If you grew up in the early 2000s, you probably have fond memories of the unique competition series, Battlebots. The show originally aired for five seasons from 2000 to 2002. During the show, contestants created remote controlled robots that were designed to go into combat against one another. Although fans were bummed when the show was canceled, they were excited in 2015 when it was revived. The show aired on ABC for two seasons before taking a brief hiatus and returning in 2018. Since 2018, the show has aired on the Discovery Channel. As a viewer, watching the different robots go at it is endlessly entertaining, but there is much more to the show than people realize. Continue reading to get more information on the show Battlebots.
The Rules Of Battlebots
Rules are one of the most important elements of any competition. They help ensure that all contestants are on the same playing field and give viewers judges a clear idea of what to expect. The rules of Battlebots are fairly straight forward. According to Monsters and Critics, “Each robot battle runs for about 3 minutes as each robot tries to destroy the other. If one robot is no longer moving or unresponsive by the end of the round it’s considered a knockout after a 10-second count. If both are left standing at the end of the round then the decision is turned over to a panel of judges to decide who is the winner.”
Additionally, the rules state that robots are not allowed to pin each other for more than 10 seconds or hold each other for more than 30 seconds. There are also some additional roles pertaining to safety that can be found in the official tournament guidelines.
The show features three judges, each of which gives the robot a score between 1-5 (5 being the highest) in three different categories: aggression, strategy, and damage. It’s also important to note that the robots a broken into weight classes: lightweight, middleweight, heavyweight, and superweight. Contestants can earn a grand total of 45 points from the judges and the robot with the highest score is declared the winner of the match.
What Do Contestants Win?
Of course, the prize is what makes any competition interesting. Although a love of robots is at the center of the contest, a good prize will make anyone want to step their game up. So, what’s at stake in the Battlebots arena? One word: money. Although we weren’t able to find any information on the prize money from the last year or so, we were able to track down what the prizes were back in 2016. The official guidelines stated the prizes as listed below:
- $500 to any Alternate Team that fights during Rehearsal Matches
- $500 to any Teams that fight in the Rumbles (win or lose).
- $1,000 to each Qualifying Round Winning Team.
- $500 to each Qualifying Round Losing Team.
- $2,000 to each of the Championship Tournament Round 1 Winning Teams.
- $3,000 to each of the Championship Tournament Round 2 Winning Teams.
- $5,000 to each of the Championship Tournament Round 3 Winning Teams.
- $10,000 to each of the Championship Tournament Round 4 Winning Teams.
- $25,000 to the Championship Tournament Finals Winning Team (The Tournament Champion).
Although those dollar amounts may seem like a lot, in reality they may not even be able to cover the cost of building a competitive robot. According to Battlebots president, Trey Roski, the overall goal of the prize money isn’t just to send contestants home with something. It’s also designed to improve the quality of the competition. Needless to say, most people who go on Battlebots do so for the bragging rights more than the money.
The Future Of Battlebots
Battlebots has certainly had a pretty rough go when it comes to finding a consistent network, but things seem to be going very well for the show now. Not only is the series currently in its 10th season, but it’s getting ready to launch a spin-off series. The show, BattleBots: Bounty Hunters, is set to premiere on Discovery + in early 2021 and it will feature competitions between the best of the best.
According to a press release for the spin-off, “In each episode, challengers will compete for the right to become the Bounty Hunter and fight a Legend. The prize: a unique place in BattleBots history, and the major share of a $25,000 cash prize payout in every episode.”
Not only does the show give the top competitors a chance to really show their stuff, but it also gives them a chance at some serious prize money. This will also make the matches more fun for viewers to watch.
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