- "Experience the thrill of piloting your very own killer robot in METAL BREAKDOWN! Choose a robot, choose a weight class, choose a color and let the carnage commence!"
- — The game's description on the BattleBots website[1]
BattleBots Metal Breakdown, officially titled Comedy Central BattleBots Metal Breakdown, was a licensed Shockwave BattleBots game released in 2001 in line with the Comedy Central television show.
Although the game features no real-life robots from the show, it allows for a player to choose between five unique robot designs, titled 1-5 on the main menu. Each design can be entered into one of four weight classes: Lightweight, Middleweight, Heavyweight and Superheavyweight.
A player can also give the robot a bespoke name and recolor it using RGB sliders. Depending on the weight class of your robot, a different sound effect plays when "Start Game!" is clicked to indicate the transition to the arena ahead of the fight.
The five design options are as follows:
- A hexagonal-shaped robot with a spinning ring.
- A trapezoid-shaped robot with a front-mounted plate.
- A trapezoid-shaped robot with a large saw blade.
- A triangular-shaped robot with a hammer.
- A trapezoid-shaped robot with an oscillating spear.
Controls[]
Each robot can be controlled using the up, down, left and right keyboard arrows and weapons can be operated using the spacebar key. Customization options can be accessed by clicking and dragging on the relevant settings.
Common bugs with the control concern AI intelligence, as opponents have a tendency to drive directly into the central killsaw or evade the player-controlled robot. Another bug allows for robots to collide in such a way that they both fly across the screen, as showcased in a May 2022 gameplay video.[2]
Gameplay[]
The initial screen when the game is loaded.
Once a battle commences, the player's robot is pitted against an AI controlled opponent in an arena that is only very loosely inspired by the show's iconic BattleBox. The arena consists of a large, square checker plate floor with a single saw protruding from the center, representing a killsaw.
The game's arena.
Prior to the start of the fight, a five-second countdown leads into an audio clip of Sean Salisbury reciting his signature line from the show.
- "The box is locked, the lights are on. It's robot fighting time!"
- — Audio of Sean Salisbury which plays before each fight
The victory screen.
Instead of battle music heard in the show, a looped audio clip plays to replicate crowd noise. A top-down view is available in the form of a mini map in the top-right corner of the screen, and health bar in the top-left corner illustrates how damaged each robot is.
When a winner is determined, it is brought to the center of the screen and spun on the spot as the losing robot is thrown dramatically into the air. The game ill prompt a player to "Play Again?" or return to the main menu.
Trivia[]
- BattleBots Metal Breakdown was the only officially-licensed BattleBots game not to feature any real-life robots.
- The game's main menu uses the original BattleBots typeface seen in early Comedy Central seasons.