History VideoGame / RobotArena

After a hiatus lasting for more than a decade, [[http://www.robotarena.com/ a third game]] was released on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} Early Access in May 2016, only to be abruptly made into a full release the following month, in spite of pretty much all players agreeing the game was [[ObviousBeta nowhere near ready]].

* ObviousBeta: Several parts of the game were severely un-polished upon the game's release, and the game has a wide array of hidden components, robots that look like they do one thing but don't, and unused AI.
** The best armor in the game is, counter-intuitively, obtained by ''not selecting armor at all'', which gives what the community refers to as "double-strength armor"; needless to say, this was almost certainly an oversight.
** Components are likewise poorly balanced, resulting in vicious-looking axes and hammer heads being far less effective for their weight than small razor tips and spikes.

* ObviousBeta: Even more so than the second game, especially when it first came out:
** At first, there were no weight limits whatsoever. While weight limits were later added, this created a separate problem where overweight bots could be entered into tournaments, but couldn't compete or be withdrawn, leaving both the bot and the tournament locked forever. Parts were highly unbalanced, with seemingly-arbitrary weight and damage values (and for some reason, wheel casters weigh about 160kg more than their description says they do).
** Collision detection issues initially meant that wedges and flippers were completely useless. This was fixed ''and then broken again'', so that if you build a ground-scraping wedge chassis, your robot simply won't move.
** Robots will occasionally just blow up in the Workshop when you try to test them, crashing your game and deleting your creation. Luckily there's a workaround to restore your bot if this happens.

* SpectacularSpinning: Initially averted, as one of the [[ObviousBeta many criticisms]] of the initial release was that motors span far too slowly, making spinning weapons largely useless. Once motor speeds were buffed, the trope was played straight, as spinning weapons become the most deadly in the game. Notably, one of the strongest AI robots is a full-body spinner named [=OctoDie=] that's very difficult to fight due to being surrounded with spinning blades.

* [[EveryCarIsAPinto Every Bot Is A Pinto]]: As robots take damage, they start to emit sparks and will eventually catch fire once they reach critical health.

* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Initially averted, as one of the [[ObviousBeta many criticisms]] of the initial release was that motors span far too slowly, making spinning weapons largely useless. Once motor speeds were buffed, the trope was played straight, as spinning weapons become the most deadly in the game. Notably, one of the strongest AI robots is a full-body spinner named [=OctoDie=] that's very difficult to fight due to being surrounded with spinning blades.

* GravitySucks: Inverted. Robot Arena 2 has a glitch with the Havok Physics engine that causes robots to fly around the arena sometimes after a non-static part is knocked off. These are known by the community as Havok Explosions, or simply "Havoks".

* ObviousBeta: The double strength armour, hidden components, robots that look like they do one thing but don't, and unused AI.

* SelfImposedChallenge: The unofficial "antweight" and "beetleweight" classes: beetleweights can only weigh 175kg, compared to the 250kg lightweight limit, whereas antweights can only ''125kg''. Needless to say, making a decent antweight is rather difficult.

* GameBreaker: The ram plates. Not only do they provide good defensive protection, but they're also ''the'' most damaging item in the game, even more so than dedicated weapons like the Iron Spikes and Gold Maces. Bolt a few ram plates onto the front of your bot and you can defeat practically anything [[RammingAlwaysWorks just by ramming it a few times]]. Naturally, [[MightyGlacier Emergency]] has ''four'' of them.

** In [=RA2=], getting the shape of your chassis ''just'' right to house all your components without any wasted space took a lot of trial and error, and every time you made a change, any components you'd placed would be deleted. In [=RA3=], you can freely sculpt your chassis around your bot's components and even create an entirely new chassis from scratch without having to delete your components first.
*** Component placement is also far more flexible than in [=RA2=]: you can place components literally ''anywhere'', you can move them around and rotate them after they've already been placed, there's no restriction on the number of components you can chain together (known as the "Rule of Seven" in [=RA2=]), and said component chains can be deleted in a single click rather than having to manually delete every single part. General consensus is that [[DamnedByFaintPraise the build system is the best part of the game]].
** Unlike the previous two games, where you had a set amount of time to make repairs to your robot between tournament rounds, in [=RA3=] your robot is automatically repaired to full strength after each fight. This actually backfired somewhat, as fans felt that not having to repair your robot between fights [[ItsEasySoItSucks took a lot of the strategy out of Career Mode]].

