Cool Play Lab Works
First published on WeChat account Cool Play Lab
WeChat ID: coollabs
2018 has just passed
Recently, I saw a New Year plan in my friend circle
Looking at this plan
I remembered my own ambitious goals at the beginning of the year
However, in the past year
The promised travel vacation
Did not happen
The expensive gym membership I bought
Was hardly used
Working hard like a mule
Did not earn much money
。
。
Clearly, it was a joyous New Year
Suddenly, a wave of “loss” hit me
What is going on?
I opened Weibo
Originally wanting to see something festive
To change my mood
But unexpectedly
What I saw was
A certain celebrity in the entertainment industry cheating again
Another 90s kid got married
Another bald head appeared
。。。
Full of Buddhist vibes, full of loss
What is wrong with this world?
I was feeling quite unhappy:
Is there nothing
that can ignite my passion?
Just when I was feeling frustrated
My friend suddenly said:
There is a robot fighting competition
It’s super exciting!
Robots fighting each other?
What’s so exciting about that?
I couldn’t help but picture
The diligent
Robot vacuum cleaner
And the recently controversial
World’s first robot citizen, Sophia
And Jack Ma’s
Cute family robot Pepper
Looking at them
They wouldn’t even know how to dodge if they were attacked
Do the current AI robots
Really know how to fight?
What my friend said must be a joke!
Seeing my skeptical expression
My friend smirked
And immediately showed me some GIFs
Crazy collisions, lightning speed
They fight fiercely, sparks flying
It’s simply explosive!
Watching these robots battle
Metal shavings flying, flames shooting
I felt my adrenaline surge
The earlier gloom was swept away
Instantly revived
Why talk more when a fight can solve everything?
If you’re not convinced, let’s have a match!
After being drawn into this by my friend, I found out
This show is called BattleBots
It is China’s first robot fighting competition
Here
Any deadly weapon, any ruthless tactics
Are completely unrestricted
The only rule is
Destroy the opponent, the winner takes all!
There are no restrictions on participants
There are 5-year-olds cutting steel plates
12-year-old prodigies competing
There are twin sisters studying at Tsinghua
Don’t be fooled by their looks, they are quite capable
There are farmers, Tsinghua and Peking University elites
There are engineers from the Moscow Space Station
And ten-time champions of the World Robot Fighting Championship
All these people are
Enthusiasts of this brutal competition
They all bring
The robots they made themselves
To KO their opponents
Everyone dreams of
Becoming the ultimate victor
To win
These people spare no effort
Flame throwers, chainsaws, steel drills
Even pneumatic launchers
Every robot
Is designed to be extremely lethal
Each robot enters the arena
With an attitude of “I am the strongest robot!”
Image: Challenger Team
In this competition
I was immediately captivated—
Challenger Team
Is definitely my hero
If they win, I smile; if they lose, I cry
They have the most beautiful design among the 48 teams in BattleBots
And their combat power is absolutely proportional to their looks
The weapons of the Challenger are completely different from
Other people’s picks and chainsaws
These common weapons
It has a hydraulic piercing force of up to 40 tons
That can instantly tear through any steel plate
Its eagle-like design
Stands out among a pile of metal box robots
With tons of DPS, it crushes all challengers
In the matches between the Challenger and others
It’s simply a demolition
Other robots become helpless prey in the Challenger’s hands!
They are tossed around, with no chance to fight back!
The Challenger ruthlessly tears apart its opponents
Suddenly spewing fire
The commentator on site exclaimed:
“It exploded, it exploded, it exploded!”
The Challenger ended the battle in 1 minute and 10 seconds
With about 10 holes punched in the opponent’s protective steel plate
Under its sharp teeth
The opponent was torn apart like a cookie
Even after winning
It spread its wings and danced
“Elegantly” celebrating its victory!
If the robot arena
Is a sports event
Then the Challenger
Is definitely like Jordan or LeBron
With super high popularity, super cool appearance, and super strong strength
It’s unmatched
Having witnessed this showdown, I was filled with fighting spirit
There was another match that caught my eye from the start
It can be called the US-Russia Championship
The Russian team Weibo Intelligence
Just won the championship of the 2016 Russian Robot Competition!
Facing them is
The American team that makes the world of robot fighting tremble
Speedy Code!
This team wields iron fists
Roaming across major robot fighting arenas worldwide
Having won over 70 championships
And maintaining a record of 15 consecutive wins!
This battle of kings
Champion against champion
Even before it started
I felt my heart racing
The match began
The American team’s big pot lid
With a fierce blow
Knocked the Russian team’s weapon flying!
Watching them still able to move
The big pot lid was relentless
Another charge knocked it away
The Russian team’s robot was completely dismantled
Debris flying
It looked like it was about to hit someone
But was ultimately blocked by bulletproof glass
The commentator exclaimed:
“Thanks to our bulletproof glass!”
