First animal companion in a videogame

Animal partners who are dynamically intrinsic to gameplay have become relatively familiar in videogames, with The Last Guardian's feathered, cat-like beast Trico the latest to be universally lauded. However, the first videogame to feature an animal partner was the less-well-received 1990 beat-'em-up Wild Streets (Titus Software). In this game, gamers controlled a hitman who could use his pet black panther – Black Virgin – to attack foes. The game's early 1990 release marginally pre-dates the dinosaur Yoshi in Super Mario World (September 1990) and the dog Rush in Mega Man 3 (November 1990), both of whom were also used by players to progress through the game.