Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Zombies introduced us to S.A.M., an AI construction based on Samantha Maxis – but will our new companion turn out to be evil?
As we wait for more news regarding the next Black Ops 6 Zombies map, fans have returned to speculating about who (or what) exactly S.A.M. is.
The artificial intelligence first appeared on Terminus, where it claimed to be an AI created by Edward Richtofen, based primarily on Samantha Maxis.
But despite the fact that the Zombies Crew appears to be trusting S.A.M. so far, some fans suspect that the AI might not have our best interests at heart.
Is S.A.M Really Our Ally?
There are a few things to consider when it comes to deciding whether or not the Synaptic Algorithm Module (AKA S.A.M.) is really on our side.
At first glance, it’s easy to trust the AI because it’s using the voice of Samantha Maxis, the very person Requiem is attempting to rescue from the Dark Aether.

What’s more, we’ve seen S.A.M. directly take action against the series antagonist, Richtofen, in the Liberty Falls intro cinematic. Therefore, we can be relatively certain that S.A.M. isn’t working with Eddie on this one.
However, the mysterious AI was created by Richtofen, so we shouldn’t expect to be able to take anything it says at face value. In addition, S.A.M. certainly seemed to be a major threat in the cinematic, as it pulls the former Requiem Director into the Dark Aether and claims (in a very sinister voice) to already be free.
What’s more, while S.A.M. has been guiding the Zombies Crew so far, it has done so to ensure we were able to recover the Sentinel Artifact – a powerful relic that can manipulate Prima Materia, the original material of the universe.
The Return to Liberty Falls
S.A.M. was also the one who insisted we bring the Sentinel Artifact back to its own location in the Liberty Falls mansion, our next Black Ops 6 Zombies map.
There, it claims, we can infuse the artifact with unique elements only found in Liberty Falls – but is this really true?


Personally, we believe that this is all a trick by the entity trapped in the Project Janus mansion’s basement, in order to set itself free from the Dark Aether. Could that be the Forsaken, which was trapped inside a similar ball-shaped prison at the end of Cold War Zombies, or something else entirely?
We can be relatively sure that Samantha Maxis will return at the conclusion of Black Ops 6’s storyline. But before that, we wouldn’t be shocked by S.A.M. turning out to be our next map’s final boss fight.
However, some users believe that we’ll actually be facing off against a dinosaur boss battle in the Liberty Falls mansion!
We’ll likely find out what S.A.M. is really hiding on April 3, when Season 3 launches alongside our new Zombies map!