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Idea Time!

Since we think that visability might be some small concern in one way or another during compeition, is it expected to see some teams trying to score their keepers in the parts of the Rack the opposing alliance view the easiest?

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Last year at an off season event i finally ripped the camera lens part off and threw it at a rookie.. i said dont lose it, it cost a lot of money... We then won the event...

Camera's are my anti-fun

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Yes. We paid ~$600 yesterday for materials. Constructed entirely of wood and PVC, with the chains and all.

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no i agree with you... there should be some obstacles on the field. however! as a programmer myself for the first year, and any 1 one else new would probally agree with me on this..... auto mode would be intense to the point that people would not score any points in 15 seconds... i could be wrong.. but those are my thoughts:)

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I have to second that! This game looking like it could be winnable by any team.
Great design!
But lets not forget... its about the students! There are no losers in First :)

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I actually also want another obstacle...like additional places to put rings for points...but because this game can revolve around needing space to place rings and needing space to defend the other alliance from placing rings...wide open spaces are the best idea

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You do have obstacles... they called other robots.
You can either go around, move them or my personal fav ... over them :eek:

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Ok, My reaction is that I don't like the game so much. Last years game was awesome, because anybody who came in and sat down could understand " If you put the ball in the hole, you get points for it", because it was reminiscent of basketball. The game let teams choose multiple routs of design: Shooter, Dumper, defense, or all three.

With the introduction of the FIRST KOP wheels, the playing field for defense has been leveled. In previous years we have made custom wheels that enabled us to push anybody, even with IFI traction wheels. These new FIRST wheels are more grippy, and have harder rubber than our custom ones, which means that we will be using them this year. With everybody having the same High traction wheels, FIRST has effectively eliminated defense in this years game (Except for the limited weight advantage that can be gained from weight/height differences).

As for the mechanical design portion of the game, teams are left two options, build an exceptional articulated arm, or build an exceptional lift robot. Building an articulated arm is old hat, and I don't envision building a ramp/lift to be all that difficult. Also, I don't envision too much scoring on the other side of the spider rack, because in order to do this successfully, you have to implement a good camera setup, which quite a few rookie teams won't be able to to, and a fair number of non-rookie teams were unable to do last year.

My last qualm with this game is the complexity of it. We have 120 seconds to complete it, and there is so much strategy in this game that it is kinda like completing a game of Chinese-checkers in two minutes. Not everyone who comes in and sits down will be able to understand what is happening, and after running the game animation for my 14-year-old brother twice, he still didn't understand the entire form of the game.I guess that I wish the game was more design-intensive, and less strategy intensive. That would have provided a more exciting game for non-FIRST viewers, and more exciting game play for FIRST participants.


Just some thoughts on the subject,

-Cody C

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Yes!

Exactly my issues with the game as well!

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personoly i like challenges, down with silver platters. it will be interesting to see what people do during the competition...at the place where i went for the kickoff had one of those racks made and it seems when you put pressure on a leg that leg stops moving. what i am really wondering is what they will do NEXT year...

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I've barely even thought through this year, forget about next year. That's for off-season daydreaming.

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one problem with going over, these robots will usually be 4' at the least and that will be a bit hard

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It was easier last year with the ramp to launch off of...


I am, of course, kidding. I have no intention of so purposefully destroying another robot. That takes all the fun out of it; 2 on 3 games are just no fun.

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lol, who says you will break em, i think it would be more fun to hitch a ride on them, like a giant hat, you could still do stuff but not too much

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Hmm, I never though it it that way. A low weight robot charging up a ramped robot parked next to the edge of the field could result in a flying out-of-bounds robot, and that doesn't seem very safe to me...:eek:

Personally, I'm looking forward to this game. I think it may be too strategic, and next to impossible to score on the far side of the rack. Being a first week regional guy is going to really level the playing field. No one will have any idea how the game is going to play out (except those silly people from Hammond).

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I must say, when I first saw the game this year I couldn't help but feel a little let down. I'm sure this year will be as awesome as always, but after Atlanta last year (Particularly the finals and that trick they pulled) I think was expecting something a little more original , especially regarding autonomous functions.

I beyond that, I think the main problem with this years game is lack of interest to the spectator. Compared to Aim High, this years game seems slower, harder to understand and generally lacks the (cough) robot Interaction (cough) that last years game included (I'm hoping someone will prove me wrong on all three of these points).

While I'm sure this won't be an issue for the actual FIRST robotics team members, it could prove an issue for Parents/Friend/School-Officals/Sponsors
etc. who have come to watch the competition, especially after watching last year's easy to understand game.

That said, I'm really looking forward to seeing some of this Robot lifting in action. The idea of Teams having to trust one other with their Robot's safety and wellbeing is a nice addition, and I think that it goes well with the FIRST spirit.

Oh and the USB port of the interface is brilliant... You can't imagine how much simpler it will make life for software people...

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When I first saw the game I didnt know what to think. I really didnt like it as much as "aim high", but now it's a very cool game and I like it a lot. The way teams do strategy will be very interesting.

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I think that the majority of the "let down" feeling that a lot of people are having stems from the fact that after last year, where untethered projectiles gave such a shock, and the multicolored light prank at nationals, this game doesn't really have the shock factor to it. I mean, sure there's the "Connect 24" aspect :p and the lifting of the robots, but still.

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In one sense, the game is a letdown because it is so much like Toroid Terror.

This is a very interesting game, mostly because of the weight classes. At first you say "This is awesome!" but it really restricts your robot. If you design your bot to be small, (from how I'm interpreting everything) you have to be heavier and that's going to take your ability to be lifted away unless other robots happen to design something that can support your weight (which is very easy to do with the right materials and the right structure). If you are tall and light, the challenge becomes making sure you have a low center-of-mass (more weight at the base, less weight at the top) so that you don't tip. It's going to be tough.

As for scoring overall, speed and being able to use the camera are gonna be key here at all ends of the game. And that goes for all classes. And one question, are super-CIM or additional CIM motors legal this year? (I know this is a rules question, but knowing this rule will have a lot of effect on the game.)

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Just remember, the height-weight pairings are the maximums for those classes. You can be a short AND light robot, you dont have to be 120 lbs if you are 4ft tall.