BBC is going full-throttle with a remake of Robot Wars, its gladiatorial combat show which pitted remotely controlled robots against one another.
If you threw someone the words ‘BBC remake’ and asked them to list what came to mind, the first thing that would likely roll off their tongue would be Top Gear. We, however, are looking forward to something entirely different as the BBC prepares another great comeback; Robot Wars, the gladiatorial arena show which pitted robots against one another.
Robot Wars is set to relaunch towards the end of the year, and here’s a snippet of good news for die-hard fans; infamous house robots such as Matilda, Shunt, Dead Metal and Sir Killalot are set to return as well.
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We won’t be seeing the originals that dominated TV screens in the late 1990s, however; these are entirely new robots designed and built from scratch to modern standards.
In a statement to Digital Trends, James Cooper, RoboChallenge’s Creative Technologist, stated that “œWhen we were first commissioned to design and produce the new House Robots we really wanted to take them to the next level. To ensure each House Robot was as menacing, powerful, and a leap ahead of the originals as possible we created a bit of competition. By splitting our team of engineers into three to work on Matilda, Shunt and Dead Metal, each team worked to make their robot as mean as possible! We (then) all joined back together to create Sir Killalot.“
Sir Killalot has allegedly received varying upgrades and is now apparently half the size of a Smart car.
It’s not just the house robots that have received a tech upgrade; Robot Wars is set to be housed in a bullet-proof arena that will protect live audiences from flying pieces of shrapnel and other debris.
The team behind the show have strongly punted the technological improvements in robotics, citing that the show will be made more exciting than ever.
Robot Wars’ Executive Producer, Andrew Robertson told Digital Trends that “œSome of the new robots on this series can spin their weapons up to speeds of 9000 rpm or flip near half ton robots up in the air. This is all possible due to the incredible power of the batteries and reduction in size of the parts required to build the robot…. Titanium would have been near invincible in the past “” yet in this series robots are able to strip it apart like wet wallpaper.”
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What are your thoughts on the resurgence of Robot Wars? Be sure to let us know your opinion in the comments below!
Follow Bryan Smith on Twitter: @bryansmithSA
