[brinoc]

I agree that this years game with no defense allowed teams to come up with some very different and creative designs that haven't been used in years past. However; I do not believe that defense hinders design and engineering in any way. In the real world of engineering, designing a mechanism or device that can perform its intended task and can withstand any possible expected (or even unexpected) situation is very important.

Years with defense actually pose an equal or larger engineering challenge, because teams must design and build a robot that can manipulate game pieces while also being able to take a little bit of a beating. FIRST evened it out slightly this year by making the game piece very difficult to manipulate, so there was a higher challenge in that aspect, with a lower challenge in drive power and ruggedness.

Aside from the engineering/learning aspect, in my opinion defense is overall a more engaging game for teams, spectators, and sponsors alike.