Well, in Fallout 1, Yeah, you were hearding your NPCs around and trying to keep them alive, but in Fallout 2, they became very useful. Well, the good ones did. Skynet, Cassidy, and even Vic the fuddy electronics technician could wield the Gauss rifle and wear powered armor. In the end they were all getting two shots a round, more than enough to cripple or kill an Enclave trooper, and absolutely massacre everything else. Marcus had virutes inasmuch as he could carry about half a ton and wield the real heavy artillery like the rocket launcher, minigun, (turbo) plasma rifle, pulse rifle, etc. He wasn't too fragile if you shot him full of psycho before the biggest combats as well. Sulic couldn't use any of the heavy rifles or big guns, the best you could give him was the G11E, which has burst mode, resulting in him spraying the other party members, and other people you happen to want alive and non-hostile.
However, we're not debating the merits of the combattants, really, but it may be cool to see him as a generic NPC (not a party member) if he fit the setting. I wouldn't bitch if he came back as a party member though, nobody's making me take him in Fallout 2 or 3, hopefully
