If there's one thing games developers can do to drastically increase their chances of having a memorable and popular character or game mechanic, it's to include robots. Obviously inspired by science fiction films circa the 80s and 90s, robots in video games have always traditionally been seen as members of the tried and tested plot device wherein they're created for good but inadvertently become self-aware, evil, and, well, crazy.
But that image is becoming less and less common; ever since the games industry carved out its own identity and reputation as the leading source on interactive entertainment, the subject matter of games has grown up with it and given rise to much more varied examples of robotics. Of course, the human-hating AI trope still exists in some form today, but developers have opted to put clever spins on old ideas, giving their creations plausible personalities and motives.
And not everything has to be so highbrow either. Sometimes, all you want is a robot that is built purely for warfare, destruction and kicking ass, à la Titanfall and the Metal Gear Solid games. So large is the pool of stand-out robots in video games that it's been a real struggle to include all of the best ones here, but these 30 have all proven themselves to be wildly popular with fans and critics alike.
30. Wheatley - Portal 2
Wheatley beats GLaDOS to the top spot for multiple reasons.
Advertisement
Stephen Merchant did a fantastic job of conveying comedy and emotion through nothing but a blue eye and Wheatley himself is the perfect antithesis to GLaDOS, completely overturning what fans had come to expect in regards to their evil intent.
Which other classic video game robots deserve to be on this list? Share your own picks below.