History TheLoad / VideoGames

*** This trope is discussed with Rhys, the [[NiceGuy kind]] [[WhiteMagicianGirl cleric]] of the Greil Mercenaries. In his support conversations with the young FriendlySniper [[BadassAdorable Rolf]], he reveals that he at times feels like the Load to the entire mercenary company, due to his [[IllBoy weak constitution and frailty]] making it so that the mercenaries have to guard him carefully on the battlefield, as well as his [[NonActionGuy inability to fight for himself]]. He even considers packing his bags and leaving the mercenary company for good, but Rolf assures him that the rest of the company cares deeply for him and don't mind protecting him, and his good friend [[KnightInShiningArmor Titania]] reassures him that his services as the group's sole healer are invaluable.

** On the other hand, Jaheira can be either a JackOfAllStats or a MasterOfNone, depending on the situation. Kahild instead can become quite good, providing his weaknesses are fully covered, and is one of the best archers although not the best (and bows in BG1 are dominating). So, it's not uncommon for the opposite to be seen: players ditching Jaheira and keeping Khalid.
** Minsc is strong and funny, but Dynaheir is a bit lackluster as a spellcaster, since her specialization (Conjurer) misses some of the best spells. And in BG1 mages are still a bit weak until the very end. Not counting that some players don't enjoy magic and prefer melee fighters all around.

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyI'': Thieves are under powered, can't wear good armor, can't use good weapons, and don't get to hit multiple times until well after the Warrior, Red Mage, and Monk are doing obscene damage to single enemies. The only benefit of a Thief character is that they have high evasion and help when it comes to running away. However, once they get their class change to Ninja, [[MagikarpPower they become engines of destruction that can outperform Knights, along with access to level 4 Black Magic]]. All that said, however, from the GBA version onward they got a decent stat boost and are able to hit enemies twice right from the start of the game.
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyII'', it's possible for [[GuestStarPartyMember the fourth party member]] to become this, dependent on how much the player has raised the other three members and how much effort they put into the temporary members.
** Gordon is a solid example of this. He starts off with pitiful HP (especially in the earlier versions), minimal MP, and Lv. 2 weapon skills, likely far behind your other members. But he starts with a solid 22 in all stats (most importantly Stamina and Magic, which determine how much HP/MP rises), which lets him catch up quickly. If the player doesn't just leave his corpse on the ground for every battle.
** In the Soul of Rebirth BonusDungeon, [[spoiler:Josef becomes this. While he was a solid fighter early in the main game, the weaknesses of unarmed combat become crippling in the NintendoHard dungeons. Even with a high Unarmed level, he pales in comparison to what Scott and Ricard are capable of with their {{Infinity Plus One Sword}}s. And due to being an early party member, his stats are ''horrible'' compared to Scott and Ricard, without Minwu's high-level starting magic to make up for his deficiencies.]]
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV'' has one in the character of Edward. His only contributions to the party are his country's hovercraft and his right by birth to give the party access to the Antlion's Nest. His weapons aren't even as effective as Rydia's "Item>Use Rod" ability (which is free, has a 100% hit rate, and does about 30 damage per use), and frequently miss altogether, and his special abilities (even in the original Japanese version, where he has one more) are all but pointless.[[note]] This is mitigated somewhat in the GBA version, as you can re-introduce him to the party at the end of the game. While his HP cap is almost as low (if not lower) than Rydia's, he does eventually become the fastest character in the game, and his new weapon options feature damage-cap hitting elemental properties against several of the monsters you face near the end.[[/note]] Back in the day, Edward was as big a load as anyone could find in a Final Fantasy game.
** Unusually for the main character, Cecil briefly becomes this on the way up Mt. Ordeals -- his Dark Knight swords and abilities heal undead, which account for the majority of the area's enemies [[spoiler: including the boss]]. He often ends up focusing on defense or healing while Palom, Porom, and Tellah use their spells to win fights.
* While exploring the Shinra Mansion in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'', you find notes on two [[PlayingWithSyringes lab specimens]] that broke out of containment and escaped. One of them was a [[TheAce highly trained soldier]] before the experiments, and was more than able to deal with any pursuit teams, but his friend was in pretty bad shape; suffering from an extreme form of Mako poisoning and barely conscious. The smarter decision would have been go on alone, but the stronger one wasn't about to throw his buddy to the wolves, so he went on the run while dragging his friend's half-dead carcass with him. In spite of the burden, he managed to evade Shinra forces for months, but was eventually cornered outside of Midgar and killed while trying to protect his friend. However, the troops spared the other one since he was barely lucid and deemed no threat. [[spoiler: Fans of the series will recognize this as the story of Zack Fair and Cloud Strife, seen in Cloud's real backstory and the events of ''VideoGame/CrisisCore'']].
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV'', after the Leviathan battle, you are stuck running a dungeon with [[spoiler:a recently blinded Ignis]]. Naturally, he contributes about as much to the party as a sack of potatoes, [[spoiler:although he does finish off a Malboro with a Fire spell in a cutscene]] and it takes [[spoiler:10 years of Noctis being sealed in a crystal]] for him to truly get his mojo back. As an added bit of inconvenience, [[spoiler:while he's blind, you can only eat canned food or Cup Noodles, since Ignis is the only one who can cook]].

** In quite a few games, this can happen to the Lord. Due to them being [[CantDropTheHero the main characters]], they have to be deployed in every map, and are often important to filling a given objective. Unfortunately, a large number of Lords suffer from lackluster base stats, inadequate weapon choices, poor mobility, or being unable to promote and change class until a plot-driven event, which means that they can often feel like more trouble than they're worth. A fairly extreme and even literal case of this is Roy of ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade'', who's earned the FanNickname "Backpack Lord" due to suffering from all of the above and therefore often spending the last chunk of the game until his promotion riding in somebody's saddlebags. This is also known to happen to [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade Eliwood, Lyn,]] [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones Eirika,]] [[VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn Micaiah,]] and [[VideoGame/FireEmblemShadowDragon the remake version of Marth]]. Even comparatively decent Lords like [[VideoGame/FireEmblemPathOfRadiance Ike]] can sometimes end up here if their growth rates fail to average out.

Using [[MeaningfulName ARSE]] [[FanNickname Mines]] to blow himself, his teammates, and (occasionally) enemies [[RingOut clear off the map.]]\\\

* Cielo in the first ''VideoGame/DigitalDevilSaga'', due to his weakness to ''all'' StandardStatusEffects. He still has that weakness in the second game, but he gets a large boost in his stats to compensate.

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** ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' has [[SmallNameBigEgo Fantastic]], who's working on the HELIOS One solar power plant[[note]]or so he claims; in actuality, he's working on ''the intercom''[[/note]]. He's ''so'' useless that [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential you can kill him]]...[[KarmaHoudini and nothing happens]] - no loss in reputation from the NCR, none of the troops turn hostile towards you[[note]]assuming, of course, that he's the ''only'' one you've killed[[/note]], and you don't lose any karma.

** Unusually for the main character, Cecil briefly becomes this on the way up Mt. Ordeals - his Dark Knight swords and abilities heal undead, which account for the majority of the area's enemies [[spoiler: including the boss]]. He often ends up focusing on defense or healing while Palom, Porom, and Tellah use their spells to win fights.

** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade'' forces you to deploy Fae in the final chapter. Fae has a single weapon, her Dragonstone, which only has thirty charges in it--meaning if it's depleted, she's essentially useless. If you've been overusing Fae, this can turn her into a liability for that phase of the game.

** Chico is also deserving of special mention in ''Peacewalker'' and ''Ground Zeroes''. An annoying little kid obsessed with monsters and [=UFOs=] in an otherwise fairly-serious game about cold war tensions and coping with identity crises, Chico constantly whines about how he wants to be treated like a man rather than a child while not doing anything to distinguish himself as one. He has to be rescued from enemy soldiers ''multiple'' times and contributes absolutely nothing. And the plot decides to focus on him specifically several times, despite how unimportant and unlikable he is. While he does get some sympathy value for the [[spoiler: horrific torture he receives]] in ''Ground Zeroes'', it doesn't make him any less of a burden - literally a burden, as saving him is both mission-critical and requires the player to carry him to the extraction point.

** ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheOrigamiKing'': Bobby, the Bob-omb partner, has amnessia. This leads to him constantly running into enemies because he thinks they're friends, getting lost or running further ahead, and generally injuring himself. For the Water Vellumental Temple and Ninja Attraction, he stays outside the entire time because he's scared of it. In battle, Bobby can use Bomb Bump, an attack that deals damage to a single enemy--but he's not even good at it, because half the time he flops on his face and does no damage. While Bobby [[spoiler:performs a HeroicSacrifice to save Olivia]], that's the very last thing he does.

* Ben from Creator/TelltaleGames' take on ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDead'' seems more like an exposition character when he's first introduced in Episode 2, dropping vital information on the characters and mostly staying off the screen. However, by the end of Episode 4, he's somehow managed to[[spoiler: fail to protect Clementine at least once AND be the indirect cause of Katjaa's suicide, Duck's death and - depending on who you saved in Episode one - either Carley or Doug's death.]] His apparent uselessness gets lampshaded in Episode 4.

** However, in a rare instance, Ben also views ''himself'' as The Load, since he explicitly states in Ep. 4 that "For once, I want to do something ''right''." Too bad he doesn't live up to that, but at least the sentiment's there.

* Steel Massimo in ''VideoGame/MegaManXCommandMission'', oh boy. Weak to ''all'' elements (although he comes with a Force Metal to negate one of them), only 2 Force Metal slots, and incredibly slow. His [[LimitBreak Action]] [[WaveMotionGun Trigger]] and [[SuperMode Hyper Mode]] are good, but that's about it. [[spoiler:Justified (kinda) in that he's not actually the legendary Steel Massimo but rather [[TakeUpMySword his disciple]].]]

[[BeeAfraid Summoning bees everywhere.]]\\\

* Tiffany from ''VideoGame/BatmanTheTelltaleSeries'' manages to be this throughout Season 2 due to her [[InsufferableGenius raging ego]], lack of respect for privacy and authority, and genuine (if misguided) attempts to help out. Odds are Bruce would have canned her within the day if she [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections wasn't Fox's daughter]], as every single time she shows up she either inadvertently, directly, or ''intentionally'' makes things difficult for him. [[spoiler:It ultimately is revealed she is the one who assassinated The Riddler, an act which irrevocably damaged the investigation, made things harder for Batman, Waller, and Gordon, and was instrumental in [[DrivenToVillainy driving John Doe to villainy]] as he's inadvertently blamed for it, though all things considered it's hard to judge her for all of it though, considering what happened to her father and all]].

*** Leanne becomes this in one mission, where Ike is forced to carry her the whole time, resulting in the usual rescue penalties. This is a JustifiedTrope since as a Heron, they are the NonActionGuy of the Laguz races and instead their ability to sing Galdrar's means they are mainly used for healing and giving your allies an extra turn in battle, plus Leanne has the excuse of having just woken up from a twenty-year magically induced coma.

*** Leanne becomes this in one mission, where Ike is forced to carry her the whole time, resulting in the usual rescue penalties.

** A straighter example of this occurs in ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn Radiant Dawn]]'' near the end of part 1. The main character, [[SquishyWizard Micaiah]], becomes this during [[ScrappyLevel 1-9 when the bad guys ambush her at night, resulting in Fog of War]]. The good news is that the [[EleventhHourSuperpower Black Knight]] literally warps in out of nowhere to save your ass, but Micaiah can still be attacked if you're not careful. This is bad considering all of the enemies are fairly powerful physical users, and Micaiah's weak points are speed and defense, as well as a low HP cap. The worst part is that she refuses to be rescued by the Black Knight as a matter of "principle" despite the fact that you'll pretty much be using him for the entire fight anyway, while Micaiah runs and hides, despite the fact that [[ScrappyMechanic enemies are never blinded by Fog of War]]. Still, if she could be rescued, the fight would become [[ZeroEffortBoss something else entirely]]. Fortunately, if you've prepared well enough and play strategically, Micaiah can score a couple of kills, hit level 20 and max out a few of her stats. If Micaiah is too low a level, it's almost impossible for her to ''not'' get killed.

