Contemporary discourse about the ethical implications of military robots has been shaped by their portrayal in science fiction. In particular, Isaac Asimov's "

Three Laws of Robotics The Three Laws of Robotics (often shortened to The Three Laws or Asimov's Laws) are a set of rules devised by science fiction author Isaac Asimov, which were to be followed by robots in several of his stories. The rules were introduced in his 194 ...

", which set forth basic premises about human-robot relationships in his fictional universe, significantly influenced other science fiction writers and helped to establish many of them as experts taken seriously by military policy makers. The following is a list of fictional works with military robots.

Film

Near future

Land design

*''

Kill Command ''Kill Command'' (also known as ''Identify'') is a 2016 Cinema of the United Kingdom, British Science fiction film, science fiction action film, action horror film written and directed by Steven Gomez, and starring Thure Lindhardt and Vanessa K ...

'' (2016) – S.A.R *''

Fahrenheit 451 ''Fahrenheit 451'' is a 1953 Dystopian fiction, dystopian novel by American writer Ray Bradbury. It presents a future American society where books have been outlawed and "firemen" Book burning, burn any that are found. The novel follows in the ...

'' (1953) – Mechanical hound *'' Red Planet'' (2000) – AMEE (Autonomous Mapping Exploration and Evasion) *'' Lara Croft: Tomb Raider'' (2001) – S.I.M.O.N. *''

RoboCop ''RoboCop'' is a 1987 American Science fiction film, science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner. The film stars Peter Weller, Nancy Allen (actress), Nancy Allen, Dan O'Herlihy, Dani ...

'' (1987) – ED-209 (Enforcement Droid Series 209) *'' Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines'' (2003) – T-1 Battlefield Robot *''

Short Circuit A short circuit (sometimes abbreviated to short or s/c) is an electrical circuit that allows a current to travel along an unintended path with no or very low electrical impedance. This results in an excessive current flowing through the circuit ...

'' (1986) – Nova S-A-I-N-T (Strategic-Artificially-Intelligent-Nuclear-Transport) "

Johnny 5 ''Short Circuit'' is a 1986 American science fiction comedy film directed by John Badham and written by S. S. Wilson and Brent Maddock. The film centers on an experimental military robot that is struck by lightning and gains a Artificial intell ...

" *'' Hardware'' (1990) – M.A.R.K. 13 prototype killer combat droid

Air Models

*''

Stealth Stealth may refer to: Military *Stealth technology, technology used to conceal ships, aircraft, and missiles **Stealth aircraft, aircraft which use stealth technology ** Stealth ground vehicle, ground vehicles which use stealth technology ** Ste ...

'' (2005) – EDI (Extreme Deep Invader) *'' Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines'' (2003) – T-1 airborne VTOL craft

Land and Air Models

*''

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', that debuted in the eponymous 1954 film, directed and co-written by Ishirō Honda. The character has since become an international pop culture icon, appearing in various media: 33 Japanese films p ...

'' **

Mechagodzilla is a fictional mecha character, or monster, that first appeared in the 1974 film ''Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla''. In its debut appearance, Mechagodzilla is depicted as an Extraterrestrials in fiction, extraterrestrial villain, a robot created by a ...

*** Mechagodzilla 1 - Extraterrestrial military robot *** Mechagodzilla 2 - Man-made military robot *** Kiryu or Mechagodzilla 3 - Man-made military robot *** Mechagodzilla (Monsterverse version) - Man-made corporate military robot ** M.O.G.U.E.R.A. ** Mecha-King Ghidorah

High futurist

Humanoids

*'' Terminator'' series (1984/1991/2003) – Cyberdyne

T-800 T8 or T-8 may refer to the following: Measurement * T8, a Torx screwhead size * T8, a 1 inch fluorescent lamp formats, fluorescent lamp size * A tornado intensity rating on the TORRO scale Biology * The 8th thoracic vertebrae, thoracic vertebra * ...