* AscendedMeme: One [=RA2=] tournament held on popular fansite Website/{{Gametechmods}} included a robot named "Spinner from the west" (SFTW) that quickly became infamous as one of the worst bots ever seen, and has since become a RunningGag on the site. [=RA3=] includes a JokeCharacter named The Lone Saw that's basically an exact copy of SFTW.

* HelpingHands: Sort of. Unlike [=RA2=], spin motors in [=RA3=] can be torn out of a robot's chassis, often with the wheel or weapon still attached, and will inexplicably continue to spin for a while. This can lead to spinning weapons breaking off and flying across the arena, potentially still causing damage or tripping up an opponent, when logically they should have stopped moving the instant they broke off.[[note]]Since there are components resembling white-gloved hands, you can actually create a literal example of the trope.[[/note]]

** At first, there were no weight limits whatsoever. While weight limits were later added, this created a separate problem where entering an overweight bot for a tournament would lock that bot forever. Parts were highly unbalanced, with seemingly-arbitrary weight and damage values (and for some reason, wheel casters weigh about 160kg more than their description says they do).

* SequelEscalation: In [=RA2=], the weight limits were 250kg for a lightweight, 400kg for a middleweight, and 800kg for a heavyweight. In [=RA3=], the limits are 400kg for a lightweight, 800kg for a middleweight, and 1300kg for a heavyweight - and you can build ''beyond'' that limit if you so desire.
* WalkingArmory: Several robots are packed with ludicrous numbers of weapons, but the most notable example is Savage. It's ''completely'' surrounded by weapons, mostly [[SpikesOfDoom spikes]] but also front punching arms and a rear circular saw. Finding an opening to attack it is nigh-impossible and your only real hope is to push it into an arena hazard or try and flip it over.
* WinsByDoingAbsolutelyNothing: The game (like the first two) tries to avert this, as not moving for long enough will cause you to be counted out, but it's still possible. As noted under ArtificialStupidity, AI opponents will often simply drive head-first into your robot, so it's possible to win by simply sitting there and letting them dash themselves to pieces on your bot's weaponry. Certain opponents (most noticeably Hedgehog and Bot Choy X) can flip themselves over when they brake, leaving themselves stuck, and if you're fighting the lightweight L'il Dog, you can just drive around without attacking it for a minute until its batteries run out.

* ContinuingIsPainful: Robot deaths are [[FinalDeath final]], and you will ''never'' have enough money to replace your robot. Even if you forfeit the match before your robot is destroyed, you still have to pay for repairs (in a game where the prize money you get is just barely enough to do minor repairs and buy a few upgrades, and you aren't allowed to go back and grind for money in previous fights.)

* MadeOfIndestructium: Castors won't break off no matter how much damage they take. By strategically placing castors underneath and around the sides of your robot, you can create invincible armour that will protect you from absolutely ''anything''. The only things that stop this from being a total GameBreaker are that a) castors take up a lot of weight and space, and b) they can't be placed above a certain point, so the top of your robot will still be vulnerable.[[note]]Other parts that attach to the baseplate, like motors and batteries, are similarly indestructible, but can't overlap the chassis, whereas castors can.[[/note]]

* AscendedMeme: One [=RA2=] tournament held on popular fansite Website/{{Gametechmods}} included a robot named "Spinner from the west" (SFTW) that quickly became infamous as one of the worst bots ever seen, and has since become a RunningGag on the site. [=RA3=] includes a JokeCharacter bot named The Lone Saw that's basically an exact copy of SFTW.

