"No, I would like to see FRC continue progressing toward "sport" rather than "game". It is much more exciting for the spectator to see a simpler game played with strategy and skill than to see a technical task accomplished. There are plenty of science fairs, but FRC is becoming the true sport for robots."
I said the above last December. FRC sort of shocked me with the introduction of this new game, because I thought they were moving away from such things. I get why they did it, I think:
- Make it easier on referees and other volunteers
- Help students see the specific application of their learning experience in industry
- Give students a larger field of possible designs, with additional, new challenges
But, put me in the camp of moving FRC toward "sport" still. Long term, I think that is the niche that FRC best fills. Other events are better suited to the science fair/complicated game side. I'm not disappointed in RR, but that's because it has turned out to be more fun than I expected, and my expectations were pretty low. My team had a great time rising to the design challenge, and playing the game, and FRC is not at risk of losing 1339 as participants because of RR. But, if this is the beginning of a trend, and future games follow this pattern, we might reconsider.