The 2018 FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) game was titled "FIRST POWER UP." Set in an 8-bit, arcade-inspired world, two alliances of three teams each competed to defeat the game's boss by controlling switches and a central scale to earn points. Teams placed power cubes on these field elements to gain ownership and accumulate points over time. During the autonomous period, robots operated using pre-programmed instructions to cross a baseline and place cubes for bonus points. Teams could also deliver cubes to the human player station to activate power-ups—such as Force (temporary control), Boost (double points), and Levitate (a free climb in endgame). In the final 30 seconds, robots attempted to climb the central tower for additional points, simulating "defeating the boss." "FIRST POWER UP" combined fast-paced gameplay with strategic use of power-ups and emphasized both autonomous precision and alliance coordination.

This seasons robot was named the "Big Babushka Bandit" by the team. Babushka could lift the power blocks to all possible vantage points of cube placement. Its lifter uses PID to lift each block to a precise location. There was a storage section for cubes the robot picked up, this was so it wouldn't lose any while moving around and could shoot them in any direction. The Babushka operated on a 6-wheel drop-center drive tank base that was powered by four Cim motors. There was also a design concept for a climbing mechanism that was never implemented. 

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