I'd like to see them follow Tasha's too. I also wish they'd put more time and detail into the animal companion/familiar concept in this game as part of the story. For a class type like a Ranger being able to customize the aesthetic elements of the companion animal would be particularly cool.
I agree that the wolf is likely the most popular, but I'll just use the dog as a great example. So say the game could provide a situation where the Ranger character comes across a brood of puppies while exploring the wilds. Perhaps the mother has been killed in a trap, or something fucked up like that to really tug at the empathy chords, (similar to the owlbear situation, but maybe it was goblins this time?) Anyhow, now the Ranger is tasked with bringing the little hound pups to Nettie so she can look after them and make sure they're alright. When that's all finished one of the pups takes a special shine to the Ranger, and that point they are prompted with a series options like a mini animal companion creation menu. Something like...
1. "Who's a good Boy/Girl?"
2. Sighthound, Scenthound, Shepherd, Mastiff etc for the basic model type
3. Fur color and patterning solid/stripes/patches etc for the specific look
4. Name
Now the Ranger has a doggo companion that feels a bit more like a companion, and less like a generic summons or a charmed animal type situation.
They could do something very similar for a Feline companion, or for birds where maybe it's a nestling that falls from a tree. Perhaps it's a Raven, Hawk, Sparrow, Owl, Parrot etc with the player providing the answer there. Stuff of that sort. Sure it could take place as part of char creation, but having it woven into the plotline for the Ranger early on, so it feels more unique and special to that path, would be even cooler.
For an animal familiar they the same, but with a more arcane bent to it. Like maybe there is a witches' menagerie at Ethel's place, where magical beasts are being held in cages and experimented on. The player is given the option to free the creatures, and that point the Wizard creates a bond with one of them launching the familiar creator. Again following that stuff with options to choose colors or aesthetic features to personalize the familiar.
I love Scratch and think that was a pretty nice touch in this game, but I wish he could come along for the ride as an actual companion. I think a "who do you dream of?" style creation option, but for Dogs and Cats and whatnot is a golden opportunity. I mean how could that not be an instant hit?
Panthera is probably more popular than Felis, in the same way one expects that a player might pick a Wolf over a Hound. But done properly they could make them feel more like the wild version. More like bobcats maybe, or little lions. If it's a bear or a boar or something a bit more exotic like a ferret or lizard or a spider, you could still get a lot of mileage out of choosing colors and patterns for the fur or feather or scales. The sort of attention often given to horses in other games which feature mounts and such, but I'd really lean into it with the dogs and cats. I think it would be totally worth the dev zots, whatever was required heheh
I like where your head is at, but this is one of the pitfalls of the original PHB Beastmaster sub class that wizards had to correct. If your companion is just an actual living breathing animal it becomes very problematic if it dies. Not so much from a storytelling standpoint; that could be potentially good character development. But your companion is tied to your mechanical combat options. So you have to have a way to replace it. Not to mention how much extra programming/writing it would take to create all that content.