/T-850 Terminator Endoskeleton *''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...

'' Episodes I, II, III (1999/2002/2005) – Eos B-1 Battle Droid *''

'' Episodes II, III (2002/2005) – Eos B-2 Super Battle Droid *''

'' Episode III (2005) – Holowan IG-100 MagnaGuards *''

Transformers ''Transformers'' is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Tomy, Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the heroic Autobots and the villainous Decepticons, two Extraterrestrials in fiction, alien robot fac ...

'' (2007) –

Decepticon The Decepticons are a fictional faction of sentient robots in the ''Transformers'' multimedia franchise. Serving as the main antagonists in the franchise, their goals include conquering their fictional homeworld planet Cybertron, defeating ...

s *''

Saturn 3 ''Saturn 3'' is a 1980 British science fiction film produced and directed by Stanley Donen, and starring Farrah Fawcett, Kirk Douglas and Harvey Keitel. The screenplay was written by Martin Amis, from a story by John Barry. Though a British ...

'' (1980) – "Hector" Model *''

The Black Hole A black hole is a region of extreme gravitational pull. Black hole or blackhole may also refer to: Computing *Black hole (networking), in computer networking, a place where traffic is silently discarded * Blackhole server, a DNS server that han ...

'' (1979) – S.T.A.R. (Special Troops/Arms Regiment) *''

Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. It began with the original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel series, '' Galactica 1980'', a line of book adaptat ...

'' (1978) – Cylon Centurion (Military androids with silver armor) *''

Fallout (series) Fallout is residual radioactive material from a nuclear explosion. Fallout, fall out or fall-out may also refer to: Books * ''Fallout'' (novel), a 2010 novel by Ellen Hopkins *''Fall Out'', 1957 anti-nuclear study edited by Bertrand Russell *'' ...

'' (1997-present) – Protectron (General purpose robot, police variant available), Liberty Prime (Giant military robot), Synth (Generation 1 and 2), Assaultron *''

Aliens Alien primarily refers to: * Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country ** Enemy alien, the above in times of war * Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth ** Specifically, a lifeform with ext ...

'' (1986) – (Aliens) ''

Lance Bishop Bishop, designated HS17B48XG5-D5, is a fictional character portrayed by Lance Henriksen in the science fiction film ''Aliens'' (1986). He is an android and the science officer of the ''Sulaco''. Despite struggling to gain the trust of protagonist ...

'' Hyperdyne Systems model 341-B Synthetic

Androids

*'' Terminator'' series (1984/1991/2003) – Cyberdyne

(Series 800, Model 101, Version 2.4) *'' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' – Cyberdyne

T-1000 The T-1000 is a fictional character in the ''Terminator'' franchise, debuting as the main antagonist in the 1991 film '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day''. The character was originally portrayed by Robert Patrick, marking his breakout role. In the ...

a shape-shifter android assassin *'' Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines'' (2003) –

T-X The T-X (referred to as the Terminatrix in some appearances until other terminatrix (female terminators) appeared) is the name of a fictional cyborg Assassination, assassin who appears in the Terminator (franchise), ''Terminator'' franchise. Th ...

"Terminatrix" *''

'' (2016-present) – Synth (Generation 3, which is a nearly perfect replica of the human body)

Other designs

*''

The Matrix ''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction film, science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in the The Matrix (franchise), ''Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Ca ...

'' series (1999/2003) – Sentinels *''

Lost in Space ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. Lightly dramatic, sometimes comedic in tone, the series was inspired by the 1812 J ...

'' (1998) – B9 "Robot" *''

'' Episodes I, II, III (1999/2002/2005) – Droideka (Destroyer Droid) *''

'' series (1977/2005) –

R2-D2 R2-D2 () or Artoo-Detoo is a fictional robot character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise created by George Lucas. He has appeared in ten of the eleven theatrical ''Star Wars'' films to date, including every film in the " Skywalker Saga", which inclu ...

