A New Age of FRC?

[brndn]

After the reaction to this year's game... I think we can expect to see some defense next year again.

[Wyatt Jordan]

Originally Posted by brndn

After the reaction to this year's game... I think we can expect to see some defense next year again.

but they plan the games far in advance right? and how much do they actually re-evaluate their games based on the communities reaction to previous games? They had a good thing going with rebound rumble and ultimate ascent why change it? So this game must have been planned far in advance and even though FIRST knew they were deviating from the successful pattern of the last 3 years they still went with it

[MikLast]

Originally Posted by Wyatt Jordan

but they plan the games far in advance right?

I happened to watch the last FRC behind the line a couple nights ago, and one of the guests talked about that. He said that they keep on one idea through the whole year, and they were still making big changes for this game right up until the last few days.

[dk5sm5luigi]

Good chance bumpers will be back based on this blog post:

In fact, we strongly recommend, and sincerely hope, that instead of throwing the pool noodles in the closest trash bin when done with them, that you recycle them or set them aside for possible bumpers later.

FRC Blog

[nuclearnerd]

I think it depends on how the game plays this year.

Pro: The lack of defense will be easier on teams with rickety bots, or with ambitious complicated strategies, so we'll see more of them pull it off.

Con: Without defense the matches might be foregone conclusions, so the sport might be less engaging.

Pro Rebuttal: With the seed coming from total score, rather than W/L, maybe the losing alliance will be still fun to watch - especially if the announcers keep track of the stats.

Con Rebuttal: Without the leveling aspect of "defense bots are easy to make and drive", Uber-teams might have a freer hand to dominate than years previous. I expect there to be a pretty strong correlation this year between OPR and team budget / experience.

So it could swing either way. I'm more ready to give it a chance than I was at kickoff. If it works, we'll see more of these (*cough FLL*) style games. If it doesn't, we won't.

[Jaxom]

Originally Posted by nuclearnerd

If it works, we'll see more of these (*cough FLL*) style games. If it doesn't, we won't.

If you want to consider this a FLL style game, program everything & don't use any human controls during teleop.

[philso]

Originally Posted by Amar Shah

Not to mention sending out the kit of parts next year inside this years' game pieces.

Do you think they may charge more for a KOP shipped in a tote certified as having been used on Einstein?

Originally Posted by cadandcookies

I wouldn't be surprised if we saw another game that had separated alliances, but I don't think it's indicative of any greater change in FIRST-- other than a more visible statement that FIRST really isn't held to some sort of game template, and that rules can and do change.

Originally Posted by cglrcng

This game is both a thinking game of play strategy, & a robot design challenge that can be very deep (it isn't just simply building stacks and walls)....

Maybe FIRST is wanting to shake up the existing mindsets about how best to play the game. I feel this is good since your (future) employer may give a project that is quite unlike what you had worked on before requiring you to approach your job in a very different way and/or to develop new skills.

Originally Posted by nuclearnerd

Uber-teams might have a freer hand to dominate than years previous. I expect there to be a pretty strong correlation this year between OPR and team budget / experience.

So it could swing either way. I'm more ready to give it a chance than I was at kickoff. If it works, we'll see more of these (*cough FLL*) style games. If it doesn't, we won't.

The only aspect of this game I see that is similar to FLL is that the Uber-teams are likely to develop "Monster-bots" that span large parts of the field to score much more rapidly than a robot that must drive back and forth. These are great fun to watch if you appreciate mechanical ingenuity. I feel they are probably more likely to appeal to spectators outside of the FRC community compared to the appreciation and reverence that teams like 16, 67, 254 and 1114 get within FRC community since knowledge of the subtleties of the game in not required to appreciate them.