Robot Wars Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Robot Wars Wiki

For the Game Boy Advance release with the same title, see Robot Wars: Extreme Destruction (GBA).
"New Arenas, New Weapons, New Games"
— From the back of the Extreme Destruction box

Robot Wars: Extreme Destruction was the last of the Robot Wars video games to be released. The version created for PC and Xbox was developed by Climax Group and released by BBC Multimedia in 2002. A separate version of the game was released for Game Boy Advance, but the gameplay, arenas and available robots differed greatly between the two versions.

The PC version was also released in Australia in 2003 by Dataworks Australia.

Arenas[]

The game features eight different arenas, each with their own separate features and hazards.

Arena Description Image
Robot Wars TV Studio The Robot Wars Arena featuring the Drop Zone. It was based upon the Series 5 and Extreme 1 version of its real-life counterpart.
Robot Wars Arena ED
New York Subway A subway station with trains running through on either side, turnstiles and escalators.
Subway
Japanese Rooftops A large rooftop with air vents, an electrifying generator and a glass skylight.
Rooftop ED
North Atlantic Aircraft Carrier An aircraft carrier on the sea featuring aeroplanes, a pit, missile filled boxes and a catapult. Also had depth charges which, when pushed, shake the entire arena very violently.
Aircraft Carrier
Sao Paulo Scrapyard A large scrapyard with a magnet crane and a crusher, however the magnet crane doesn't appear to work.
Scrapyard ED
Munich Car Factory A factory full of heavy machinery and a paint dipper, complete with welding machines and a furnace.
Car Factory
Siberian Military Base A small base featuring landmines and a launching missile in a large pit.
Military Base ED
Mars Base A base on Mars featuring air locks and an anti-gravity switch.
Mars

Features[]

Buying and Building a Robot[]

ED Robot Builder

Workshop

When the player starts the game, it is only necessary to buy or build a robot in Competition mode as all the currently unlocked robots are freely available without the need to purchase in Arcade mode. When the player starts Competition mode, the player is given 3500 credits to buy or build a robot, although only one of the available robots is cheap enough to buy at the start (Barrabis). When building a robot, it must have a chassis, power source, drive, locomotion and armour. It is also possible to fit all of these components together by purchasing a powertrain instead of a chassis at the start (but without armour). The player can then add non-compulsory weapons and extras to your robot before competing. Most of the components are locked at the start of the game and must be unlocked by winning the various tournaments.

Battle Modes[]

The game features two battle modes; Arcade and Competition. Arcade mode allows the player to jump right in and compete in various types of battles without the need to buy or build a robot. However, only the robots and arenas unlocked in Competition mode are available to use. Arcade mode features eight different battle types, which are:

  • Annihilator - A six-way melee in the arena. Interestingly, almost every Annihilator in Arcade mode will feature 3 TV series robots, and 2 fictional robots as the opposition.
  • Sumo - A one-on-one battle in the sumo ring, in which the aim is to push the opponent off the plinth to win.
  • Head to Head - A one-on-one battle in the arena (up to four robots can compete in the Xbox version).
  • Football - Two robots try to win by scoring as many goals as possible. Unfortunately, the CPU opponents ignore the ball and treat it like a regular battle. Sir Killalot guards the goal in every arena.
  • Endurance - Seven opponents enter the arena one at a time and must all be defeated as quickly as possible. In Arcade mode, the opposition always consists of four fictional robots and three TV series robots.
  • Capture The Flag - The robots must try to carry the flag for as long as possible. The winner is the one that carries it for the longest time.
  • Mad Bomber - One robot starts the battle holding a bomb and must pass it to another robot by tagging it. If one robot holds the bomb for too long the bomb will explode and that robot will be eliminated, another bomb is then planted on top of another robot, and the process repeats itself until only one robot is left standing.
  • Collateral Damage - The robots must try to destroy as many objects as possible within the time limit.
Tornado vs Tractor ED

Tornado fighting against Tractor

RW3 Competition Mode

The Competition mode menu

In Competition mode, the player must either build or buy a robot and compete in various different tournaments. The player wins more money and unlocks new components, robots and arenas by winning these tournaments. The tournaments predominantly feature regular battles (either one-on-one, melees or annihilators), but occasionally feature a Mad Bomber or Capture The Flag round. Interestingly, all melee battles within the game appear as a 'First Round Melee', regardless of where in the tournament the battle is fought. In total there are eight stages, each featuring a different number of tournaments. When all eight stages are completed, the player takes part in the Final Battle, which is an endurance battle against various real-life competitor robots and one house robot entering the arena last.

