When We Were Kings !

[chimera1]

When I took part in the Robot Wars series of programmes,I was made to feel very important,like a star if you like and the signing of autographs for the kids added to the atmosphere.

Meals were supplied,hotels paid for and there was allways a camera crew wanting a interview and it didnt matter whether you had a great robot or a not so great one-you were one of the elite-A Roboteer.

Now its nine years on since the end of Robot Wars and I have attended some live events and hope to do so again by the end of the summer,but this is the point Iam trying to make--

People say, why dont the big names come to the live events or worse still- getting out of fighting robots alltogether (Kronic) latest casualty.

Well I think theres many reasons but just maybe theres no joy in your robot being smashed and occuring an expensive repair to an indifferent organiser or small crowd.

Bring on the One big event per year with a nice cash win,-that would bring em out of the woodwork.

PS:There are alternatives to spending a barrow load of bucks on polycarbonate sheeting too.

[psycho_fling]

Re: When We Were Kings !

what alternatives might they be

i don't think going back to one big event would be a good move, i never experienced robot wars as a competitor but the many live shows i have been to have been great and i dont think id feel the same after just one event per year

[leorcc]

Re: When We Were Kings !

During series 7 there wasn't a large crowd in the audience anymore. I doubt there will be if you set up a large event like that again now.

If there is one thing that the EO's are not it is indifferent, if it hadn't been for Roaming Robots, Robots Live and Robochallenge the sport would have died off a long time ago.

This sport has evolved from a TV show, reverting back to that format is not something I see happening and I'm not so sure that I'd want to either.

[chimera1]

Re: When We Were Kings !

I refer your coments to Jonnos thread posted in march your opinion please,at least with the Robot Wars format you did get new ideas coming along, an evoloution if you will,first there was roadblock then panic attack then chaos ect,there was status in being the best,you didnt mind that your speed controller burnt out on the journey.

Jonnos doing a great job but my guess is a roadblock lookalike with a powerfull flipper is currently as far its evolved in nine years.

[craig_colliass]

Re: When We Were Kings !

My view as someone who never quite got to the Robot Wars series is, in a way I'm glad I don't have fond memories of the behind the scenes antics but then I don't miss them. If the format were resurrected I for one would not be jumping for joy.

I would also question the no development line I would think there are only a few basic types of robot, Ram bot, Flipper, Lifter, Crusher. so we have developed a lot of versions around them.
I would like to think my robots Saint or Pilgrim and now Cherub are not roadblock with a flipper. they are variations on a theme.

The old robots rusting in sheds probably wouldn't cope with the new robots coming forward as far as I am concerned they can stay in the wood work.

The future is in the young roboteers and new and diverse robot shows. not riding on past glories but looking forward to new ways of promoting the roboteering movement. If you keep looking backwards you will end up tripping in to a pit!

[swanaldo]

Re: When We Were Kings !

Bit Cheeky i think you are. The TV is what got this sport going in the first place. Yes it was good to get your face on tv but that was it. Now i personally think its much better to fight our robots as we are. The few that still do the sport do it for the love of it. Its a good hobby. Impling IS THIS IT after 9 years is not a good comment. Mate its simple really. If you dont like it jog on.

[calumco]

Re: When We Were Kings !

to be fair people still come up to us asking for autographs etc, personally for me its not all about free food and a having a camera shoved in my face its about the robots and the people.

i never went on robotwars but i went to see it once and from an audience point of view- compared to how the audiences get treated and envolved at todays style of events it was lame. so really i'd say todays style events are way better from both a roboteer point of view and from when i went to my first event about 3 years ago to just watch from the audience

so we are still kings! imo

calum

[widow_twanky]

Re: When We Were Kings !

Funny really, even though I've got a nice collection of the tv robots, I don't really want it back on TV. Think I've made my point in the past but it's mainly that if you want a TV show you can have one but if you want a sport then you need to run it without jumping through other peoples hoops. An argument which could rage forever but that's my opinion.

I can't really believe the comment about a lack of development. As Craig said there are only really a few types of shape which work well. OK I agree there isn't any incentive to build a robot which is made out of paper mache, looks great but lasts 30 seconds in the arena but in terms of development, tell the iron awe boys that they haven't really developed their machine. St Hammer is a unique design, fantastic to watch but not really fully competetive (although it doesn't do too badly). Envy is of course just a Firestorm copy....................................even i have to disagree with that for the new one, Mega Mouse is a completely different style of robot. Certainly Envy and mega Mouse have come in the past few years.

The questions which have to be asked are:

- Does harping back to the 'golden era' actually stop the sport moving forward?
- What happens if it flops? (gladiators is one of the recent examples)
- How many of the current roboteers who do it for fun would be lost due to their robot not being interesting enough?

Andy

[RogueTwoRobots]

Re: When We Were Kings !

This is one reason I don't like Big Brother. People who go on that show think that because they've had a bit of air-time on TV, they automatically gain celebrity status and that people will pay for their time (sadly, there are numpties who fuel such egos by indeed paying to see/hire them).
It was nice of Robot Wars to pay accommodation, travel and food costs etc but they could afford to and it was a nice luxury. It's not financially viable for event organisers these days to cover such costs. Anyone who is looking to gain fame and fortune from this hobby is in it for the wrong reasons. It's nice to be asked for an autograph, or to have our picture taken, or to be filmed by a camera crew for an interview, but everyone I know in this game is in it for the fun of pitting their wits against like-minded souls from across the country.

