# Battlebots bots could kick Robot Wars bots from here to the moon **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 18, 2002, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506 "2002-07-18T00:39:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/1 "2002-07-18T00:39:34Z")
As I’m watching Robot Wars, it occurs to me that none of them would stand a chance in the Battlebots box. Anyone have a favorite bot? I like Son of Whyotchi (sp), Little Sister, Mechavore, Ziggo, Toro, Complete Control… ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/2 "2002-07-18T00:46:28Z")
You are right about the robots (although simplicity might actually win over complexity in some cases) but the show ‘battlebots’ pisses me off because there is so much pre-battle waffle and so litttle battling. I watched it once and vowed never to watch it again because there was soooo little action. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/3 "2002-07-18T01:08:09Z")
The new seasons are better, because it’s an hour long. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/4 "2002-07-18T04:45:30Z")
Battlebots is better than Robotwars. I don’t like the WWF aspects of Robotwars, with the house bots that come in when they aren’t supposed to and change the outcome of a match, etc. The rules are nonexistant. Battlebots at least makes an objective attempt to provide a fair match. Plus, the simpler playing field and lack of house robots makes it a more pure battle. Way better format. ---
**Author:** ![Gozu\_Tashoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7993a0/32.png) [@Gozu\_Tashoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gozu_Tashoya)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/5 "2002-07-18T05:07:22Z")
Wait, a sec. I don’t have Comedy Central anymore (moved, crappy cable carrier), but are you saying that Battlebots finally moved away from the “wedge of the week” style robots? Is BB no longer the show where the “lifting arm” is the weapon of choice? (Well, aside from the totally ineffective ramming spikes, anyway?) Because, man, in all the episodes of BB I watched, the vast majority of them ended in draws, and most of the others were decided almost exclusively by the killsaws. In RW, OTOH, I saw discs cut gashes in armor, slice of wheels, and flip robots out of the arena. I also saw Razer come in and punch holes in other bots’ armor and use its claw to pop off wheels like grapes. In a deathmatch between robots I’ve actually seen, I’d have to give the edge to RW. ---
**Author:** ![Mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@Mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/6 "2002-07-18T05:21:55Z")
The House Bots on Robot Wars generally interfere far too much. Battlebots is about skill and real competition, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/7 "2002-07-18T07:01:39Z")
BB bots have come a looong way. There are some really innovative designs now. Wedges are rare. ---
**Author:** ![Horseflesh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horseflesh/32/7502_2.png) [@Horseflesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horseflesh)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 8:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/8 "2002-07-18T08:16:38Z")
I like Vlad the Impaler (simple but effective design), Overkill (just love that blade), Nightmare (if he gets a good hit there are pieces everywhere) and that movie guy that designs them for fun (uh, Mechadon and the snake one?). But I’d say in a showdown Sir Killalot from RW would win. Anybody watch Robotica? They had some more interesting competitions that tested driving skill, bot design, strategy and the obligatory head-to-head. ---
**Author:** ![Mythos45](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/848f3c/32.png) [@Mythos45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mythos45)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/9 "2002-07-18T11:38:56Z")
Haven’t watched _Battlebots_ in awhile, but there’s one thing I’ve got to know: Has any 'bot beaten Ziggo? ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/10 "2002-07-18T11:45:23Z")
I think Vlad the Impaler has been retired. Did ya see the match where Mechavore ripped him to shreds? Poor ol’ Vlad’s armor was hanging in tatters. Toro, and his little cousin T-Minus, are my favorites. There’s something incredibly cool about seeing another 200+ pound robot getting tossed high in the air. And did you see the Battle Royal, where Toro flipped and disabled _three_ robots in about 10 seconds? ---
**Author:** ![Mythos45](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/848f3c/32.png) [@Mythos45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mythos45)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/11 "2002-07-18T12:06:34Z")
Haven’t watched _Battlebots_ in awhile, but there’s one thing I’ve got to know: Has any 'bot beaten Ziggo? ---
**Author:** ![Horseflesh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horseflesh/32/7502_2.png) [@Horseflesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horseflesh)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/12 "2002-07-18T13:33:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mythos45 \* > \*\*Haven’t watched _Battlebots_ in awhile, but there’s one thing I’ve got to know: > > Has any 'bot beaten Ziggo? \*\* [3 times](http://www.battlebots.com/meet_the_robots/meet_robot_specs.asp?id=85) apparently. Don’t know who the bots were but I remember Ziggo got “out of round” in one battle this season and was nearly up on edge before his creator got it under control. ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/13 "2002-07-18T14:12:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by OpalCat \* > \*\*As I’m watching Robot Wars, it occurs to me that none of them would stand a chance in the Battlebots box. > \*\* There’s a very good reason for that. Battlebots is a week-long competition, typically with over 400 bots showing up to fight. Only the last few days of the competition are filmed, and only the final or most exciting rounds make it onto the TV show. The bots you see on the TV show have already survived half a dozen gruelling matches to get there. A lot of crap bots show up, and get wiped out in the early rounds you never get to see on the TV show. Unlike BattleBots, Robot Wars is a made-for-TV competition where nearly every match that takes place gets used for the TV show. While in BattleBots anyone who pays the registration fee and passes tech in spection gets to compete, Robot Wars picks and chooses which bots they’ll let in. And their criteria for choosing competitors is based more on what they think will look good on TV than who has the best fighting robot. So, with a few exceptions, the competitors tend more towards bots with pretty paint jobs covering up tinfoil and plywood armor than serious fighting machines. Some of the best Robot Wars competitiors have come over to compete at BattleBots - Razer, KillerHurtz, Bigger Brother/Little Sister, Mortis, Panic Attack, and a few others. They’ve managed to hold their own, especially Razer who won the heavyweight rumble at the first BattleBots competition. As for the house robots - they’ve got no weight limit and are allowed to use illegal weapons (flamethrowers). Still I’d bet on Toro to take out any of them no problem, even Sir Killalot. ---
**Author:** ![Allen\_Parine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/57b2e6/32.png) [@Allen\_Parine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Allen_Parine)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/14 "2002-07-18T18:01:42Z")
:grumble: When I want to see ‘bots fight I play TFC. If only their programming controlled hardware they’d kick all those glorified RC cars’ metal arses. :grumble: ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/15 "2002-07-18T21:08:39Z")
Hazard. Hands down the best pound for pound. ---
**Author:** ![airdisc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e19adc/32.png) [@airdisc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/airdisc)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/battlebots-bots-could-kick-robot-wars-bots-from-here-to-the-moon/119506/16 "2002-07-18T21:13:32Z")
I like Ziggo myself. I love Battlebots. And in case anyone wondered, a new season is coming out in August.