In just a minute
One robot was completely destroyed
Even the solid spikes embedded on the sidelines
Were completely knocked off
Leaving a huge pit
Demonstrating its overwhelming destructive power
This legendary big pot lid
Has indeed lived up to its name!
Although there are so many top robots
So many exciting matches
Bringing huge shock and intimidation
However
The one that shocked me the most
Was a defeated team
This team is called “Old Captain”
Composed of 5 retired workers from Jiangnan Shipyard
All over 70 years old
The combined age of these five old men
Is nearly 400 years
They look harmless
But they are tough characters who have built 10,000-ton ships
They brought their robot Sea Wolf
Which performed well in testing
This robot
Uses electric push steel technology, equipped with mecanum wheels
360-degree omnidirectional movement
It also has a unique original design—
Double-sided shovel, can attack from both front and back
However
Although this robot looks decent
It still has a significant gap compared to the previous killing machines
As expected, when the match started, things did not go well
In the first attack, Sea Wolf was hit hard
And was pushed to the side
The opponent’s speed is 13 meters per second
Very fast
I was watching with concern
Under the opponent’s fierce and relentless attack
The old men’s control speed
Could not keep up at all
After landing a hit
The opponent gave no chance to breathe
The rapidly spinning blade directly broke through the old men’s armor
Under the fierce attacks and entanglements
Sea Wolf’s front attack plate was damaged
Its armor was pierced
It was battered
And could only fight back with difficulty
However, what moved me was
Even in such a situation, the “Old Captain” team
Raised their fists and still shouted
“Charge!”
These 70-year-old men
Although they know their chances of winning are slim
And they might regret losing
But they still never give up
This competitive spirit moved the entire audience
Everyone cheered for them
Even the opponents were moved to tears
Old horses still aspire to travel thousands of miles!
I remembered the scene when they were introduced
Several “Old Captains” were spirited
Working on the robot, sweating profusely
At that time, the captain Yu Tongyun said
“The biggest difficulty is our age
Our physical strength and reaction can’t keep up, I really wish I could live another 20 years”
Instantly brought tears to my eyes
However, after losing the match
They casually said
“Losing was still fun”
Perhaps they know
That they are old, and can’t keep up
And can’t win against those energetic young people
But they still strive to make every second count
They build robots to fight against time
And to fight against the world’s skeptical gaze
Just to fulfill their deep-seated dream of mecha
Someone once said
The hardest thing in the arena is not to win
But to earn the respect of your opponent
The cheerful smiles of the old men after their defeat
Made me feel deeply
What it means to be honored even in defeat
I originally never watched
Fighting or competitive shows
Such seemingly violent and bloody programs
Always made me feel resistant and fearful
As if watching this program
Would make me prone to violence
But when I truly engaged with this competition
I found myself unknowingly
Being inspired by these old men’s spirit and fell in love with robot fighting
I finally understood
That loving robot fighting
Does not prove you are violent
Image: Friendly hugs and handshakes between opposing sides after the match
Whether it’s the previously honored old men
Or the twin sisters from Tsinghua
Everyone has a martial arts dream
This is actually a deep-seated sentiment in many people
Especially in men
Everyone wants to use electricity and fire
To have a thrilling battle
Everyone wants to use wisdom and strength
To engage in a contest unrelated to life and death
Robots as a hobby
Is no different from people liking sports or music
For most people
This is a form of spiritual sustenance
When we were young
Some friends
Developed an interest in robots
Because of a wonderful movie or anime
Some friends
With natural male hormones
Every time they see cool equipment
That kind of violent aesthetics
Made them very passionate
And some friends
Have loved listening to stories of mecha heroes since childhood
Taking heroes as role models
Hoping one day they can
Command thousands of troops
And save the world
Image: Iron Man from the Avengers
However
Parents age overnight
Children grow up overnight
From now on, we become our own heroes
Facing the world’s thousands of troops alone
We start
To struggle for livelihood, face,
Houses, cars, and money
Constantly maneuvering
We are trapped by
Careers, health, family
And various crises
Feeling helpless and powerless
People always need a hobby
To help you escape from the anxious world
In another battlefield
To achieve your own iron will
As long as our ambition is not completely extinguished
As long as the spirit of competition still burns within us
We will not be crushed by life!
We will not bow to the cruel fate!
May this robot competition
Bring you the strength you desire
Give yourself a chance to breathe
Let you escape the reality of “loss” for a while
Ignite your fighting spirit at the start of the New Year!
Cheers to our great hobby!
Cool Play Lab Edited
First published on WeChat Official Account: Cool Play Lab (ID: coollabs)
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References:
“BattleBots” Robot Fighting Competition Episode 1