(Astromech droid) *''

'' (1979) – V.I.N.CENT (Vital Information Necessary CENTralized) *''

'' (1979) – B.O.B. (BiO-sanitation Battalion) *''

'' (1979) – Maximilian *''

Fallout series ''Fallout'' is a media franchise of post-apocalyptic role-playing video games created by Tim Cain and Leonard Boyarsky, at Interplay Entertainment. The series is largely set during the first half of the 3rd millennium, following a devastatin ...

'' (1997–present) – Mister Gutsy, Robobrains (Controlled by an organic brain), Securitron, Sentry Bot, Liberator *'' Halo 1, 2, and 3'' (2001–2007) – Sentinels, and Super Sentinels *'' Screamers'' (1995) – Screamers

Powered Exoskeletons

* ''

The Matrix Revolutions ''The Matrix Revolutions'' is a 2003 American science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. The direct sequel to ''The Matrix Reloaded,'' it is the third installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, released six months foll ...

'' (2003) – APU (Armored Personnel Unit) * ''

Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, the character first appearan ...

'' (2008) – Iron Man Suit (Powered exoskeleton) *

Avatar (2009 film) ''Avatar'' is a 2009 Epic film, epic science fiction film co-produced, co-edited, written, and directed by James Cameron. It features an ensemble cast including Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, an ...

(2009) – AMP (Amplified Mobility Platform) * ''

M.A.N.T.I.S. ''M.A.N.T.I.S.'' is an American Superhero fiction, superhero television series that aired for one season on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox Network between August 26, 1994, and March 3, 1995, with its final two episodes airing on Syfy, Sci-Fi C ...

'' (1994) – M.A.N.T.I.S. (Mechanically Augmented Neuro-Transmitter Interactive System) * ''

District 9 ''District 9'' is a 2009 science fiction action film directed by Neill Blomkamp in his feature film debut, written by Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell, and produced by Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham. It is a co-production of New Zealand ...

'' (2009) – Bio-Suit (Bio-mechanical powered exoskeleton) * ''

'' (1997–present) – Various Models

Television

*''

'' *''

Buck Rogers Buck Rogers is a science fiction adventure hero and feature comic strip created by Philip Francis Nowlan first appearing in daily American newspapers on January 7, 1929, and subsequently appearing in Sunday newspapers, international newspapers, b ...

'' *''

Murder Drones ''Murder Drones'' is an Australian adult independent-animated web series created, written, and directed by Liam Vickers and produced by Glitch Productions. The pilot episode premiered on Glitch's YouTube channel on October 29, 2021. The remain ...

'' *''

Robotica ''Robotica'', also known as ''Robotica Cybernation Revolt'' in Europe and in Japan, is a first-person shooter video game developed by Micronet for the Sega Saturn. Plot The game's events are set in the year 2877. In 2077, the world's peacekee ...

'' *'' 24'' *''

Stargate SG-1 ''Stargate SG-1'' (often stylized in all caps, or abbreviated ''SG-1'') is a military science fiction Adventure fiction, adventure television series within Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate, ''Stargate'' franchise. The show, created by Brad Wrig ...

'' *''

Stargate Atlantis ''Stargate Atlantis'' (usually stylized in all caps and often abbreviated ''SGA'') is an Adventure film, adventure and military science fiction television series and part of MGM's Stargate, ''Stargate'' franchise. The show was created by Brad W ...

'' *'' Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles'' *''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'' (

List of Doctor Who robots The long-running BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' has an extensive universe inhabited by a continuously expanding gallery of creatures and aliens. The series first aired on BBC in 1963 until its cancellation in 1989, with ...

)

Literature

*Various books by

Isaac Asimov Isaac Asimov ( ; – April 6, 1992) was an Russian-born American writer and professor of biochemistry at Boston University. During his lifetime, Asimov was considered one of the "Big Three" science fiction writers, along with Robert A. H ...

