Robot Arena 2: Design and Destroy
| Robot Arena 2: Design and Destroy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Gabriel Entertainment |
| Publisher(s) | Infogrames |
| Series | Robot Arena |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows |
| Release date(s) | February 25, 2003[1] |
| Genre(s) | Action |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Robot Arena 2: Design and Destroy is an action video game developed by Gabriel Entertainment and published by Infogrames. It is the sequel to Robot Arena. Compared to its predecessor, it has many new features, such as the Havok physics engine, fully 3-D environments (robots are now able to leave the ground), and the player's ability to completely design their own robot. This includes chassis design, weapon placement, mechanics, and paint, etc. Weapons are nearly completely customizable, including weapons that mount on various attachments, such as poles, disks, and tri-bars. There is no credit system, parts can be taken for free as long as the weight limit has not been reached. Nearly every type of weapon in robotic combat is doable, but servo motor based weaponry (e.g., hydraulic crushers, lifting devices, etc.) typically does not work. Although not well received from a marketing standpoint, this game has a dedicated fanbase and a community that is still active today.[2]
Gameplay
Robot Arena 2: Design and Destroy is an Action game. The player controls a radio-controlled robot which battles it out with other robots in order to win. Ways to win a battle include destroying the opponent's control board, Immobilizing the opponent(such as flipping them over) or simply having the most points at the end.
Different types of arenas are available to play, either being a standard map, a tabletop map, or a "king of the hill" map.
Different game types are available in single player, where either the player can play against 1 opponent, 3 others in a battle royale, or select appropriate teams for each robot.
The main game mode is League mode where the player competes against fifteen other teams in nine events. The winner is the team with the most points at the end of the season.
Multiplayer is also available, where up to four players can pit their designs against their opponents. Online play was also supported which is facilitated by GameSpy, but the GameSpy servers no longer function due to a lack of use.
There is also a Free build mode in later editions of the game.
Reception
The game received very positive reviews from critics and fans alike, and is widely considered the best robot combat video game ever released, better even than the officially-licensed Robot Wars games. The graphics were decent for its time, while the physics were much more realistic than the ones seen in the Robot Wars games. As of 2016, the game retains a cult following online, most notably on Gametechmods, with online competitions still being held. Notable ones include BBEANS (Bot Battle for Eminent Autonomous Supremacy) by Clickbeetle, and RA2T#1 + RA2T#2 by JimXorb.
GameSpy gave it 77 out of 100 writing "A pleasant surprise. Whether you're going head-to-head against formidable AI bots or human opponents, it has plenty to offer both newcomers and bot-bashing aficionados alike".
Sequel
A sequel, Robot Arena 3, was released on 26 May 2016 on Steam to negative reviews[3]
The Official Robot Wars Mod
In September 2015, a Mod was released for the game called "Robot Wars RA2". It was officially lincensed by Robot Wars LLC and was the first ever mod to be made for Robot Arena 2 that was supported under an existing company. Originally started as a small project creating arenas and competitors in October 2013, its creator eventually managed to get in touch with Robot Wars LLC and made it official in order to get the Robot Arena 2 game and Robot Wars more notified. However, this sparked a problem, due to the fact that it was now contracted under another company, only robots that had a contract with Robot Wars LLC, as well as other roboteers that were gotten in touch with, were allowed into the mod and legal issues could've been brought in should a robot that was not approved to be included, was so. The mod was fairly successful, appealing to both the nostalgic and current fans of Robot Wars. Arenas included the Robot Wars Live Arena, Northern Tour and EB Games for the current audience, the series 1 and 7 incarnations of the original Robot Wars Arena for the older fans and even the old Robot Wars games arenas such as the Tokyo Rooftop and North Sea Oilrig. Competitors were evenly mixed as well, current competitors on the live tours included Eruption, Maelstrom and Iron-Awe 5 among others, featherweights, robots from the United States, Belgium, The Netherlands and Germany, the classic favourites such as Hypno Disc, Tornado and Plunderbird 5, bots from both the original series and live events like Behemoth, Storm 2 and Dantomkia and House Robots: Oll-E from the current live events, Shunt from the original series and Matilda from both the live events and original series. The mod was very popular with Robot Wars fans and is a free download from the Robot Wars RA2 Facebook page.
References
- ↑ "Release date". IGN. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ↑ http://beetlebros.gametechmods.com/ra2techs.htm
- ↑ http://store.steampowered.com/app/363530