Battlecode 2024: Breadwars
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In Battlecode: Breadwars, civilization has eroded away after millenia, giving way to a beautiful oceanic world teeming with life. Small feet splash through the water and metallic feathers fall as the robots, now two opposing flocks of avian adversaries, prepare to fight. Spring is coming, and with it, the annual avian bread battles.
The first player to capture all three slices of the opponent’s bread wins the game. Teams can build traps and dig water to defend their bread. Each team has a fixed amount of units that level up and specialize in performing actions over time, making them more powerful as the game progresses.
Read these postmortems that provide a competitors’ view of the game!
2024 Postmortem by “cout for clout” (HS 1st)
Other links:
Battlecode 2024 Statistics, compiled by team “camel_case”
A Guide to Battlecode, by Ivan Geffner
Battlecode 2023: Tempest
Watch the 2023 Final Tournament!
In Battlecode: Tempest, alchemists have torn open unstable portals to a new universe filled with beautiful floating islands and time-bending tempests. But you are not alone – escapees from a second reality have fled to this world as well and seek to take it for themselves. The battle of realities has begun, and only one will survive.
The first player to conquer 75% of the sky islands wins the game. Islands are conquered by placing a reality anchor on them, and reality anchors are crafted at each faction’s headquarters. Each player begins with several headquarters which can create robots, craft anchors, and store resources.
Read these postmortems that provide a competitors’ view of the game!
2023 Postmortem by “Gone Fishin’” (2nd)
2023 Postmortem by “4 Musketeers” (3rd)
2023 Postmortem by “don’t @ me” (7th)
2023 Postmortem by “no thoughts head empty” (Newbie 2nd)
Other links:
MIT News Article, MIT News Video
Battlecode 2023 Statistics, compiled by team “camel_case”
Battlecode 2022: Mutation
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In Battlecode: Mutation, the world is a radioactive wasteland, overrun with mutations and anomalies. Buildings have learned to walk, transmutation has given birth to the blooming science of alchemy, and even the robots have become sentient. Amidst the uncertainty, two warring factions of robots have emerged.
The game world is subject to frequent Anomalies that can inflict long-lasting damage to both teams. Each player begins with several Archons, and the player who loses all Archons first loses the game. Players must create robots that can tolerate onslaughts of Anomalies as they fight the opposing player faction.
2022 Postmortem by “5 Musketeers” (7th-8th)
Battlecode 2021: Campaign
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In the aftermath of the robots’ deadly escape to Mars, Battlecode: Campaign is set amid a tumultuous election in the struggle for longstanding peace.
Check out the Battlecode 2021 Competition Site, where you can read more about the game, and see the results of the tournaments.
Below are a couple of post-mortems providing a competitors’ view of the game. Read them!
2021 Postmortem by “Baby Ducks” (1st)
2021 Postmortem by “Malott Fat Cats” (4th)
2021 Postmortem by “wololo” (7th-8th)
2021 Postmortem by “California Roll” / “Chop Suey” (9th-12th)
2021 Postmortem by “Three Musketeers” (9th-12th)
2021 Postmortem by “llllllll’s Disciple” (HS 3rd)
Battlecode 2020: Soup
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As we all know, the world is changing. Water levels are rising, pollution is becoming a global problem, and we are rapidly depleting our most valuable natural resource: soup. Battlecode 2020 was as much about surviving the changing climate as defeating the enemy team.
Check out the Battlecode 2020 Competition Site, where you can read more about the game, and see the results of the tournaments.
Below are a couple of post-mortems providing a competitors’ view of the game. Read them!
2020 Postmortem by “Java Best Waifu” (1st)
2020 Postmortem by “Battlegaode” (3rd)
2020 Postmortem by “The High Ground” (4th)
2020 Postmortem by “Bowl of Chowder” (5th-6th)
2020 Postmortem by “confused” (HS 2nd)\
Battlecode 2019: Crusade
Watch the 2019 Final Tournament!
Battlecode 2019 had players fight to destroy each other in a great galactic Crusade. The map landscape was scattered impassable terrain, meaning units had to find their way around. All maps were symmetric for fairness. Players won if they destroyed the opponents’ Castles. Available units included castles, chruches, pilgrims, prophets, and preachers, each of which had a difference purpose. Creating different units and taking different actions consumed one or both of the two resources available on each map: Karbonite and Fuel. You can find the source code for Battlecode 2019 on GitHub. Post-mortems are available from “NP-cgw” (Finalist), “smite” (1st), “Big Red Battlecode” (Finalist), “Oak’s Last Disciple”, “Double J” (17th-32nd)
Battlecode 2018: Escape to Mars
Watch the 2018 Final Tournament!
Battlecode 2018 had a Sci-Fi theme in which players controlled different factions of Earth-inhabiting robots in a fight for supremacy as they colonized Mars to escape a dying Earth. Players had to wage war in battlefields both on Mars and Earth. Similarly to many RTS games, players could mine a resource called Karbonite, with which they could build their army. An army could consist of workers, knights, rangers, healers, and mages, each which had different specialties.
The game specifications can be found here, with language-specific documentation in Python, Java and C. Check out the 2018 Github and scaffold. You may find Max Mann’s videos useful as well, particularly his lecture series on how to code a bot for Battlecode 2018 in Python. He provides an installation guide for Battlecode 2018 here. You will also find some tutorials in the Battlecode Youtube channel.
Battlecode 2017
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The zombies have finally died off, and the remaining robots have emerged from their bunkers to find the galaxy in complete disrepair. Infrastructure has been destroyed, and the ecosystem is a complete disaster. To help with the effort, the Robotic Wildlife Fund has set up a donation effort to help restore it to its former glory. Factions vow to come together for the common goal of preserving the environment, but remain competitive and want to show how great they are. In a race to be the most benevolent, factions must either donate the most to the cause, or destroy anyone more altruistic than they are.
Battlecode 2016
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The object of the game was destroy the enemy archons while surviving attacks from zombies.
Battlecode 2015
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The object of the game was destroy the enemy headquarters. Each team has up to six towers on the map, and destroying these towers weakens the enemy.
Battlecode 2014
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The object of the game was to gain milk either by herding cows into pastures or by destroying opponent pastures.
Battlecode 2013
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Compared to previous games, this year’s game featured more of an emphasis on economy and macro strategy. The goal was to destroy the other team.
Battlecode 2012
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The object of the game was to build a chain of power nodes from your base to the enemy’s base.
Battlecode 2011
The 2011 game featured robots with modular components. The goal of the game was to destroy the other team. Unfortunately, we don’t have a video of the 2011 final tournament.
Battlecode 2010
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The object of the game was to gather points by constructing contiguous blocks of buildings. The area contained within the convex hull formed by the buildings generated points each round. Of course, the other way of winning was to wipe out the other team.
Battlecode 2009
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The object of the game was to gather points by mining resource deposits or wipe out the other team.
Battlecode 2008
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The object of the game was to gain territory by capturing towers.
Battlecode 2007
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The object of the game was to destroy the enemy archons or have the most production at the end of the game.
Battlecode 2006
Unfortunately, we don’t have a video of the 2006 RoboCraft Final Tournament. The 2006 game was a “King of the Hill” game in which the object of the game was to spend more time than your opponents on the hill squares.
Battlecode 2005
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The object of the game was to capture the enemy flag or survive when the walls came pushing in as the game ended. Battlecode was still under the name “RoboCraft”.
Battlecode 2003
Watch the 2003 Final Tournament!
The object of the game was to destroy the enemy queen or have a closer unit to your enemy’s queen.