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5 Most Memorable Video Game Robots

March 29, 2011 at 5:00 pm
Ryan Whiting
Off

Movies and TV shows have all their share of robots, and, fittingly, so do video games. From the adorable to the psychotic, the following robots are all hugely memorable, regardless of whether you play as them or hardly even see them.

Note: the following are listed in no particular order.

Dog (Half-Life 2, PC)

Few, if any, silent characters have been able to hold such a lasting impact over the FPS genre as Dog has; certainly, no other silent robot has. His introduction, a game of fetch that shows you the ropes of the gravity gun, is humble yet wholly poignant — not to mention incredibly memorable. But that initial freshness doesn’t wane from Dog; instead, it grows stronger, so much so that the player forms a sort of emotional attachment to him. Sure, Dog’s scrap metal appearance may not look like much, but, evidently, there’s a lot more going on inside.

HK-47 (Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, PC/Xbox)

For all intents and purposes, HK-47 is the polar opposite of Dog. There is, however, nothing wrong with that. Whereas Dog holds an apparent love for the player character, HK-47 harbors a deep hate for his “meatbag” of a master. A hilariously homicidal figure, the robot’s first appearance in KOTOR spawned much deserved acclaim, and so BioWare brought the assassin back in the sequel. It has been quite some time since we last heard one of HK-47’s psychotic rants, but, as rumor would have it, he’s been geared up for a return in BioWare’s upcoming MMO, The Old Republic. Let’s hope that’s true.

Memorable quotes:

  • “Shall we find something to kill to cheer ourselves up?”
  • “But… but that technical term does not accurately portray the vast amount of bulbous slushiness present in your bipedal form!”
  • “Apology: Sorry, master. My optical sensors simply pick up all the water sloshing about your flesh coating. It is… unpleasant.”
  • “Commentary: I mean… nice human, goo-oood human…”
  • “Statement: You are a very harsh master, master. I like you.”
  • “At any rate, I only act as you instruct me… even if that means being… *gulp* … non-violent.”

GLaDOS (Portal, PC/Mac/Xbox 360/PS3)

GLaDOS may very well have been the reason for Portal’s unprecedented success. Indeed, her passive-aggressive and overly-narcissistic personality heralded many to consider her not only one of video gaming’s best robots, but also, by extension, one of the medium’s best villains. Though her style plays off of other like characters, (for example, SHODAN from System Shock and HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey), the witty way in which GLaDOS executes each of her hugely memorable lines — from her reasons for wanting to kill you and her musings about cake — is truly unique and unmatched in any genre, video game or otherwise.

Metro Protectrons (Fallout 3, PC/Xbox 360/PS3)

Fallout 3 is just rife with unsavory characters. In a desert dotted with vicious Mirelurks, fierce Yao Guai and unrelenting raiders, there are, really, few places where one can avoid the threat of death. Not even the subway, it would seem, for even there, robots — outfitted with lasers, of course — stalk you. “Pre-war” in every sense of the word, these fellows may seem rather dilapidated and unassuming, and, too, they can be… that is, if you have a ticket or are adept in science. But, whether they can be friend or foe, few can deny that these clunkers have a refreshingly antique charm that is altogether so infrequent in video gaming.

Chibi-Robo (Chibi-Robo!, GameCube)

An underrated game with an overly cute robot figurehead, Chibi-Robo!’s premise was a seemingly menial one (where one collects “Happy Points” by cleaning up around the house), but its often-tedious gameplay was assuaged by its unyielding charm, most of which is exerted by the title character itself, Chibi-Robo. Sure, Chibi doesn’t have the most pleasant job in the world, but the way in which he completes his tasks — by whimsically prancing around to music — would lead many to believe otherwise.

Robot Month, robots, video games

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About the Author
Ryan Whiting lives on an island you've probably never been to and probably care little about. Bermuda, a 21-square mile land mass 700 miles off the coast of New York, is an unlikely place to find such a geeky writer. But he exists and types away, ranting about bad story-telling in video games or raving about last night's episode of 24. That is, if it was any good, of course. But contrary to what his website may say, Ryan's geekdom is not overly eclectic, and he keeps to his fandoms. He's not really into comic books or anime (save for a few exceptions) and, when it comes to that vampire craze, he'd have a hard time discerning even Jacob from Edward. So, he stays away from such areas and sticks to what he likes. Ryan's in love with serialized dramas, sci-fi shows, and video games, specifically RPGs and FPS's. He'd also like to consider himself a film critic, but only for the movies he doesn't walk out on. He won't do it again. He promises. Ryan's also a bit of a techy, and, whenever possible, tries to stay up-to-date on whatever's current or popular in the gadget-world. Yes, he has to have that latest thing, whatever it is. Outside of confining himself to either his favorite shows on DVD or the gadget blogs, Ryan has a vested interest in photography, and totes his SLR with him to most places. He even has a photoblog over at Flickr that he updates whenever he can (http://www.flickr.com/ryanwbermuda). Living on a such a small island can be tough at times, but Ryan, along with his family and friends, works out just fine. For more of Ryan, check out his website: www.ryanjwhiting.com or Twitter page: www.twitter.com/rwhiting.
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