I think saying that there hasn't been much development in the robots in the seven years since RW was last on television is pretty disrespectful to anyone who has built and competed with a robot in that time. I agree that a lot of machines (maybe a bit too many) are just a wedge with a powerful flipper but it is a design that has proven itself to be highly successful and is also very entertaining on the live event circuit. But if you look past those robots you come across some marvellous machines such as Saint Hammer (simple but wacky) and Big Nipper (a sublime piece of engineering). And as has already been mentioned, there are only a few basic platforms on which to base your robot. I think one aspect is that most major developments that have taken place over the past seven years have not been visible on the outside. In the early series' of Robot Wars, you could see the evolution of the robots, from the shape to the armour to the weapons. Nowadays, it is the internal components that are evolving in the form of more reliable speed controllers (some specifically designed for robot combat), better battery technology and things such as completely custom-made pneumatics setups. It's difficult to see these developments on the outside but it has led to much more reliable, effective and - most importantly - safe robots (well, as safe as you can get for a machine designed to destroy another machine).

In the 'Your Opinions Please' thread, I state that I would love the idea of a fixed-location arena hosting a few large events a year, but I have to admit that at this moment, the touring live event setup is what's needed to keep interest alive. It draws in a far larger audience over different locations in the country than any fixed-location arena, once-a-year event could.

[chimera1]

Re: When We Were Kings !

Good comments especially by Jamie there, but I still say the formula cant be quite right if Roboteers are losing interest,crowds are smaller,too many wedges with a powerfull flipper!.

Yes its true that a fibreglass robot woulden't last five minutes but cant you see that crowds love to see destruction and not just a robot flipped out or emerge with a few scatches.

Some may say I'm not bothered what the audience like but I'm sure the organisers do, because they pay for the upkeep of the arena.

On a more practical theme,has anyone ever done a post battle survey by means of a questionaire?.

question eg:were there enough battles?,could you see the action?,were the intervals too long?,was there enough destruction? ect ect.

[blazerbotics]

Re: When We Were Kings !

just to answer that last point, we did a survey this year at Burgess Hill and in Chester in 2008. All of the results from these were positive, of the shows we have done over the last 3 and a half years we have never had a single complaint, and everybody who came has enjoyed it. The problems isnt with the show, its getting 'bums on seats'. The fact is it hasnt been on TV now for a few years (even repeat showings have gone) and we're now having to search for the audiences whereas 10 years ago they came to you.

I'm not going to reply yet to the rest of the points yet as i'll be here all day!

[anukhet]

Re: When We Were Kings !

When I took part in the Robot Wars series of programmes,I was made to feel very important,like a star if you like and the signing of autographs for the kids added to the atmosphere.

Meals were supplied,hotels paid for and there was allways a camera crew wanting a interview and it didnt matter whether you had a great robot or a not so great one-you were one of the elite-A Roboteer.

This still happens - the autograph signing, the kids looking at you in awe by the simple act of walking into the loo or queuing up for food and bumping into a 'roboteer' The interviews for radio and tv - this still happens.

The only thing that doesnt happen is getting your arsed wiped by the tv production company if you just happen to have a 'star' robot - not such a bad thing all this equality :wink:

[ady]

Re: When We Were Kings !

i know its a pain as a roboteer, but wot i used to miss is the damage, nothing excited me more from the tv days or now seeing a robot get smashed to pieces, not nice if its your robot i know, but for me personally its what excited me.

when competing i never watched the heavyweights fight, as in my opinion it was either a flipper, or that tyre thing, i found it boring very quickly watching 2 or 3 hw's either chuck each other around or just bash into each other, the only exception was terrorhurtz for me.
this is my own personal opinion of hw fights i saw with my own eyes, which was quite a few, so i dont want a backlash.

the only thing i liked watching in hw's was the razer demos, as at least you saw something get smashed up, even if it was an old tv or something.

that is why i built a fw, i started with a basic wedge, but then i went straight to a spinner, as yeah their unreliable and expensive to fix, but when working nothing beat it for me, or the sound of the crowd when u spun it up

[grant_ploughbot]

Re: When We Were Kings !

I have to agree in large part with the first post, not in total but alot of it.

For me, Robot Fighting is robot fighting, not a show. Thats the only bit I get enjoyment from. That is the only reason James and I built the Robo Challenge Arena. We hold 1, sometimes 2 events a year for full combat featherweights because thats the part of the sport we really enjoy, and we hope everyone enjoys them just as much as we do.

On the heavyweight side of things, I have to agree that as a roboteer I've been getting abit bored sometimes. It's not about the autographs, the free food, the interviews at all for me. It's all about the full combat and the nerves you get in full combat - I dont like the idea of putting an awfull lot of time and money into something I can only use to put on a show for an audience... I would have done drama in school for that. As part of Robo Challenge, I know exactly how difficult it is to get the audience in and we have lost a lot of money doing so along the way, so i appreciate the effort RR and RL go to in holding so many events.

But it would make such a difference for just 1 full combat heavy event each year - I would have built my own heavyweight if that happened.

[john]

Re: When We Were Kings !

LOL

Meals are supplied for during the break and sometimes during the events where we have to stay over night we camp for free, which is often better then a hotel for the social side of things.

There is prize money for the big events of the year - I have won around £1000 over the last 3 years - If it was still on TV I would have prob won 20 times that and the toy deal which would be nice but it's not coming back.

Bring on the One big event per year with a nice cash win,-that would bring em out of the woodwork. I know what your in it for. Where is the money going to come from for the nice cash win your after?

As swanny said If you dont like it jog on.