Japan is no stranger to gigantic battle robots, but the country’s latest mechanical bloodbath is on a bit smaller (and more adorable) scale. The country’s ROBO-ONE Auto tournament, held on February 25 and 26, pitted fully autonomous, action-figure-sized bipedal robots against one another in a single-elimination competition to find the last bot standing.
Sixteen robots competed in 12 matches to fill out the elimination bracket. As these were the early stages, though, it’s fair to say a lot of them fell at the first hurdle.
There’s no walls or marking around the arena, so competitors have to build machines with all the necessary sensors to keep their bot in the ring. The robots are autonomous, meaning that they have to be able to detect an enemy and engage it, while maneuvering themselves around the arena, without any human interference. Some teams used image recognition cameras to lock on and attack, while others used infrared sensor arrays. Competitors are allowed to wirelessly beam data into the machine’s computer, but had no direct control once the fight began.
All the matches are available to stream online, and there are some fantastic moments:
If you’re a fan of watching robots fall over, it’s hard to go wrong. The eventual winner, KOBIS, won after an incredibly intense match:
Just look at this brutal takedown! Savage.
Watch full flight playlist here, or check out a condensed highlights reel of the best fights below: