It's time for the co-stars of the gaming world to step out of the shadows and into the spotlight...

Where would games be without the noble sidekick? Sure, the main character gets all the glory and fame, and wins the girl in the end, but none of that would be possible without the help of their trusty sidekicks, toiling away in obscurity. Well it's time for that to change as PlayStation.com highlights a few of our favourite secondary characters from across the years.

Everyone's favourite "Ottsel" (half otter, half weasel) Daxter really embodies all the qualities of the comedy gaming sidekick. A regular guy until he is transformed into a bright orange rodent, Daxter is always ready with an obnoxious one-liner, or new and imaginative way to embarrass Jak. But love him or hate him, there's something endearing about someone who, when offered anything their heart desires, chooses "a snazzy pair of pants".

For true confirmation of his popularity though you need only look at the fact that Daxter has now made the leap from sidekick to bona fide main character as the lead in his own game for PSP, appropriately entitled, Daxter.

Not all sidekicks fit the wisecracking stereotype though. Responsible, reliable robot Clank is the yin to Ratchet's impulsive yang, but this is the sort of responsibility and reliability that comes equipped with helicopter blades and carries you around as you blast smoking holes in everything you come across. He may be an accountant at heart, but time and again Clank has proven himself easily Ratchet's equal in the adventuring stakes and one of the great gaming sidekicks to boot. What's more, he can transform into a giant robot of titanic proportions, so we'd better keep him sweet.

Nerdy robots and wacky weasels are all very well and good, but if you like your sidekicks to be cool Casanovas, then look no further than Resident Evil 4's Luis Sera. Dressed like Johnny Depp's more stylish brother, and having a nice line in cheesy chat-up techniques, Luis ticks all our boxes in the sidekick stakes. Turning up at various points throughout the adventure Luis seems utterly unfazed by the fact that he's trapped in a village full of hideous, deadly monsters, content instead to flirt with Ashley and make fun of Leon's straight-laced manner.

But it's the infamous cabin scene that wins Luis our vote. Holed up in a ramshackle cabin, Ashley cowering in a wardrobe upstairs, Leon and Luis trade quips as they fend of the baying hordes of crazed villagers that come swarming through the windows and doors. "Did you send out those invitations?" Luis says as hordes of insane ganados come piling through the windows "I told you no more than fifty people!" Now that's ice cool.

While he may not be as handy as Luis with a pistol, Dr. Hal Emmerich, otherwise known as Otacon has the technical know-how and determination to do the right thing to make him just as useful in the Metal Gear Solid games.

While he has made mistakes in the past (the sweet, slightly nerdy anime fan helped create the nuclear doomsday weapon Metal Gear REX), his determination to make up for these mistake is what drives Otacon, and what makes him such a good sidekick to Solid Snake. Having saved Snake's life on several occasions, as well as faking his death and helping him set up the anti Metal Gear organization Philanthropy, Otacon is one of Snake's closest allies, and judging from the trailers, looks set to play a big part in the massively anticipated Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.

Sometimes though, you need to have buddies who you can roll with at any time, no matter what the job or how "differently legal" it might be. In the crowded world of Grand Theft Auto partners and sidekicks, two men stand head and shoulders above the rest. Lance Vance, your companion through the pastel-coloured haze of Vice City is the quintessential 80's sidekick. Some of the best fun to be had in Vice City involves you and Lance, dressed in matching baggy cotton suits (with the sleeves rolled up, naturally) drifting round corners in a white Lamborghini or mounting helicopter assaults on drug baron's mansions. Just don't make fun of his name. Or mention the Lance Vance dance.

For the mean streets of San Andreas however, you're going to need someone with a lot more street cred. Cesar Vialpando has it in spades. From the moment you meet him at a low-rider competition to hijacking trucks with him on the freeway, Cesar has got your back. In the cut-throat world of gang-banging in Los Santos, loyalty like Cesar's is hard to come by, which is what makes him such a great sidekick.

Sidekicks come in lots of different types, but they definitely add spice to the gaming experience, which would be a whole lot duller without them. Now with the advent of PLAYSTATION 3 we've got a whole new generation of sidekicks to look forward to, and with Daxter making the leap to main character, perhaps some of our other favourites can do the same. Luis Sera: The Game anyone?