Who said robots don’t have a sensor of humor? One of the funniest characters in Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare is a fighting military robot called Ethan. In fact, he’s the only character who regularly cracks jokes in the science fiction tale.
Everyone else is dead serious about the war between Earth and the Settlement Defense Front. But Ethan breaks up the moments of terror and anger at the betrayal of the SDF’s surprise attack with his own jokes. During much of the game, Ethan serves as the companion for Reyes, the main character. He’s definitely funnier than Lieutenant Salter, who is a serious companion for Captain Reyes.
“That’s tough line, I’ll tell you. Doing a robot, a talking robot, that’s a tough line to walk,” said Dave Stoll, head of Infinity Ward, in an interview with GamesBeat. “It’s been done so many times in pop culture, in entertainment. We’ve created a robot, I think, that does his own kind of thing. He’s not like any of the others.”
Ethan’s real name is spelled ETH.3n, and it’s short for Enhanced Tactical Humanoid 3rd Revision. He’s capable of human-like emotions and responses.
“Dauntless valor, Ethan,” said one captain about the robot’s loyalty to Reyes, after Ethan saves Reyes’ life.
Ethan replies, “Boundless terror.” That suggests that the robot was scared about what would happen to him if his captain died.
On another occasion, the captain asks Ethan what the Navy’s solution to a tough fight is. Ethan replies, “Send in the marines.”
But Ethan proves to be a hell of a solider and a loyal comrade. And his relationship with Reyes becomes one of the most interesting parts of Infinite Warfare. While others treat Ethan like a tin can, Reyes treats him like a real person.
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare debuts today on the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Windows PC. Here are a couple of video clips of Ethan.