Robocraft 2 Its back, again. A look at an early playtest version of Robocraft 2

[@billcar50]

I'm a 2014/2015 player. Would like to play this!

[@deceptively_flat]

totally agree. I wish they add flying parts in this version too, but in a bigger variety: like wings that differ in either speed, armour or how much weight they can lift. yeah, i loved aircraft in robocraft

[@afterthefact6708]

Would love for there to be megabots. Its also remarkable how quickly they are able to shit out versions of RC, the kicker is if they continue any real support.

[@Ketmo785]

I think this is pretty much the last chance for FJ. They have to stick to this or it' over for RC. If they abandon this project too then they will lose the little trust they have left in the community. Also where do they go from here if this does not work? They already tried to do something different, something new, did not work out. This is the complete opposite. Keeping very close to the original RC. If this does not work out for them either I have a hard time to see a way forward for the franchise for FJ.

[@plasticfrank]

@@Ketmo785 I can't imagine they even have a chance. Sure there are people pining for old school RC. But I don't think the group is big enough to propell a game to success. And this group of people aren't going to be particularly forgiving of any problems. They're already jaded by years of putting up with years of FreeJam's nonsense.

[@AresWalker8]

As one of those few pushing for a return to the old days I'm losing hope quickly. From what I've seen of the new game they've already made the same mistakes that killed the og. They still have this we're right your wrong mentality twards the player base and they think that having lots of features makes games enjoyable rather making leaving the game in a state that players enjoy. They want so desperately to get back what they had yet they don't understand what made it so loved.

[@Morality9]

The legend has returned to Robocrafting.

[@Ketmo785]

I'm not nearly a legend and I'm not sure I 'm really back either.. but I will follow the development at least by checking in once in a while at the current state of RC2. But this won't be an RC2 channel. I'm probably going to stick to more mixed content even inf youtube alogarithm hates when you mix content :)

[@Zetami]

I remember hearing about this a year ago and that they were going to restart sometime ago, and now it's like this. I hope it works out well, I really liked the game early on and stuck with it until I just didn't understand what they were trying to do anymore. I hope it's successful and they make good decisions

[@davidtitanium22]

as long as they get right the core gameplay of build-drive-fight, i think they'll at least have a stable player base, then they can move to adding their new ideas without taking away from the core. I personally think the idea of being able to leave your robot was a pretty cool one, could be its own tech tree up to something like an ejector seat when you're losing the fight, maybe you can go walk back to base to summon a new bot or continue the fight on foot like a maniac

[@Ketmo785]

The tech for leaving the robot is there. The rebuild is using the same codebase. They re used as much as they could so it is just a matter of if they want that to be a thing or not and if they can come up with gameplay ideas that makes leaving the robot a useful gameplay mechanic. Right now they seem to be very afraid to stray top far from the RC1 2015 something gameplay so I doubt it will happen. At least not anytime soon.

[@pvprangergod4024]

(they wont get anything right)

[@lmaogottem5984]

this looks much better than the original rc2, i still hope theyll make buildable turrets because that was the one thing in rc2 i really liked

[@Ketmo785]

I feel like that won't happen. For that they need joints and it seems like they have gone back to the basics so I don't think they will really bring any thing from that version over. Unfortunately. Personally I would have liked them to not backtrack 100% but rather find a middle ground where some of the interesting things with building stayed but combat and damage system more like RC,1clientside and block by block damage.

[@plasticfrank]

​@@Ketmo785the compromise would have been saving primitives. Some players didn't like building suspension mechanisms? Turret assemblies? Saving primitives would mean you only have to design those parts once and you could use them ad infinitum in all of your subsequent builds. The Hello Neighbor racing game allows you to save primitives ffs. It's embarrassing that RC doesn't. It's ridiculous that RC2A added premade turrets instead of a system for saving primitive assemblies.

[@Ketmo785]

@@plasticfrank They actually did, they had the precon system. you could create pre cons (a copy of a section of you robot) to paste on to any of your new builds. The issue was that the game was changing so fast with every single update that the pre cons would be obsolete after just one update. But they had the system in place.