** Junpei for much of ''Persona 3''. With pathetic elemental magic and only mediocre Physical skills up until level 55, he is basically useless. However, ''much'' later he gets [[HealingFactor Spring of Life]] and several multi-target physical moves, becoming the most damaging party-member in the game aside from the main character. [[UpdatedRerelease Persona 3 FES]] upped his usefulness by giving him some support skills, and adding unique two-handed swords that synergize well with Junpei's stats.

This is pretty much the reason that, in NewGamePlus, you can choose to put her in a suit of armor that both protects her from ANY damage and is too heavy for the mooks to carry her away. Not only is she just some girl that follows you around now, but you can actually use her as bait now. The only drawback it the noise she makes when she walks, but it's a miniscule price to pay for The Load becoming invincible. Fortunately, the game eventually starts giving the player dumpsters that they can make Ashley hide in so she can keep out of the way.

* Ashley Graham, from ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4''. In the game, you [[EscortMission return her safely to the White House]], which turns out to be as easy as it sounds, for the chirpy First Daughter's heavily prone to danger. Whether she's cowering in fear in the line of fire, being kidnapped by spinning walls, eating up your health items, or shrieking HAAALP! and LEON! when snatched up, it barely justifies [[PantyShot the bonus of her company]] in what can be a very long game.\\\

* Various in the ''[[Franchise/ShinMegamiTenseiPersona Persona]]'' series ...

** ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheOrigamiKing'': Bobby, the Bob-omb partner, has amnessia. This leads to him constantly running into enemies because he thinks they're friends, getting lost or running further ahead, and generally injuring himself. For the Water Vellumental Temple, he stays outside the entire time because he's scared of it. In battle, Bobby can use Bomb Bump, an attack that deals damage to a single enemy--but he's not even good at it, because half the time he flops on his face and does no damage.

* ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'': '''EVERYONE''' knows Flavio is this. [[spoiler:He makes up for it... somewhat... by convincing Cortez to help them at the end of the chapter.]]

** Most of the games allow you to make anyone light enough (low enough constitution) become The Load to someone with an adequate rescue value by use of the rescue mechanic, which, while useful for moving slow units and well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin rescuing]] units in peril, also halves the rescuer's speed and skill stats (as well as Strength, Defense and sometimes Movement in ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemThracia776 Thracia 776]]''). At least it's not as annoying since it's by choice, but irresponsible use can lead to failure.

** A straighter example of this occurs in ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn Radiant Dawn]]'' near the end of part 1. The main character, [[SquishyWizard Micaiah]], becomes this during [[ScrappyLevel 1-9 when the bad guys ambush her at night, resulting in Fog of War]]. The good news is that the [[EleventhHourSuperpower Black Knight]] literally warps in out of nowhere to save your ass, but Micaiah can still be attacked if you're not careful. This is bad considering all of the enemies are fairly powerful physical users, and Micaiah's weak points are speed and defense, as well as a low HP cap. The worst part is that she refuses to be rescued by the Black Knight as a matter of "principle" despite the fact that you'll pretty much be using him for the entire fight anyway, while Micaiah runs and hides, despite the fact that [[ScrappyMechanic enemies are never blinded by Fog of War]]. Still, if she could be rescued, the fight would become [[ZeroEffortBoss something else entirely]]. Fortunately, if you've prepared well enough and play strategically, Micaiah can score a couple of kills, hit level 20 and max out a few of her stats. If Micaiah is too low a level, it's almost impossible for her to ''not'' get killed. She generally continues to be the load throughout the entire game, even in the final levels when she's [[spoiler:serving as the vessel for the frickin' Goddess of Chaos!]]

