The 8 Best Video Game Henchmen
Sometimes, the best bad guy in a video game is only as good as their henchmen.
In video games, henchmen are low-level enemies that stand in the way of many heroes as they try to reach their goals. Most of the time, the best baddies would send these poor souls across levels on a fool’s errand to try to stop the heroes from moving forward, which usually didn’t end well.
But even though the odds are against them, these “useless cannon fodder” keep marching, as their boss told them to, to give the heroes more problems to solve and make the game more interesting. But who are the best henchmen?
Grunts (Halo)
In the Halo games, the Covenant is a group of mixed alien races whose goal is to take over the whole Milky Way space. One would think that the Covenant, which is made up of so many different alien races, would have a strong strike team. But the Grunts are the ones they send to fight the humans on the front lines.
The Grunts in Halo are the perfect example of gun fodder. Their scientific name is Unggoy. Even though they are usually seen in groups. They are not well-organized and often run away in fear when their leader dies in fight. Grunts are always there for Master Chief to run over and shoot. Even though the Covenant has military units that seem invincible and show up at important points in fights.
Storm Troopers (Star Wars)
The Storm Troopers from the Star Wars movies are the epitome of henchmen. The only reason these clones are made is to serve the Empire. And they are often the ones who get hurt by lightsabers and blasters.
They are known for having terrible aim, and even when they do hit the heroes. They usually just hit them on the edge with their blasters and get lit up for it. But what they lack in skill they make up for in numbers: Imperial leaders send out squad after squad. Because they know they can get more if they need more bodies for their cause.
Dr. Robotnik’s Badniks (Sonic the Hedgehog)
If there is one thing that will always be true about video games. It is that a hero who is fighting an evil doctor will have to deal with a lot of henchmen. When facing Doctor Robotnik and his Badniks, this is even more true.
Badniks are Dr. Robotnik’s robot servants who help him on his goal to take over the world. As Sonic, the Blue Blur is always fighting different kinds of Badniks: small ones, ones with spikes, and big ones. They all have different tools to make life hard for the brave hedgehog. Badniks always have flaws that Sonic and his friends can use to easily destroy them.
The Kremling Krew (Donkey Kong Country)
People who have played the Donkey Kong Country games will know the Kremlings and hate them. King K. Rool is in charge of these toothy crocodiles. Which always get in the way of Donkey Kong and his friends when they are trying to get bananas.
In many games, the Kremling Krew is known for making the Kongs mad. These pirates often steal the Kong’s stash of bananas and would protect them from Donkey Kong, who has every right to be angry. When it comes to guard service, they come in many shapes and sizes and have different jobs to do. But even their crocodile skin can’t stop Donkey Kong from jumping on them and giving them a quick bump on the head, which knocks them out.
The Heartless (Kingdom Hearts)
The story of Kingdom Hearts is full of twists and turns, and even if you’ve played RPGs before. It can be hard to follow. The games’ henchmen, the Heartless, are as straightforward as they come. These shadowy beings are the bodily manifestations of the darkness that lives in everyone’s heart. They also come in many different shapes and sizes. Which makes them hard to deal with as the game goes on.
Still, the Heartless are still henchmen, so once Sora and the others figure out where their different forms are weak, they are easy for the heroes to defeat again.
Doctor Wily’s Robots (Mega Man)
When it comes to robot servants, you can count on crazy scientists or evil geniuses to build robot armies that do their tasks. Take Doctor Wily, for example. He has made a variety of murderbots that watch over his many labs and workshops while he makes more of them and gets ready to take over the world.
All of Doctor Wily’s creations are armed with different weapons and are spread out in key areas of his operations to protect or fight his goals. Mega Man has to sneak into these places and destroy or steal whatever device Doctor Wily is hiding there. But even with all of their technology, Doctor Wily’s robots are often destroyed by Mega Man’s Mega Buster and his other weapons.
Bokoblins (The Legend of Zelda)
In the Legend of Zelda games, you have to beat Ganon and all of his different forms to bring peace to Hyrule. The Bokoblins are one of Ganon’s many forces that Link has to deal with on his quest. Bokoblins are low-level thugs with short noses and bad attitudes who live all over Hyrule.
They are often seen in groups, and they have set up camps at key spots where they keep watch. They often fight with Link and try to kill him, using simple weapons made by the Boko. But they are easy to beat even with their weapons, so they try to overwhelm Link with their numbers.
Goombas (Super Mario)
Fans of Super Mario can expect great stories and a lot of enemies to stand in the way of the plumber with a mustache. The Goombas are the most famous of these henchmen. They used to be part of the Mushroom Kingdom, but they left and joined Happy Wheels, which is led by King Bowser, the main bad guy. So, they are often put in the front lines and in large groups with the only goal of stopping Mario at any cost.
Goombas look like mushrooms and only have eyes, a mouth, and leg. Which they use to walk to places they are supposed to go or protect. Goombas seem to have one-track minds, so they often fall off ledges and hills because of this. However, most of the time they die when Mario jumps on their heads and crushes them with his weight.