[@plasticfrank]

@@Ketmo785 I'm interested in when that was. But I guess it doesn't matter now 2A is forever gone. A new version of RC that is just as limited as the original doesn't seem like progress to me. I think a new RC needs deeper levels of creativity but I guess I'm not the demographic FreeJam is listening to.

[@Ketmo785]

I'm not really either. I like games like ONI and space engineers way to much to be part of the core demographics for the new version :)

[@Ar0SS]

I’m Robocraft vet from around 2015. The update with lootcrates made me leave one of the most fun multiplayer games I have ever played, as I wanted a control over what parts I’m buying instead of waiting for some luck with crate. If I would like the hazard I would go to the casino. What the devs presented with the new restart of robocraft is exactly what I would expect. Blast from the past with a bit of a twist eg. Resource gathering. But please, no god damn lootcrates.

[@Ketmo785]

They have said no loot crates. But some resources might be pretty rare meaning there will still be a luck mechanic involved in terms of how many games it takes before those resources drop

[@vo1dstryd3r44]

i wouldn't mind loot crates, but ONLY for cosmetics and other fun items, that way its more of an additional fun reward, but other than that, as another vet (joined few updates before the rise of the walkers) i 100% agree, anything but the lootcrates, and i'd love to have the old radar, rectifier and the jammers back too, they weren't really missed, but they were enjoyable atleast to me. i loved having the single helium wth two jammers and a rail on it lol

[@TriloGStudio]

I thought I was the only on asking for them to go back. They def went back BUT they have all types of quality of life changes and changed how things work which I love (like removing the shields) I absolutely love how they put the shields on the blocks now.

[@Ketmo785]

I have not really made up my mind about shield on the blocks. I don't dislike it. That said I did like the old electro shields as a build feature

[@alexwithanx]

@@Ketmo785 I think Shields were amazing and also made every build much more unique. Since u dont have to bother with the weird shapes shields had at different tier anymore all you will have is the same simple bodys over and over again.

[@vo1dstryd3r44]

I like the shield on blocks orerall concept, but i feel it'd just be easy to make gunbeds to exploit the high shields, but even then a high rpm, or splash weapon can knock it out really quickly, esp if you're overtiering. overall i prefered the old shields, albiet it would have been nicer to be able to have better shapes that worked with the voxel base of the game

[@creature44]

Saw you got one shotted there, does that mean the pilot seat is back in this version? I miss having to implement protection for the pilot in our robots. Also the old “ejection seat” trick with corner slopes and rockets to cause the pilot to detach after critical damage was so cool! You really had to be a master builder to figure those niche little mechanics

[@Ketmo785]

Yes. Pilot seat is back. If it goes the robot goes.

[@vo1dstryd3r44]

one method for an ejection seat is to have it so that any damage routes into easy to break blocks connecting to the seat, but instead have it so when it breaks, it detatches the whole body and turns into a mini hover, though helium and thrusters aren't in this version at this time

[@jammiedodger7040]

I have played this and the tech tree is bigger but I would like to see it get even bigger. The main thing I would like to see change and it most likely will is a lot more different map types and game modes and possibly even bigger map as it is boring playing the same game mode on the same map but that will most likely change when the game actually releases. I don’t like that soon as you’re out of combat you auto heal.

[@Nullpersona]

The tab menu is only one option, as the different stations around the garage provide similar navigation control with a bit of aesthetic flair.

[@Ketmo785]

yep.. there was a lot of small stuff I skipped talking about because I wanted to keep the video rather short, so for example I didn't say much at all about the UI, but I think it's a lot better than in old RC2

[@TriloGStudio]

The map is indeed different. It looks very similar tho.

[@V0lcan000]

robocraft is like a zombie at this point, back from the dead, but never really alive either. Freejam have lost all their good faith with their constant changes and reboots so at this point, the bigger miracle is if they can stick to something.

[@Ketmo785]

We will see this time around. But yes. It is probably the last chance for them.

