Robot Wars 2.0: LEAGUE NET

Do you remember Robot Wars? Do you remember Gyromite? Do you like video games? Do you know anything about the Predator Drone? Have you read Ender's Game? If you answered yes to all of these questions, you might already have an idea as to where I am going with this. If you answered no to all of these questions, you might not be interested in this idea at all. Stop reading!

Are you still there? Fine... I'll try to recap and explain everything, so that you will see that this idea is not only brilliant and doable, but every part has been done before. What I am telling you is that this idea... this idea is kind of like putting peanut butter and chocolate together.

Robot Wars was created by George Lucas henchman, Marc Thorpe and basically consisted of moderately crappy remote control robots with pick axes and circular saws going at each other in an arena full of obstacles designed to make the battles more interesting. They turned the live event into a TV show. If you never saw it, imagine a crappy RC robot version of the movie Gladiator. It was fairly entertaining, but the cool factor wore off pretty quickly. The fact that these robots were being made in people's garages and the basements of college science buildings was part of the appeal, but also part of the downfall. Okay it's a remote controlled shop vacuum. Big deal. Furthermore, if my memory is at all accurate, the crappiest, simplest, and most boring robots always seemed to win.


Speaking of crappy robots, Gyromite was one of two crappy Nintendo games designed to be played with a crappy robot named ROB. You had to guide the crappy robot through tasks using your Nintendo controller. Like I said, the game was crappy, but the concept of controlling a robot with your video game system is key to this idea.

Remote controlling robots has been taken to the next level with devices like the Predator Drone, unmanned, remote control aircraft that the U.S. Military has been using for several years now to spy on and take out our enemies. These drones are controlled by soldiers sitting behind desks, nice and safe back at the base, just like the kids in Ender's Game, a sci-fi book series about kids in the future remote controlling fighter ships to destroy an alien race.

Man, that was a lot of nerd to unleash on you... Are you okay? Can you go on? Should we rest?

Did you catch any World Cup games? Me neither. I don't have cable, and I couldn't seem to get up early enough... Oh you want to keep going? Okay.





So, here is the idea: Team up with one of the big video game system companies, like Sony, Nintendo, or Microsoft to create a video game called Robot Wars 2.0: League Net - a robot fighting game that could be played online like so many other games these days. Sony would probably be best company to team up with, because the robots in the game need to simulations of real robots. Yeah, the robots in the game would be exactly like real life robots. You see where this is going?

I'm sure that with the backing of the Sony robotics division, you can come up with some better robots than the rest of us Homer Simpsons in our garages. These robots need to be cool and customizable- different weapons, colors, decals, wheels, etc.

Players will battle it out online every week in the virtual world with their customized robots, winning points, buying add ons, repairing damages, and having fun. At the end of the week, the players with the highest scores get a chance to battle it out live on TV (maybe G4 Network would be a good fit), controlling real life versions of their robots, right down to the decals. This would be a full on event with sponsors and prizes, but the contestants would control their robots right from their living rooms, using their familiar video game system controllers just like in the virtual world.

What have I just handed you? A hit video game and a hit TV show with a built in audience and out of control marketing and licensing opportunities. I didn't even say anything about possible government funding... Yeah... you heard me. Think about it... Plus, once you have this under your belt, and robotics advances just a little further, you will be perfectly positioned to bring the world the Robot Pillow Fighting League.

Please, please, please, when this makes you the richest person in the world, can you please remember to give me enough money to make me like the 1000th richest person in the world? Please. I promise not to park my yacht in your spot.

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