2012 Lessons Learned :The Positive

[LeelandS]

Things I liked about this year:

The match turn around. FIRST really had it with Real Time Scoring this year. Not only were penalties and baskets pretty much instantly assessed, but one the match was over, the score was ready to be displayed within a minute, except under extenuating circumstances. While I admit I miss the climactic wait for the score presentation in the elimination matches, it was nice to have a much shorter match turnaround.

While a lot of people are hating on the Kinect, I thought it was a really cool aspect of the game. While I didn't think it was cool or useful enough to spend time implementing it on a robot, I thought it was a nice element to add to the game (especially considering it was optional). If nothing else, teams got a nice camera. I think, with a little refinement, it could be an awesome addition to the game.

Game versatility. In the past, there has been pretty much one thing you can do, and that's pretty much it. Here, you could have a shooter and a specialized bridge mechanism to be competitive, plus you could choose what baskets you want to score on. I think this game brought the most intense/interested end game in a good while, as well as numerous possible scoring designs for shooting.

The Coop bridge, in my mind, was a great addition to the game. The introduction of the coopertition award last year with minibot sharing was a good step, but incorporating an active game mechanism with it was a great way to demonstrate the ideals of FIRST. Though some teams may have 'abused' it, for the most part, it was still a great game element.

Bridge and bumps. The bridge's and bumps were a unique design challenge. It was kinda like the bumps in 2010, except a bit more interesting. I really liked it because I liked to see what teams came up with to overcome it. From the 1986 talons to the 148 stinger, from 16's drop down system to the many teams who had slides on their drive system, I thought it was a great way to see what teams come up with what.