[@Silhohen]

RC1 Vet here, I'm defs givin this a go, all the parts falling off is actually a really cool addition that doesnt effect gameplay balance. My main issue with RC2 was the large block building and the movement was way too slow and clunky. Also some AUS servers would have made it playable for me... Interested to see how they handle T10 and megas cuz the progression was one of their issues around the time they're rolling back to... They could pivot and try like a PVE with raids and shit, get a bunch of T10 bots and go fight a buch of well programmed mega AIs. PVP live services don't really work very well financially, especially creative ones and indie ones, so their market is probably on a knifes edge to begin with.

[@Ketmo785]

I am not sure they will ad megas. It's not a pure replica more like a very close to re-build. So, especially since megas had some issues, they might decide to skip it. Will be interesting to see what stuff they will include and what they will leave out.

[@-lijosu-]

Funny you mention that. There actually was an Aus server but no one could connect to it because FJ’s matchmaking system was so dreadful. We told them about it and they seemed to insist on tweaking wait times instead of fixing it.

[@JAMMzMHW]

Damn, this looks actually very promising! Devs are actually listening now, and I hope they remember all the mistakes they made in the past and wont make them again. They have a blueprint formula they can follow which has been proven to work in the past. Im kind of disappointed in the graphics, especially when you loaded into that map, it did look very similar to the original map, but they claim to have next gen way better graphics in this new version compared to the older version, and I just wasn't seeing it. Really looking forward to play this and I hope Robocraft makes a serious comeback. Remember guys, there was a time when Robocraft was THE BIGGEST game on all of STEAM, and that says a lot.

[@sape86]

i looks like a massive backsteep from robocraft 1. is it better in something?

[@Ketmo785]

Not yet no. And also the devs have been quietnow for quite some time after letting people try that initial playtest build so not sure what is going on at FJ

[@jimandjake1]

this version of RC2 NEEDS to be shown front and centre. As already is showing far more promise then the last RC2. this is a much better direction for the game to head in. Back to the routes. but better(hopefully)

[@Mallchad]

Eh, I can already see the fissures in "lets make the game from 2014/2015" promise. Healing was a later addition, blocks look different which I don't mind but in theory but this look blocky and weird. That's one thing I didn't like about the OG either, it made making sleep bots hard and everything was cartoonish. This resource system is new I only remember basic credits and stuff. I don't mind a new resource system just please don't lie and say "we're going to remake Robocraft 2014/2015" because that's nearly not happening. Hellion crater I don't remember well but this looks very close to what I remember. Close enough to not care. Also in general I don't mind having new game features. I just get the lingering impression freejam doesn't really know how to make games and lucked out with the original game. And if they can't make new mechanics well then... Well. I'd rather they just reimpliment the original exactly as it was and leave it. because that was fun. and it worked.

[@Ketmo785]

Its that last part that worries me quite a bit. I really liked the original physics based RC2 and I have the feeling that maybe another developer could have actually pulled it of and made an amazing game out of that idea but FJ just made too many bad decisions along the way. The new RC2 is a lot simpler game so probably easier to pull off. But their track record after RC1 has not exactly been great.

[@Mallchad]

@@Ketmo785 yeah. even the original game had telltale signs. like permadeath only leaves a lot of people left it because they die at the beginning of the match. but I enjoyed it. Tying colouring options and shield shapes to tiers was terrible and rigid. but I enjoyed it. Making it so that parts stick out so much and are so fragile that a few pot shots will immobilize anyone doesn't feel that great- oh... wait...