*** This trope is discussed with Rhys, the ManInWhite and [[NiceGuy kind]] [[WhiteMagicianGirl cleric]] of the Greil Mercenaries. In his support conversations with the young FriendlySniper [[BadassAdorable Rolf]], he reveals that he at times feels like the Load to the entire mercenary company, due to his [[IllBoy weak constitution and frailty]] making it so that the mercenaries have to guard him carefully on the battlefield, as well as his [[NonActionGuy inability to fight for himself]]. He even considers packing his bags and leaving the mercenary company for good, but Rolf assures him that the rest of the company cares deeply for him and don't mind protecting him, and his good friend [[KnightInShiningArmor Titania]] reassures him that his services as the group's sole healer are invaluable.

** A straighter example of this occurs in ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn Radiant Dawn]]'' near the end of part 1. The main character, [[SquishyWizard Micaiah]], becomes this during [[ScrappyLevel 1-9 when the bad guys ambush her at night, resulting in Fog of War]]. The good news is that the [[EleventhHourSuperpower Black Knight]] literally warps in out of nowhere to save your ass, but Micaiah can still be attacked if you're not careful. This is bad considering all of the enemies are fairly powerful physical users, and Micaiah's weak points are speed and defense, as well as a low HP cap. The worst part is that she refuses to be rescued by the Black Knight as a matter of "principle" despite the fact that you'll pretty much be using him for the entire fight anyway, while Micaiah runs and hides, despite the fact that [[ScrappyMechanic enemies are never blinded by Fog of War]]. Still, if she could be rescued, the fight would become [[ZeroEffortBoss something else entirely]]. Fortunately, if you've prepared well enough and play strategically, Micaiah can score a couple of kills, hit level 20 and max out a few of her stats. If Micaiah is too low a level, it's almost impossible for her to ''not'' get killed.

* Slippy Toad of ''VideoGame/StarFox''. He was even nicknamed "Slippy 'The Load' Toad!" It helps that he's pretty popular in [[AmericansHateTingle Japan]]. [[MostAnnoyingSound "Slippy just got hit!"]] Slippy is ALWAYS getting hit. Actually gets lampshaded at the end of the Aquas level in ''VideoGame/StarFox64'' where Peppy comments on Slippy's nice work with the Blue Marine (submarine used by Fox in the level) and says "Maybe Slippy's not such a screw up after all!". Naturally this upsets Slippy. Worse, still, if you take too long to defeat the boss in Sector X, Slippy charges in and gets knocked away, forcing you to go to Titania to save him and putting you on the "easy" route to Venom. After the mission's finished, Falco complains that they're always saving Slippy's hide.

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyI'': Thieves are under powered, can't wear good armor, can't use good weapons, and don't get to hit multiple times until well after the Warrior, Red Mage, and Monk are doing obscene damage to single enemies. The only benefit of a Thief character is that they have high evasion and help when it comes to running away. However, once they get their class change to Ninja, they become engines of destruction that can outperform Knights, along with access to level 4 Black Magic. All that said, however, from the GBA version onward they got a decent stat boost and are able to hit enemies twice right from the start of the game.

** A more egregious example from Fallout 2 would be Pariah, a dog that forces itself into your party in a random encounter by failing a Luck check. It counts towards your party limit, always runs away from fights, and gives you the Jinxed trait, lowering your Luck stat to 1. The only way to be rid of it is to kill it, but good luck managing that with its whopping 750 hit points and cowardly nature!
** ''[[VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas New Vegas]]'' has Fantastic, who's working on the [=HELIOS=] generator[[note]]or so he claims; in actuality, he's working on ''the intercom''[[/note]]. He's ''so'' useless that [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential you can kill him]]...[[KarmaHoudini and nothing happens]] - no loss in reputation from the NCR, none of the troops turn hostile towards you[[note]]assuming, of course, that he's the ''only'' one you've killed[[/note]], and you don't lose any karma.

* ''VideoGame/KingsQuestV'' gives King Graham a talking owl companion named Cedric to help him in rescuing his kidnapped family. Unfortunately, not only is Cedric completely useless (for the first chunk of the game, he won't even enter any dangerous areas or buildings,) but later on he's constantly getting into trouble and needing to be rescued. The only time he actually does anything useful is when he [[spoiler: TakesTheBullet for Graham at the end of the game, and even then he does it unintentionally.]]