Playable Robots[]

Competitor Robots[]

The game features many playable robots, most of which must be unlocked to use. The majority of the robots are from Extreme Series 1, but some of them do have features of their Series 4 appearances, and Panzer Mk 4 was only seen in Extreme Warriors Season 2. The real-life competitor robots from the TV series that are obtainable in the game are:

Robot Weapon Image
101 Spike
101 RW- ED
Behemoth Lifting scoop and rear axes
Behemoth RW- ED
Chaos 2 Rear-hinged flipper
Chaos 2 RW- ED
Diotoir Lifting scoop
Diotoir RW- ED
Dominator 2 Axe
Dominator 2 RW- ED
Firestorm 3 Front-hinged flipper
Firestorm 3 RW- ED
Hypno-Disc Horizontal flywheel
Hypno-Disk RW- ED
Panic Attack Lifting forks
Panic Attack RW- ED
Panzer Mk 4 Rear-hinged flipper/lifting scoop
Panzer MK4 RW- ED
Plunderbird 5 Crusher
Plunderbird 5 RW- ED
Pussycat Cutting disc
Pussycat RW- ED
Razer Crusher
Razer RW- ED
Suicidal Tendencies Crusher
Suicidal Tendencies RW- ED
The Revolutionist Shell spinner
The Revolutionist RW- ED
Thermidor 2 Rear-hinged flipper and horizontal pincers
Thermidor 2 RW- ED
Tornado Spinning drum
Tornado RW- ED
Wheely Big Cheese Rear-hinged flipper
Wheely Big Cheese RW- ED

House Robots[]

This is the only video game to feature Refbot and also features the five main House Robots used at the time of Series 5/Extreme 1; Sir Killalot, Shunt, Dead Metal, Sgt. Bash and Matilda.

As a result, the game does not feature Mr. Psycho, Growler or Cassius Chrome which had not been introduced to the show at this time.

The House Robots are not playable under normal conditions, but can be unlocked using cheat codes (see cheats).

Robot Weapon Image
Dead Metal Circular saw and horizontal pincers
Dead Metal RW- ED
Matilda Rear-hinged flipping tusks and vertical flywheel
Matilda RW- ED
Sgt. Bash Vertical pincer and flamethrower
Sergeant Bash RW- ED
Shunt Axe
Shunt RW- ED
Sir Killalot Lance and pincers on moving arms
Sir Killalot RWED
Refbot Fire extinguisher
Refbot RW- ED

Fictional[]

A number of pre-built fictional robots built using the in-game Robot Workshop tools are also available as opponents and can be unlocked by the player.

Cheats[]

Entering these codes unlocks the following:

Code Menu Effect In Game
PC: fabletmeplayasahouserobot

Xbox: R, L, UP, UP, UP, L, R, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, X.

Competition menu Unlocks the house robots to play as in arcade mode.
Playablehouserobots
The Select Robot menu after inputting the cheat code
PC: timeisonmyside

Xbox: R, L, UP, UP, UP, L, R, X, X, X, Y.

Pause menu Gives you unlimited time. If more than five minutes have elapsed and the fight concludes, the results card at the end will still read as 5:00 for the winner, but not the losing robots.
RWEDtimeCheat
Razer deemed immobile after 11 minutes 22 seconds after this cheat code was used
PC: nowyouseemenowyoudont

Xbox: R, L, RIGHT, LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT, Y, X, X, X, X, R, L.

Pause menu Makes any player-controlled robot "invisible", though robots are still somewhat visible as edges and shadows are still rendered.

Flammable robots can still catch fire when invisible, and Refbot will chase them to extinguish the fire. In a two-player fight, both player-controlled robots will be affected by this cheat.

Nowyouseemenowyoudont
Razer after inputting the cheat code
PC: getridofthosepeskyairobots

Xbox: R, L, X, Y, X, Y, UP, DOWN, UP, DOWN, R, L, R.

Pause menu Turns off all the AI robots. Though in certain arenas, pushing AI robots off a ledge or in the pit with this cheat enabled will not count as an elimination. This is not consistent within the Sumo game mode, however.

In the Endurance mode, this cheat will not affect robots who have not yet entered the arena.

RWEDpeskyairobotsCheat
Wheely Big Cheese immobile after inputting this cheat during a Sumo bout
PC: accessallarenas

Xbox: R, L, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, L, R, UP, UP, UP, Y.

Main menu Unlocks all arenas in the game in Arcade mode.
Allarenas
The Arena Selection menu after entering this cheat
PC: givememoresponds

Xbox: L, R, L, R, Y, X, UP, LEFT, UP, R, L, R.