[@Ketmo785]

@@Mallchad lol

[@vo1dstryd3r44]

yeah with the healing while they DID have lasers, due to the way it worked and stuff they said at one point on the discord that it was difficult ti impliment right in the new engine so it wouldn't have the old lasers/healing. i'm really wanting the old lasers back since it was fun to just be able to strip off blocks, while also being able to hold rmb and just heal all your team mates in an area around you. edit: i agree, the old 2015 era, was nearly a perfect game, realistically back then what needed fixing was the server issues, and the match making. any future changes to that imo would have been more maps, and maybe if they had leaned into megas rather than scrap them we could have been having a different convo. even more so RC is somewhat like a moba in that there's typically 3 lanes and you have to defend each lane, while aiming for the main base. in general the best thing to add back is the OLD old towers and ranked BA but overall keep from adding too much. either reduce how many resources are needed for each item since there's atm resource bloat imo, or move back over to exclusively RP and TP

[@Mallchad]

@@vo1dstryd3r44 Original towers update was actually fun I don't know why they insisted on tweaking it so much

[@gamersandgames]

Thx for the video. 😊

[@SteckdosenKeks-Der-Originale]

7:48 Can i use my Premium life time that i got for 40€ in robocraft 1 for robocraft 2?

[@Ketmo785]

I very much doubt it will

[@SteckdosenKeks-Der-Originale]

@@Ketmo785 hmm ok

[@toxitron7385]

Looks fun, but i really liked the versatility of old rc2 building system. Im a rc1 player too, really like to play with my friends and clan.

[@Ketmo785]

Yeah. I also really liked the old RC2 building system. I will miss it. This one, being true to old RC1, has rather boring building in opinion. And combat and health system is a lot better. For someone who do not care that much for building this version will most likely be a lot more fun than the previous. For those however who really like building, toying with logic and all that, then the building in this new version of RC2 will feel very much dumbed down.

[@alvideos2145]

Don't know if i like the shields, as long as they arent OP, it should take maybe 1 or 2 hits. It looks like one of those things that is only going to benefit flyers.

[@DUSHNILAtv86]

Robocraft 1 ,player here. You guys dont get it, its dead stop touching corpse. Devs dumb ,and stay dumb and they wont listen.trust me prooven over the years. Oh and 2k hours alpha tester,and i left when they removed megabots. Enjoy

[@Ketmo785]

I am rather sceptical, not as sceptical as you maybe. But FJ's track record past RC1 is quite bad. And that is putting it lightly

[@alvideos2145]

that looks like a really small building area grid.

[@vo1dstryd3r44]

hahaha, it is a small building grid, thts how it used to be though, it wasn't till you got TX-1 that you could get a bigger bay. upgrading the size was a later addition, albiet upgrading how much cpu you get is pretty normal

[@Pizza-xi3fs]

This is literally rc1 but with rtx at this point lol.

[@Ketmo785]

IT is most certainly a very close adaptation. There are some new stuff. Like having a variety of materials and not just robits but those are all minor things and not really core gameplay.

[@drkreuzer670]

Eh. Still better than crossout

[@drkreuzer670]

I'm still gonna play from the depths more than robocraft, since from the depths is an awesome game

[@Ketmo785]

I probably should try that game at some point. I have a feeling I might like it :)

[@alvideos2145]

They really need to let more people into the beta lol, i signed up, still waiting.

[@fived9424]

wish i could actually playtest this. the game isnt saving and so i cant get into a lobby

[@Ketmo785]

Don't worry to much about not being able to playtest it now. there is very little content right now so it is most likely a way better experience in a few month.

[@grimmghost8404]

I pretty much gave up on ever playing something as addictive as RC used to be. For years I would randomly check in to see if they fixed what they broke and was always let down. I currently use a potato to play super low req games but would buy a new PC to play this if it turns out to be the second coming we deserve. Ridiculous meme bots, burst plasmas launchers and thruster sticks with actually functional flight physics, YEARS of replayability. This take on OG is pretty much it, watch to the end for some classic gameplay. Long live the triforce! kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6DJpX-LiridpJY&pp=ygUPcm9ib2NyYWZ0IGZpeGVk

[@Ketmo785]

Lets see what it turns out to be. Unfortunately the track record of FJ have not been that great

[@NervousOne466]

This looks very promising i rly hope they got it right this time im an old school robocraft player and ive missed this game. The only thing i dont like so far is autoheal mechanic. Back in the day rc picked when you had megabots fighting alongside mechs with healing guns. Sure its annoying when you cant even move but permament damage was the point and it worked.

[@Ketmo785]

I have a feeling autoheal might not be planned for all game mode. The UI when entering combat hints that they plan different rules for different game modes. BA might for example have re spawn but no autoheal

[@ugurcansayan]

Looks more like Robocraft Remastered than Robocraft 2, lol

[@Ketmo785]

I can not argue with that

[@ackerkartoffel8627]

well the people do not want a very new game

[@rplanet_r]

Did they remove the logic mechanic?

[@ii_renox3073]

ye they just turned robocraft 2 from a nice complex building game with good mechanics into an ipad game, I really dislike the new rc2 its just place blocks with some cannons and thats it no complexety to the building and fighting

[@vo1dstryd3r44]

@@ii_renox3073 its a shame, cuz this is very close to rc1 Early Access, or rather what people call it now, 2015 era. this is a bit more complicated than what it used to be back then, back then in its infancy you would get a pilot seat, build a somewhat ok bot (still relatively in the learning phase that time) and you had smg, plasma, rail, tesla, and laser. you could choose 1 single weapon type, could NOT use mixed tiers, and movement parts were helium, thrusters, wheels, skiis, and hovors (new addition) then they add wings and spider legs later during the rise of the walker update, which where it was at peak, but beginning its downard descent after a few updates later. additionally the modes were TDM, Elim, Boss battle, and BA/ranked. In its earliest state, you just had small smg buggies that zoom around the map, or satellites out of view, shooting each other or rushing to the enemy base, which is very similar to the current game, albiet without auto heal or the weird shield mechanics, and much much worse graphics, match making, ping, latency, and other things you'd find in a very early access game

[@ByGraceThroughFaith777]

​@vo1dstryd3r44 you could mix tiers with more pilot modules, right? I don't remember that well... RC1 was super fun still. I remember using triangles in funky ways to separate bumpers from the main structure while reducing weight so I had more power for guns instead of thrusters and engines. I miss that game. I would build for hours, and the battles were fun when your creation worked. Hoping RC2 delivers something close enough to the original we all remember and liked.

[@alvideos2145]

I still think the vehicles need to go faster, that little thing you have should go super fast.

[@abundance5767]

Like 2014.... "This map has auto-heal". Developers don't know what we want....

[@vo1dstryd3r44]

its not bad, but yeah i agree we need the auto heal removed, either that or keep it BUT, have it included in a mode with "alternate rules" rather than your typical tdm, elim, boss, or ba

[@abundance5767]

​@@vo1dstryd3r44 Yeah I mean auto heal changes the entire mindset of the game. There's no reason to not charge into every battle like Rambo when you know you'll just auto heal. Especially with a high time to kill. Think of how different counterstrike would be if it has auto heal, much more aggressive play styles and less emphasis on teamwork, coordination and planning.

[@uno2326]

Good.

[@bradpuff6238]

I don't want to play with bots

[@spacejumper0593]

This game doesn’t seem to be reinventable. The original had it’s simplistic charm, this unfortunately just looks like a cheap copy with slightly better graphics.

[@plasticfrank]

FreeJam has been ruining RC for years listening to the loudest players. They are never going to recapture their previous glory. There are so many more games now in the genre FreeJam pioneered that are doing it better. If suspension and steering mechanisms aren't user made, if turets aren't user made, if maps aren't user made, if game types aren't user made, what are we doing here? FreeJam is stagnant af. I'd rather play pvp Scrap Mechanic or pvp Trailmakers. If Instruments of Destruction added pvp it would blow RC out of the water. The early access version of Screwdrivers is breaking more ground than FreeJam has in a decade.

[@Ketmo785]

Made me lol. They went from trying everything new compared to old rc1. I mean the idea of original rc2 was to give players mapmaking tools and have tons of user creation. But since it ended they way it did they reverted to not daring to try anything new and just make something super close to old rc1. In their defense. That was what most of the bad reviews for the first rc2 was calling for. but yes. kind of sad considering what a good old version of rc2 could have been given a lot more dev time

[@Trident1964]

this looks good

[@SyntheticFemboy]

Imagine Robocraft with even better graphics and way more different weopons

[@Ketmo785]

FJ have been quiet for 2 month now, hopefully means they are cooking and not that the project is dead

[@rezz77s]

Robit

[@tomtravis858]

Don't really trust it, the company proved they couldn't give less of a shit about the community.

