US: Battlebots (Like a US Robot Wars)

GhostWKD

GhostWKD

GhostWKD

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Starts in the US on Discovery tonight, not entirely sure how to get hold of these in the UK but sure we'll sort something out. If you enjoy Robot Wars you'll probably enjoy this (but then I said the same about This is Fighting Robots and didn't seem to be any interest in that)

If you've not seen it before, there are many videos on YouTube from when it used to be on ABC - Much like Robot Wars there was a reboot 2 seasons ago (this is series 3 of the reboot) with a long hiatus before then.

In this new season entrants will fight up to 4 fights, which can be head-to-head or rumbles. Each episode will be concluded by a main event. Once initial rounds are complete, a top 16 will be selected out of the field which will fight in a regular knock-out tournament.

When it comes to judging criteria you can read the new rulebook; https://battlebots.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/BattleBots-Tournament-Rules.2018.Rev 1.0.pdf

Essentially;
Damage – 2 Points, Aggression – 1 Point, Control – 1 Point, Strategy – 1 Point

In the first episode we've got:
  • Bite Force v Blacksmith
  • Mecha Rampage vs. DUCK! vs. Free Shipping (Rumble)
  • SubZero vs. HUGE
  • Bombshell vs. LockJaw
  • Tombstone v Minotaur (BRA) - Main Event
  • Bonus fight on Science Channel only: Kraken vs. Sharkoprion vs. Deviled Egg (Rumble)
Genuinely can't wait for Tombstone vs Minotaur :D
 
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CaptainRAVE said:
Is it still on Spike TV? Miles better than Robot Wars (except the cringe American presenting).
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American presenting can be a bit cringeworthy but hey I'd rather have that than no robot combat :D

They're yet to confirm how it will be airing in the UK, given discovery have taken it over it may well be shown on one of their channels in the UK but TBC. Hoping we'll get news on this asap to be honest.

Edit:

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Awesome news on Battlebots TV ratings in the US, #6 most watched cable program on that Friday apparently.

Shows what happens with this sort of show if you don't put it against Blue Planet/The Olympics and you actually give it some advertising support :D
 
I really enjoyed the episode, fights are usually great but it's the filler and 'Americaness' which can be off putting. They have seemed to have toned it down i bit now though which is good.

"Minotaur losing after get stuck on the damage from the arena floor was BS even though it would have lost the judge's decision. "
 
MikeTheNative said:
I really enjoyed the episode, fights are usually great but it's the filler and 'Americaness' which can be off putting. They have seemed to have toned it down i bit now though which is good.

"Minotaur losing after get stuck on the damage from the arena floor was BS even though it would have lost the judge's decision. "
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To be fair they had a lot less filler than I remembered, maybe supported by the new format of having each robot fight 4 times before going on to the actual knockout stages :)

Do agree with the Minotaur fight but as you say it would've gone against them anyway, Tombstone seemed to be pretty battered from the hits too mind. Apparently same frame as in Season 2 of Battlebots due to time constraints so must be pretty tired by now.

Huge impressed me massively (future for Gabriel in the UK?) but obviously a flipper was always going to struggle against it
 
Minotaur have just posted a picture up following their fight with tombstone :eek: Must be said though held up a lot better than most would (their front corners and sides seem to be really thick/solid?)

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Genuinely expected Icewave to struggle against their wedge to be honest... and if it did persevere expected the exposed bolt heads to be the issue rather than the whole front 1/4 of the bot :D

I think you can let me off for missing a thread that's not been posted in for a year and before that 3 years :D

Episode 2 was #4 in the friday night cable viewing numbers in the US, bodes well for it to continue :)
 
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I didn't realise this show got picked up again, it's good that it did as we need to encourage kids into stem fields and this is a good way of doing it. Any idea what channel this airing on in the UK?
 
Hard to watch this, the commentary is irritating and over the top, the competitors are the typical over the top Americans playing up for the cameras. Even some of the older competitors in their 50's act like they've been put on some type of hyperactivity drug.

Some good robots though, Robot Wars uk reboot was plagued with Robots that just broke after minor damage.
 
Gerard said:
Hard to watch this, the commentary is irritating and over the top, the competitors are the typical over the top Americans playing up for the cameras. Even some of the older competitors in their 50's act like they've been put on some type of hyperactivity drug.

Some good robots though, Robot Wars uk reboot was plagued with Robots that just broke after minor damage.
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Which season? A good proportion of the competitors are not American.
 
Gerard said:
Some good robots though, Robot Wars uk reboot was plagued with Robots that just broke after minor damage.
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What I'd like to see is a series where they had a mixture of experienced engineers and previous robot designers, etc. along with a mixture enthusiasts (general public who are just interested rather than necessarily having skills or experience), school children, etc. then randomly divide them into teams with 1-2 experienced people heading up each team and pit them against each other seeing more of the build challenge and testing phases, seeing more of the fails and successes along the way to a functioning robot, people developing their skills as they built and outside the box thinking, etc. with prizes for innovation as well as outright winning in the arena.
 
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