*''

Shooting War ''Shooting War'' is a future history webcomic and graphic novel by writer Anthony Lappé and artist Dan Goldman. Originally published in 2006, the story is set in 2011 and features John McCain as the President of the United States. It tells the ...

'' by Anthony Lappé *The ''

Bolo Bolo may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Bolo, in the Bolo universe, ''Bolo'' universe, the name of sentient supertanks * An List of Dick Tracy characters#Enemies, enemy in the ''Dick Tracy'' series * Bolo, a characte ...

'' stories of

Keith Laumer John Keith Laumer ( – ) was an American science fiction author. Prior to becoming a full-time writer, he was an officer in the United States Air Force and a diplomat in the United States Foreign Service. His older brother March Laumer was ...

and others. *''

Starship Troopers ''Starship Troopers'' is a military science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein. Written in a few weeks in reaction to the US suspending nuclear tests, the story was first published as a two-part serial in ''The Magazine of ...

'' by

Robert A. Heinlein Robert Anson Heinlein ( ; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific acc ...

*Various

Dale Brown Dale Brown (born November 2, 1956) is an American writer and aviator known for aviation techno-thriller novels. At least thirteen of his novels have been ''New York Times'' Best Sellers. Early life Brown was born in Buffalo, New York, and wa ...

books **The ''Cybernetic Infantry Device'' manned robot and ''Tin Man'' robotic battle armor.
Malak
by Peter Watts *''

Second Variety "Second Variety" is a science fiction Novella#Versus novelette, novelette by American writer Philip K. Dick, first published in ''Space Science Fiction'' magazine, in May 1953, with illustrations by Alex Ebel. Set in a world where a war betwee ...

'' by Philip K. Dick *The 1964 novel ''

The Invincible ''The Invincible'' () is a hard science fiction novel by Polish writer Stanisław Lem, serialized in ''Gazeta Bialostocka'' in 1963 and published as a book in 1964. * In 1991, Swedish author Kerstin Ekman created an educational computer game t ...

'' by Polish writer

Stanisław Lem Stanisław Herman Lem (; 12 September 1921 – 27 March 2006) was a Polish writer. He was the author of many novels, short stories, and essays on various subjects, including philosophy, futurology, and literary criticism. Many of his science fi ...

described the ultimate evolution of military robots: swarms of minuscule, insect-like

micromachine Micromachines are mechanical objects that are fabricated in the same general manner as integrated circuits. They are generally considered to be between 100 nanometres to 100 micrometres in size, although that is debatable. The applications of ...

s which defeat any "intelligent" machinery. This idea of an "ultimate weapon system" was finalized by Lem in his fictitious review "Weapon Systems of the Twenty First Century or The Upside-down Evolution"."CAŁY TEN ZŁOM"
an afterword by prof.

Jerzy Jarzębski Jerzy Jarzębski (August 22, 1947 – February 25, 2024) was a Polish literary historian and critic, a long time professor at the Jagiellonian University. He is acclaimed for his research on Witold Gombrowicz, Bruno Schulz, Stanisław Lem, as wel ...

Computer/video games

*'' A.I. Wars'' (The Insect Mind) and (Armor Commander) *''

Apex Legends ''Apex Legends'' is a 2019 Battle royale game, battle royale-hero shooter video game developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts, set in the same science fiction universe as Respawn's ''Titanfall'' series. It is offered ...

'' *'' Armed and Dangerous'' *''

Battletech ''BattleTech'' is a wargaming and military science fiction franchise launched by FASA Corporation in 1984, acquired by WizKids in 2001, which was in turn acquired by Topps in 2003; and published since 2007 by Catalyst Game Labs. The trademark ...

'' *''

BioShock (series) ''BioShock'' is a retrofuturistic video game series created by Ken Levine, published by 2K and developed by several studios, including Irrational Games and 2K Marin. The ''BioShock'' games combine first-person shooter and role-playing eleme ...

'' *'' Call of Duty: Black Ops II'' *'' Call of Duty: Black Ops III'' *'' Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare'' *'' Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars'' *'' Command & Conquer: Generals'' and '' Command & Conquer: Generals – Zero Hour'' *'' Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2'' and '' Command & Conquer: Yuri's Revenge'' *''

Cyberpunk 2077 ''Cyberpunk 2077'' is a 2020 action role-playing game developed by CD Projekt Red and published by CD Projekt. Based on Mike Pondsmith's ''Cyberpunk (role-playing game), Cyberpunk'' tabletop game series, the plot is set in the fictional metrop ...

'' *'' Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3'' *''

Deus Ex ''Deus Ex'' is a series of cyberpunk role-playing video games, set during the mid 21st century. Focusing on the conflict between secretive factions who wish to control the world by proxy, and the effects of transhumanistic attitudes and technol ...

'' and '' Deus Ex: Invisible War'' *''

Earthsiege 2 ''Earthsiege 2'' is a mech-style vehicle simulation game developed by Dynamix, produced by Frank Evers (NYPH), and released in 1996. ''Earthsiege 2'' is set in the ''Earthsiege'' universe, which contains its predecessors '' Earthsiege'' (1994) ...

'' *''

Empire Earth ''Empire Earth'' is a series of real-time strategy video games developed by Stainless Steel Studios and Mad Doc Software, and published by Sierra Entertainment. The games in the series are historical RTS games that are similar to ''Age of Emp ...

'' *''

Empire Earth II ''Empire Earth II'' is a real-time strategy video game developed by Mad Doc Software and published by Vivendi Universal Games and their subsidiary Sierra Entertainment on April 26, 2005. It is a sequel to ''Empire Earth'', which was developed by ...

'' *''

Generation Zero (video game) ''Generation Zero'' is a first-person shooter video game developed and self-published by Avalanche Studios, under the brand Systemic Reaction. The game was announced in June 2018 and released on PlayStation 4, PC and Xbox One on March 26, 2019. ...

'' *''

Genshin Impact ''Genshin Impact'' is a 2020 action role-playing game produced by MiHoYo, MiHoYo/HoYoverse. The game features an anime-style open world environment and an action-based Role-playing battle systems, battle system using Classical element, element ...

'' *''

Girls' Frontline ''Girls Frontline'' ( zh, s=少女前线, t=少女前線, p=Shàonǚ Qiánxiàn) is a mobile game, mobile strategy role-playing game for Android (operating system), Android and iOS developed by China-based studio MICA Team, where players control ...

'' *''

Helldivers ''Helldivers'' is a 2015 top-down shooter video game developed by Arrowhead Game Studios and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. The game was released for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation Vita (with cross-play) in March 2015 ...

and

Helldivers 2 ''Helldivers 2'' is a 2024 cooperative third-person shooter game developed by Arrowhead Game Studios and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 5 and Windows. The game is the direct sequel to '' Helldivers'' (2015). Set ...

'' *'' Horizon (series)'' * ''Mega man franchise'' *''Messiah (video game), Messiah'' *''Metal Gear'' *''Overwatch (video game), Overwatch'' *''Portal (video game), Portal'' *''Ratchet & Clank (series), Ratchet & Clank'' *''Sonic the Hedgehog'' *''StarCraft'' *''Starsiege'' *''Supreme Commander (game), Supreme Commander'' *''Tiny Tank: Up Your Arsenal, Tiny Tank'' *''Titanfall and Titanfall 2'' *''Team Fortress 2'' *''Terraria'' *''Trails (series)'' *''Ultrakill'' *''Unreal Tournament'' and ''Unreal Tournament 2004'' *''Z (video game), Z''

References

{{Fictional military navbox Military robotics, - Works about robots, Lists of fictional military personnel, Robots