[@Anti-Smart]

I liked the "old" robocraft 2 a lot more than this. The "old" robocraft 2 was my first experience with the games and I was immediately disappointed when I saw that they've just gone back to a boring block based system, the system I came to the game to avoid.

[@dukezero5074]

It's very obvious that you never played the original Robocraft then haha

[@-lijosu-]

I played RC back in 2015 and I prefer the old RC2. The idea that RC1 was objectively better is ridiculous.

[@Anti-Smart]

​@@dukezero5074 And I'm getting sick of block based 90° grids being the only option.

[@Ketmo785]

I liked the old one as well, it had some problems that was probably hard to solve. But I liked it. Wish some other company would do a physics based arena fighter at some point. Despite being sad to see that version scrapped I do think that this version is probably more commercially viable so from a purely business point of view I understand the change

[@BanjooFandublagens]

I prefer the RC1

[@Error_-xn7po]

This is terrible. They removed custom turrets, logic blocks etc for… this?

[@sharkenjoyer]

Looks like they're just rereleasing robocraft 1 but with unreal graphics. Is it really what fans want? More of the same but with bloom? Even the previous fiasco of robocraft 2 was more unique with how you can leave your bot and how you could make so many cool crafts with moving parts. You could build your own turret design, but no. We're back to 2015 but with triple A's idea of "high fidelity graphics" where it's just a big bloom and particle effect shitshow.

[@Ketmo785]

Well I wouldn't say "unreal graphics". When I hear unreal graphics I think about UE5 and great looking graphics. Robocraft 2 is good looking at best.. not great looking. But, judging by the reviews of the old version. RC2015 or something close to it was indeed what a lot of people apparently wanted. It will be interesting to see how many will actually play it when it comes out.

[@sharkenjoyer]

@@Ketmo785 Honestly the first new game seemed more like a sequel while this new attempt just looks like a graphical update. I played RC a lot in 2015, it was a lot of fun, sure, but it just feels stagnant. At this point I think it's just nostalgia speaking when people ask for the 2015 version to be brought back, since it was pretty much the game's golden age. But we'll see how it develops, maybe it won't be just a graphical update, maybe they really will introduce new ideas and mechanics.

[@Oldblues4]

After leaving the game in 2016, I hope they just focus on making the game and not keep adding gimmicks or crazy ideas.

[@Ketmo785]

So far it's just the basics and I guess they will start by adding obvious things like plasma, maybe mech legs, the question is where they go once they run out of content just replicating the stuff back from RC2015. Since it's free to play they can't just stop adding content. They will need to keep pushing stuff out.

[@-lijosu-]

It looks so shit.

[@Ketmo785]

It looks and plays like RC2015. I mean they went pretty all in in terms of making it close to the original. A few new ideas like variety of materials, not just robits and a bit different UI.. but like 99% the core gameplay and looks is RC2015/2014. ..so it looks like a 10 year opdl game I guess :)

[@-lijosu-]

Yeah lol It’s kind of cool how close it looks to an actual, modern RC 2015. But every time I see the block by block placement with the goofy, over-the-top placing and destroying animation (that the stans are probably eating up) I groan out loud. I also find it very amusing how it has autoheal. I wonder if they’ll remove that after adding nanos again. I can see it getting better with time, but I probably still won’t play it and it’s pretty gross what they had to sacrifice just to get less and satisfy a hoard of self righteous, insane bigots that can’t let go of the past. I don’t think it’ll take off even if everyone wants it to. As one last note. FreeJam have started muting anyone in their discord who says they don’t like the game, as well as people who mention their history with cancelling games. They absolutely seek to control as much information as possible and destroy any easily accessible evidence that any of this happened. I used to think FJ were the little guys but they somehow managed to make me feel smaller.