Things I'd like to see. Some might be controversial.
. A way to make sure that rookie teams with limited financing can be competitive. Maybe a financial limit to the amount that can be spent on the robot? I have seen some teams from underserved communities pack it in after one season when they see what other teams are spending and when they realize that they can't compete financially. I don't want to see this become a sport for only rich kids.
. An electrical kit of parts that is robust out of the box and doesn't require replacing battery connectors, adding ferrite cores, surge protectors, ferrules, and/or special bracing to connectors, or reading 25 page documents to figure out how to make the wiring robust.
. Games with clear, unambiguous rules. The fewer the judgement calls that refs have to make (e.g., "was that inadvertent and inconsequential contact with the ball tube or not?"), the better.
. Games where good autonomous robots that take many sessions to perfect cannot be blocked by robots with simple defensive routines that take 5 minutes to code.
. No adult coaches on the playing field.
. Live scoring would make FTC more spectator friendly, but I can see how that would potentially require many more volunteers. Maybe an option for allowing this to happen in cases where those volunteers are available?
. The requirement that teams compete in only one state or regional championship. It seems unfair that some teams in smaller northeast states, for example, can compete in the NJ, PA, DE, MD, and VT championships to earn the right to compete in the super regional, while teams located in the middle of large states don't have the same ability without lots of extra cost or effort. If teams can only compete in one super regional, why should they be able to compete in multiple regional championships? Ideally, if you've qualified to compete in your state championship, you should have to compete in only that championship.
. Updates to the game manual in cases where the rules have been changed from what the game manual says. Many forum rulings are clarifications that don't require game manual updates, but some are truly rule changes. For the rule changes, FIRST should update the manual so it's clear what the rules are. And ideally, the game video should accurately show the game too.
. A field that can be built from scratch using readily available parts and clear instructions written by the FTC folks. Then if companies like AndyMark want to market pre-built fields for teams or tournaments, they can. But having a single source for field structures this season wasn't great. And while we're on that topic...
. Robust field structures. No flimsy ramps that break or get bent, rivets that pop out, etc.
. Anti-static spray being required on the fields (or perhaps being required if the humidity is below a certain level), or fields being replaced with a new anti-static surface.
Just my opinions. Probably not the majority opinion...