Competition menu Gives you 10000 additional credits on Competition mode. This cheat can be repeated, giving you 10000 credits each time the cheat code is used. Sometimes, however, the code does not register.
RWEDcheatMoreMoney
A new save after inputting the cheat (you always begin with 3500 credits)
PC: weirdnakedrobots

Xbox: R, L, R, Y, Y, Y, LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT, DOWN, Y.

Pause menu Makes every robot's armour translucent, even affecting house robots and Refbot. This does not affect the robots' chassis or weaponry, only armour pieces which can be damaged. This visual effect will also show in the Select Robot menu, but can be reversed by inputting the cheat again.
RWEDcheat
Matilda, Sgt. Bash and Behemoth with translucent armour

If you entered the cheat correctly, a cow moo sound will play. Any cheat that gives robots a certain effect are reversible by simply inputting the cheat code a second time.

Easter Eggs[]

  • Interestingly, if one creates a robot with the same name as a robot from the other console game that doesn't feature in Extreme Destruction, e.g. Hunchback, then during the stats screen before a battle, Jonathan Pearce's in-game introduction will be played when describing the robot, e.g. "Leaving the bell tower of Notre Dame behind, the Hunchback is here, and it's got the hump!", despite the fact that those robots didn't feature in the game.
    • However, even more interestingly, if the name of the robot is one of the prototype robots from Robot Wars: Arenas of Destruction, e.g, Silver Bullet, then Jonathan Pearce will read out the unused introduction for that prototype robot, unless you select the name Bob, Robot Ali or Roadblock.
      • This may suggest that the lines that Jonathan Pearce says were directly ripped from the PS2 version of Arenas of Destruction, as most of the lines spoken, including the unused prototype robots, are buried in the PS2 data. However this is currently unconfirmed.
  • If the pit button has not been pressed 1 minute and 40 seconds into the battle, the pit automatically descends; much like in the game: Robot Wars: Arenas of Destruction.
    • This feature is even present in minigames such as Sumo and Football, where every arena hazard remains active.
  • On Competition mode, if you create a robot and name it either Sgt. Bash, Shunt, Matilda, Dead Metal, Sir Killalot or Refbot, Jonathan Pearce will still say the description for that House Robot when introducing your robot.

Trivia[]

  • Flashes of black will sometimes appear across the width of the arena from the moment of Activate. While only a visual glitch, this can prove a distraction while obstructing the player's view of the battle. This glitch is also replicated in the minimap in the top left corner of the screen, and will often continue to the Bout Results and The Pits screens.
  • Jonathan Pearce's in-game commentary will not always match up to what is happening in the battle. Often sound clips will play that are completely irrelevant, such as deeming robots immobile when they in fact aren't.
  • A lot of the robots in the game are unnaturally fast. This includes Razer, Dominator 2, Sir Killalot, Pussycat, Plunderbird 5 and Firestorm.
  • When playing as Pussycat, players will notice that the robot is almost uncontrollable and will often glitch through the side walls or the floor and tumble around the arena.
  • When playing as Sir Killalot after using the cheat that enables players to play as house robots, when falling into the pit on the TV Studio arena Sir Killalot will not disappear to make room for other competitor robots. However, the AI version of Sir Killalot will disappear when pitted.
  • The Van de Graf balls accessory present on robots such as Spikaton was included as a nod to American physicist Robert J. Van de Graaff, though his surname has been misspelled in the game.
  • Although Sir Killalot plays goalkeeper in the Football game mode, this was never the case in the show. Dead Metal was goalkeeper in Series 1, with Matilda and Sgt. Bash playing goalkeeper and defence in Series 2 and 3.
  • If Sir Killalot is pitted or ejected from the arena by any of the intended means, he will respawn in front of the goal.
    • Likewise, if the football itself is pitted or falls out of the arena, it will respawn similar to a drop ball in the actual sport.

Patch[]

One patch (1.115b) was released on 22 November 2002 for the PC version of the game that addressed a few issues that were in the initial release, mostly concerning support for various graphics cards:

  • Improve graphics support for ATI Radeon range including 8500, 9000 and 9700 cards.
  • Performance has been improved with nVidia TNT cards.
  • Compatibility issues with Matrox cards - G400, G450 and G550 resolved.

Patched versions of the game have the text "Version 1.115b" in the bottom left-hand corner of the main menu screen.

