would soon start an entire franchise. It featured cold calculating assassin Agent 47, along with his handler, Diana Burnwood.

Working for the ICA, the two form one of the best and most precise instruments of death ever seen in video game media.

Diana collects contracts for assassinations from different clients and hands them to 47 to execute. These two have remained the stalwart features of the Hitman titles since their inception.

As of the 2016 rebooted series, the overarching story has also included Ms. Burnwood, giving her a much more significant role.

Diana is the voice in 47’s ear for most games in the franchise, providing players with vital intel. She is able to notify them of important events occurring concerning the target and, in some games, also highlights possible opportunities to eliminate them.

If Agent 47 is the sword that cuts without restraint, Diana is the hand that wields it.

Note: This article is subjective and reflects the views of the author.