Big Nipper - I loved Big Nipper's previous, stag beetle design; apparently the gripper-flipper weapon is still an option, but they also have an interchangeable flywheel. I'd love to see them do well.
Dantomkia - A rebuilt and more powerful version of the successful Series 6 - 7 robot, though with a different team (also veterans, having competed in Series 7 with Trax). Should dominate its first melee, given its opponents.
Glitterbomb - A fun looking machine, but the axe doesn't look that dangerous compared with those we've seen so far (apparently it was taken from unsuccessful Series 6 - 7 robot Edge Hog, which the team bought).
King B Remix - A real veteran, but given that the team made constant upgrades throughout the show's original run, and it still only escaped the heats in Series 2, I'd say it's an outdated design.
Or Te - AKA Bigger Brother 2. It's certainly one of the best looking robots in the heat, and Ian Watts can certainly build good flipper bots, so I'm going to tentatively back this one despite knowing little else about it.
Overdozer - On top of what's already been said, I don't think anyone's mentioned the fact they have no self-righting mechanism, and a shockingly high ground clearance.
Supernova - Disappointing to learn they're not in Overdozer's melee. Judging by its weight, they haven't made any changes to it since Series 7 either. It never responded well to being flipped, so my guess is it'll be ganged up on and knocked out early.
TR2 - Current UK robotic champion, from the live shows that have continued since the original TV run ended. Very powerful flipper, and a new axe too by the looks of things, but it's not the most reliable.
It can't just be me who thinks the returning teams have generally been let downs? Also, I'm beginning to dislike the whole '2 robots immediately eliminated' thing if I'm honest, it's like 'here's your 3 minutes of fame, see you later'...
Catching up on the new episodes now. Team Nuts got utterly decimated in the first ep
Edit: My favourite house robot when I as younger was Dead Metal. Anything with saw/spinny parts in general are my thing. Liked the look of Carbide so far here.
It can't just be me who thinks the returning teams have generally been let downs? Also, I'm beginning to dislike the whole '2 robots immediately eliminated' thing if I'm honest, it's like 'here's your 3 minutes of fame, see you later'...
The 'four way, two robots eliminated' starting melee isn't anything new, Series 6 and 7 did the same thing. The difference was that in the past, there was a greater quantity and less overall quality of robots, so the returning favourites (which were seeded to ensure they didn't face each other) rarely came up against any big threats until the heat finals.
Now there's a real mix of old robots that mostly haven't been updated, 'new' teams that have actually been performing in live shows for years using the latest technology, and genuinely new robots that were built in a rush and are untested. It's definitely the latter two groups that have been putting on the best performance so far.
Hopefully if we get another series, preferably with more than a couple months notice for the roboteers this time, we'll have a higher number of entries, and if they have any sense then they'll seed the best of this year's robots.
The 'four way, two robots eliminated' starting melee isn't anything new, Series 6 and 7 did the same thing. The difference was that in the past, there was a greater quantity and less overall quality of robots, so the returning favourites (which were seeded to ensure they didn't face each other) rarely came up against any big threats until the heat finals.
Now there's a real mix of old robots that mostly haven't been updated, 'new' teams that have actually been performing in live shows for years using the latest technology, and genuinely new robots that were built in a rush and are untested. It's definitely the latter two groups that have been putting on the best performance so far.
Hopefully if we get another series, preferably with more than a couple months notice for the roboteers this time, we'll have a higher number of entries, and if they have any sense then they'll seed the best of this year's robots.
It's just like 'I'm just getting to know you' and then you're gone I'm still to see some of destruction à la Hypnodisc and having watched an episode of Robot Wars Extreme last night, I'd bring Craig Charles back in a heartbeat
I still feel someone should just strap a couple of thermic lances to their robot, shouldn't be too hard to win then despite them burning out relatively quickly ..
I still feel someone should just strap a couple of thermic lances to their robot, shouldn't be too hard to win then despite them burning out relatively quickly ..
Unfortunately, I believe flame/heat weapons are still against the rules in the UK series (only Sgt Bash and the arena hazards ever used them, not the competitors).
Unfortunately, I believe flame/heat weapons are still against the rules in the UK series (only Sgt Bash and the arena hazards ever used them, not the competitors).