Demo[]

EDPCdemo

Demo disc number one included with Issue 116 of the UK PC Gamer Magazine featuring a demo of Extreme Destruction

Like its predecessor, Extreme Destruction received a demo release. The demo was included on CD Disc 1 sold with Issue 116 of the UK PC Gamer Magazine in December 2002, a month after the game's official release and exactly eleven months after Arenas of Destruction's demo release with the same magazine series. Like Arenas of Destruction, the demo was included among other PC game demos.

The demo itself featured only a single battle: a six-way annihilator in the TV studio arena featuring Panic Attack (controlled by the player), 101, Behemoth, Diotoir, Plunderbird 5 and Wheely Big Cheese. Interestingly, the demo had some differences from the final game such as the menu graphics being entirely different and the starting point of one of the opponent robots being in the centre of the arena directly in front of the player.

Unlike Arenas of Destruction however, which had demos of its PC and PS2 versions, Extreme Destruction had only had one demo of the PC version, with the Xbox version not receiving one at all. Extreme Destruction was also referred to by its full name in its demo release, while both Arenas of Destruction demos were only referred to as 'Robot Wars'.

The demo can be found here, without the use of a CD to play it.

Reception[]

Publication Type of review Score
GameRankings Aggregate 76.67%
AceGamez Review 7/10
Final-Level Review 4/5
Gamecell Review 8/10

Robot Wars: Extreme Destruction received positive reviews. On aggregate site GameRankings, the game has a ratings score of 76.67% based on three reviews. Reviews of the game by AceGamez, Final-Level and Gamecell gave Extreme Destruction 7/10, 4/5 and 8/10 respectively.

Cover Gallery[]

Credits[]

  • With thanks to: All at Robot Wars LLC and Mentorn
  • And special thanks to: Steve Carsey, Tom Gutteridge, Bill Hobbins, Stuart McDonald, Julian Fullalove, Chris Reynolds and Derek Foxwell
  • Game Commentary: Jonathan Pearce
  • Robot Wars theme tune published by Golden Break Music

BBC Multimedia[]

  • Producer: Colin Fuidge
  • Localisation Manager: Lena Strand
  • QA Manager: Adrian Wood-Jones
  • Technical Manager: Kirsh Hirani
  • Product Development Director: Sarah Hennings
  • Director of Multimedia: Dave Lee
And with special thanks to all the Robot Teams, without whom the programme would not be possible:
  • 101: Mike Franklin (Capt), Amy Franklin, Steve Bickle
  • Behemoth: Anthony Pritchard (Capt), Michael Pritchard, Kane Aston
  • Chaos II: George Francis (Capt), Ian Swann, Richard Swann
  • Diotoir: Peter Redmond (Capt), Ciarán Byrne*, Joe Gavin
  • Dominator 2: Peter Halloway (Capt), Chris Hall, Elliot Smart
  • Firestorm III: Graham Bone (Capt), Alex Mordue, Hazel Heslop
  • Hypno-Disc: Dave Rose (Capt), Derek Rose, Ken Rose
  • Panic Attack: Kim Davies (Capt), Michael Davies, Christian Bridge**
  • Panzer Mk4: Todd Mendenhall (Capt), Valerie Mendernhall, Jim Hart
  • Plunderbird 5: Mike Onslow (Capt), Bryan Kilburn
  • Pussycat: Alan Gribble (Capt), David Gribble, Robert Bettington
  • The Revolutionist: Brian Nave (Capt), Michael Nave, Kenneth Bryant
  • Razer: Simon Scott (Capt), Ian Lewis, Vincent Blood
  • Suicidal Tendencies: Andrew Jeffery (Capt), Martin Jeffery, Charly Binns
  • Thermidor II: David Harding (Capt), Ian Harvey, Christopher Snowling
  • Tornado: Andrew Marchant (Capt), David Gamble, Bryan Moss
  • Wheely Big Cheese: Roger Plant (Capt), John McGugan, Murray Wharf

Climax[]

  • Producer: Sarah Bain
Programming
  • Lead Programmer: Will Baker
  • Programmers: Ewen Graham, Tony Mack, Simon Newton, Lee Reeves
Art
  • Lead Artist: Kate Wright
  • Artists: Johnny Corbin, Paul Evans, Neale Williams
Sound
  • Music and Sound Effects: Matt Simmonds
Test
  • Lead Tester: Barry Martin
  • Testers: Brad Oakley, Gary Burchell
Senior Management
  • Group Development Director: Garry Liddon
  • Managing Director: Joe Cavalla
  • Art Director: James Brace

*Ciarán Byrne is incorrectly spelled as Cairon Byrne in the game

**Christian Bridge's name is shown in brackets for unknown reasons. This is presumably due to him joining the team via the competition in the Robot Wars Magazine

Navigation[]

Advertisement