** The grinder. It can deal a lot of sustained damage and looks pretty intimidating, but is hard to fit into a design due to its large, unwieldy size, and has far less durability than you'd expect given that it's the single heaviest component in the game (80 mass!). Of course, that doesn't stop Gluttony from being ThatOneBoss.
** The [=MegaVolt=] battery, added in an early update, provides 120,000 power, double that of the next-best battery, and enough for all but the most power-hungry heavyweights. However, it's prohibitively large ''and'' heavy: four Nifty V6 batteries will do the same job for 22kg less and are much easier to fit into a design.

* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard: All of the AI bots have armor that is twice as strong as the armor that the player can select in the Armor tab (although the player can gain this advantage by never even touching the armor tab when building), and some of the "Middleweight" AI bots are actually heavyweights.
* CombatBreakdown: As with real-life robot combat, weapons can and do fail, reducing fights to shoving matches.

* MadeOfIndestructium: Castors won't break off no matter how much damage they take. By strategically placing castors underneath and around the sides of your robot, you can create invincible armour that will protect you from absolutely ''anything''. The only things that stop this being a total GameBreaker are that a) castors take up a lot of weight and space, and b) they can't be placed above a certain point, so the top of your robot is still unprotected.[[note]]Other parts that attach to the baseplate, like motors and batteries, are similarly indestructible, but can't overlap the chassis, whereas castors can.[[/note]]

* AndShowItToYou: With a powerful enough weapon and a decent aim, it's possible to smash the batteries right out of an opponent, leaving them completely inoperable.

*** Component placement is also far more flexible than in [=RA2=]: you can place components literally ''anywhere'', you can move them around and rotate them after they've already been placed, there's no restriction on the number of components you can chain together (known as the "Rule of Seven" in [=RA2=]), and said component chains can be deleted in a single click rather than having to manually delete every single element. General consensus is that [[DamnedByFaintPraise the build system is the best part of the game]].
** Unlike the previous two games, where you had a set amount of time to make repairs to your robot between tournament rounds, in [=RA3=] your robot is automatically repaired to full strength after each fight. [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools This actually backfired somewhat]], as fans felt that not having to repair your robot between fights [[ItsEasySoItSucks took a lot of the strategy out of the game]].

* HelpingHands: Sort of. Unlike [=RA2=], spin motors in [=RA3=] can be torn out of a robot's chassis, often with the wheel or weapon still attached, and will inexplicably continue to spin for a while. This can lead to spinning weapons breaking off and flying across the arena, potentially still causing damage or tripping up an opponent, when logically they should have stopped moving the moment they broke off.

* KickThemWhileTheyAreDown: Unlike the previous game, you can continue knocking bits off an opponent and racking up points for it long after they've already been KO'ed. It's possible to win a four-way fight by smashing one opponent into LudicrousGibs and completely ignoring the other two.

** At first, there were no weight limits whatsoever. While weight limits were later added, this created a separate problem where entering an overweight bot for a tournament would lock that bot forever. Parts are still very unbalanced, with almost arbitrary weight and damage values (and for some reason, wheel casters weigh about 160 mass more than they should do).

* WinsByDoingAbsolutelyNothing: The game tries to avert this, as not moving for long enough will cause you to be counted out, but it's still possible. As noted under ArtificialStupidity, AI opponents will often simply drive head-first into your robot, so it's possible to win by simply sitting there and letting them dash themselves to pieces on your bot's weaponry. Certain opponents (most noticeably Hedgehog and Bot Choy X) can flip themselves over when they brake, leaving themselves stuck, and if you're fighting the lightweight L'il Dog, you can just drive around without attacking it for a minute until its batteries run out.

** Unlike the previous two games, where you had a set amount of time to make repairs to your robot between tournament rounds, in [=RA3=] your robot is automatically repaired to full strength after each fight. [[TropesAreNotGood This actually backfired somewhat]], as fans felt that not having to repair your robot between fights [[ItsEasySoItSucks took a lot of the strategy out of the game]].

