I'd really LOVE to have companions that are not Origin character. I'd also like to have people in my party that have other goal than "cure / control" the tadpole... This could lead to very interresting side quests and to be honnest there's not a lot of interresting side quests yet in my opinion.
Many companions quests in the old games were epic or lead to epic adventures / dungeons. Companions doesn't necessarily have to be involved in the main story or to be playable characters (and all that this implies) to ensure that players have an enjoyable experience.
