Three Robots story
Long after the fall of humanity, three robots (K-VRC, XBOT 4000, and 11-45-G) wander through a post-apocalyptic city, exploring first-hand how humans lived based on the things they left behind. They investigate human sports, nutritional consumption, and eventually pets when they encounter a living cat, which proceeds to follow them. The three robots learn about their origins and later arrive at what appears to be a nuclear missile base. 11-45-G explains that humans died out from environmental disasters caused by their own actions, while K-VRC states that at one point, humans genetically engineered their cats, giving them intelligence. The cat then proves this by showing it can speak, demanding to be petted, while many other cats in the base corner the three robots. Cast: Josh Brener as K-VRC, Gary Anthony Williams as XBOT 4000, Chris Parnell as the Cats Directed by: Victor Maldonado & Alfredo Torres. Story by: John Scalzi.
10 total · 2 choice · 1 major · 7 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| AI point of view | choice | In a world where humanity had recently gone extinct, a trio of robots toured the ruins of a once thriving metropolis. The robots were very curious about human customs and culture, but invariably got the wrong idea about what everyday life was like for humans (e.g., sports, food intake, and a fascination with cats), owing to their interpreting what they saw from a robot perspective. |
| anthropogenic existential risk to civilization | choice | The story takes place in the ruins of a world where humanity had recently gone extinct due to its own actions. For example, the idea was entertained that humanity perished in either a nuclear conflagration or from an self-inflicted ecological catastrophe. The cat explained that humanity genetically engineering cats to have opposable thumbs played a role in humanity extinction. The demise of humanity might have come about from a combination of all three. |
| humanoid robot | major | The story follows three robot friends, two of whom were humanoid in form, as they tour an utterly destroyed city that was formerly inhabited by humans. |
| displacement by a rising new species | minor | The cat explained that humanity genetically engineering cats to have opposable thumbs played a role in humanity extinction. |
| ecological destruction | minor | The robot 11-45-G explained that that humans had died out from environmental disasters caused by their own actions. The details are otherwise left vague. |
| fusion power | minor | The robots were powered by fusion batteries. |
| intelligent animal | minor | The robots encountered a species of talking cat. |
| nuclear holocaust | minor | The three robots visiting a nuclear warhead facility compels the viewer to question whether humanity was annihilated in a nuclear conflagration. |
| speculative genetic engineering | minor | The cat revealed that humans had genetically engineered cats to have opposable thumbs. |
| the origin of life | minor | One robot joked about humans having been made by an unfathomable creator. It then explained that they actually originated from a very hot soup. |