''Robot Arena'' and its sequel ''Robot Arena 2'' are games for the {{PC}} where you design a robot and have it fight against other robots. It is very similar to the TV shows and real-life tournaments ''Series/BattleBots'' and ''Series/RobotWars''.

The first game was widely panned for a lack of customization, very few chassis' and weapons, and the game was two dimensional meaning that wedges and flippers were not able to be used. The sequel improved on everything, allowing you to build the chassis on a grid, and allowing you to choose from a lot of different weapons and parts. The game also has a small but very dedicated fanbase.

[[http://www.robotarena.com/ A third game]] was later developed and was released on Steam Early Access in May 2016.
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* GoodBadBugs: A few of the game's physics quirks ended up becoming vital parts of the metagame.
** Attach a Small Wedge component to a burst motor, using an extender, and position it so the tip of the wedge is in front of your robot and just below the wheelbase. The resulting "burst wedge" has a zero ground clearance and can get in underneath anything that isn't another burst wedge, letting you control the fight. The AI bot Emergency uses this same tactic.
** Your robot's spinner not fast enough? Attach a second spin motor to the first one, and get double the speed.
** Some components, most notably batteries, can be stacked on top of one another if placed with enough precision. And since batteries don't factor into weight distribution for some reason, you can safely stack batteries, shrink your robot down to save weight on armor, and fit more weapons on.

* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Initially averted, as one of the [[ObviousBeta many]] [[HypeBacklash criticisms]] of the initial release was that motors span far too slowly, making spinning weapons largely useless. Once motor speeds were buffed, the trope was played straight, as spinning weapons become the most deadly in the game. Notably, one of the strongest AI robots is a full-body spinner named [=OctoDie=] that's very difficult to fight due to being surrounded with spinning blades.

* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Initially averted, as one of the [[ObviousBeta ma]][[HypeBacklash ny]] criticisms of the initial release was that motors span far too slowly, making spinning weapons largely useless. Once motor speeds were buffed, the trope was played straight, as spinning weapons become the most deadly in the game. Notably, one of the strongest AI robots is a full-body spinner named [=OctoDie=] that's very difficult to fight due to being surrounded with spinning blades.

* GoodBadBugs: Like ''Robot Arena 2'', some of [=RA3=]'s bugs ended up being this. Most notably, unlike [=RA2=], [=RA3=] allows components to be placed wherever you like, regardless of whether they overlap or even whether they're inside the robot at all. This gives you plenty of freedom to make designs that otherwise simply wouldn't be possible.

* HelpingHands: Sort of. Unlike [=RA2=], spin motors in [=RA3=] can be knocked off, often with the wheel or weapon still attached, and will inexplicably continue to spin for a while. This can lead to spinning weapons breaking off and flying across the arena, potentially still causing damage or tripping up an opponent, when logically they should have stopped moving the moment they broke off.
* JokeCharacter: The lightweight robot L'il Dog. Not only is it painfully slow, with highly ineffective weaponry, but its batteries only last for about a minute, at which point it will stop moving [[ZeroEffortBoss and you'll win anyway]].
* KickThemWhileTheyAreDown: Unlike the previous game, you can continue knocking bits off an opponent and racking up points for it long after they've already been KO'ed. It's entirely possible to win a four-way fight by ignoring your other two opponents and simply smashing the third into LudicrousGibs.

** Collision detection issues initially meant that wedges and flippers wre completely useless. This was fixed ''and then broken again'', so that if you build a ground-scraping wedge chassis, your robot simply won't move.

* PunchedAcrossTheRoom: Similar to the previous game's Havok Explosions, landing a powerful enough blow on an opponent can send them flying through the air, up to halfway across the arena.

* GameBreaker: The radio jammer. It's a component that completely immobilizes your opponent for a few seconds. The high battery drain doesn't balance it at all.
* ScrappyMechanic: Mostly the battery physics. Batteries recharge slowly and drain ''very'' quickly, which means in-battle spending half of your time doing nothing but wait for the batteries to recharge. The second game is far more sensible on regards to batteries.