The BattleBots Arena was released as part of HEXBUG's introductory line of BattleBots toys in 2016, coinciding with the debut of their remote control line of toys.
Intended to be compatible with all HEXBUG remote control BattleBots toys up to that point, the BattleBots Arena was HEXBUG's first attempt at recreating the BattleBox. Based on the 2015 season arena, it folds out to offer a sizable playing surface for two or more remote control toys to drive on. Once unfolded, the playset has several plastic wall pieces which click into the card base, two of which house pulverizers which can be activated by levers. Plastic wall panels resembling the Lexan of the BattleBox then slot into these wall pieces to complete the look.
The arena being constructed.
The toy is a reasonable replica of the BattleBox from World Championship I. However, the robots are noticeably out of scale with the arena itself, appearing too large by comparison and especially so compared to the starting squares. Though the screws are represented by graphics along the side walls, they are non-functional unlike the pulverizer hammers. This was fixed, however, for a later BattleBox release. Similarly, the iconic killsaws and lesser BattleBox hazards are simply represented by decals on the arena floor.
The first edition of this playset featured the remote control toys Tombstone and Witch Doctor, both of whom were also sold together as a Rivals two-pack at the time. Neither toys bore any exclusive features compared to their other releases, with the only difference being a slightly variation in the way in which the toys were presented within later packaging. In the first edition, Tombstone is on the left and Witch Doctor is on the right, and the packaging offers a side-on view of both in the arena. The re-release has the two robots the other way around, and offers more of a top-down view.
The second edition of this playset showcased a unique Tombstone HEXBUG toy which featured a black bar as opposed to red. Alongside Tombstone was a later release in the form of Minotaur, which sported updated, more realistic graphics to its removable top panel compared to its previous Rivals release alongside Beta. The arena, however, remained the same. The first three variations are all priced at $79.99.[1]
In line with their individual and Rivals two-pack releases, the set was released for a third time with Bronco and the second version of Witch Doctor, and a fourth time alongside Blacksmith and Bite Force, both priced at $89.99.[2] HEXBUG later re-released this arena with two build-your-own custom robots, named BattleBots Arena Pro.
The final release of the original HEXBUG BattleBots Arena was dubbed BattleBots Arena Platinum, which featured the new rechargeable Whiplash and SawBlaze toys from the Rivals Platinum range. Priced at $99.99, the arena floor had been given updated graphics to match the change to the BattleBots logo in 2020, though this was weirdly not seen in some promotional material for the set. Functionally, however, the arena remained identical to all previous releases.
In 2021, HEXBUG totally redesigned the arena, inspired by the changes to the BattleBox ahead of the show's 2020 season. The arena itself was made much larger and featured functioning screw hazards, with the playset itself called BattleBots Arena MAX. HEXBUG also re-released the Whiplash and SawBlaze toys alongside this upgraded arena, dubbed BattleBots Arena MAX Platinum.
Trivia[]
- HEXBUG also reused the BattleBox arena layout to create a Robot Wars arena.
- The Uppercut team turned one such arena into a minibot. They used it in season-five against Hydra.