Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator
Written: Apr 26 '02 (Updated Apr 26 '02)
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Pros: Two forms of play consist of solo or link with another robot
Cons: Voice hard to decipher; complicated, no off button
The Bottom Line: A great stress buster for kids and adults pulverizing opponents in the process
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| bonniesayers's Full Review: Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator ... |
During the pre-holiday season for 2001 the commercials were aplenty for the Rock em Sock Em Robots grabbing the attention of my than six year-old son. With each arrival on the television screen he insisted on getting this for himself. I had already picked out his gifts so when his birthday rolled around this past March I found a set of two robots selling at Spiegel.com for forty dollars and ordered without his knowledge. By this time the advertisements had fizzled but there were limited items available so I went with hoping it still had some appeal.
Both of our Rock em Sock em Robots were individually packaged but due to having the option to link another robot for two players to dual it out, I am glad they sold them together. The price has since gone down fifty percent at many online retailers, so now is the time to snatch these Rock em Sock em Robots for fight fans from the age of six and older. Our set consists of Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game and the Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: Red Rocker Hand Held Game.
Although there are three “AAA” batteries already inserted into the Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game, inserting new batteries will take the game out of demo mode or you can try the reset mode button. Once you remove the plastic from the Arco Elecronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game, you will need to rotate the arms into the fighting position. The head can be moved up or left in the lower position. Whenever you press the reset mode the customization and scores will be erased.
The buttons located at the back of the Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game are enter/on and new round. Directly beside these buttons is the control button for the left and right punch. Located below these selections is a black round button with silver knobs to press for left, right, up and down options for your fighter. The battery pack is under the right leg, needing a screwdriver to open and slide the door to remove the batteries. This was rather easy to remove compared to other toys we have.
When the Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game is not being used it goes to the sleep mode within two minutes. When you return to the game and press the enter/on button it will take you to where you left off previously. Your score is not given till the end of each round with the timer showing how long it took and buzzing at completion within the sixty seconds allowed. When you start there is the sound of cheering from a crowd and the bell ringing to begin the bout.
The directions are complex for a child to grasp listed in much detail that an adult will need to read and explain. When you first press the enter/on button for solo play the choice for opponent is shown in the LCD screen. There are nine opponents to choose from with just a stick figure to decide on. Once the selection is made the name of the opponent is given. If you want to customize the options are Y for yes and N for no.
The choices for customizing your Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game are Strength, Health, Armor and Speed, with each option being one the lowest and nine the highest. The health indicates how well the fighter recovers from a fight while the armor is determining how he handles damage during a fight. The speed mode is for moving about the screen. Once these options are chosen they will not be visible on the screen until the choice for another opponent is made.
While you are in fight mode with the Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game the time, score and round. Also listed is fighter and opponent for when you are smart linked to another Rock Em Sock Em Robots. In order to move up to another level you have to beat the opponents and work your way up to the third level. I have achieved level three with 888 points so far with the Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game since placing the batteries in today.
According to the twelve-step direction manual there is a way to turn the sound off but I have yet to figure this out. The sound is annoying and hard to understand, but adds to the excitement hearing POW and the crowds cheering. There are three missile points per fighter, but you need three health points and have to be five steps away from the opponent. Honestly when I am in the fight mode I have not stopped to count the steps and just push the buttons to pound the opponent. In order to fire a missile the down button has to be pressed at the same time as the left or right punch button. The opponent is always moving around and your punches will miss and the missile might not be on target.
You will earn back points when you dodge punches, to land a head punch requires holding the up button the same time as either the left or right punch button. I have found it easier to memorize all these functions before beginning my rounds. For each opponent you defeat you get an enhancement. There is an option to scroll through the opponents to see their fight history before choosing your opponent. The customization screen is not available until you have beaten an opponent.
When a round has been won the opponent’s block will pop up on the LCD screen. However if your block was knocked off there will be a rematch. If you do not win the rematch you will be demoted to the next lower level. This flashes on the screen until you press the new round bringing you both to the middle of the screen and the crowd again cheers. This is with the same opponent and no other option is given. All together there are three fighters per level with each customization a limb enhancement is allowed.
Included with the Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game is a smart link cable that is similar to a phone line plug in. The front of theArco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game contains the spot to snap this in for each Rock Em Sock Em Robots. There are no options for other opponents when you are in this mode. I got the hang of the punching routine down by the third round and was able to consistently press the left and right punch buttons for quick fast paced action. Your fingers will get a good workout although I need to move the LCD screen at times to see the time remaining. The problem with linking to the other Rock Em Sock Em Robots is both players have to press the buttons at the same time making their selections. This is difficult for my son to do for all these selections. He gets confused when we do solo play and thinks we are still duking it out.
This contains only a ninety-day limited warranty with the consumer having to return the product back along with the receipt and only for U.S. residents. Customer service is available during business hours at 1-800-524-TOYS. It turns out I enjoy playing with the Arco Electronic Rock Em Sock Em Robots: X-Cavator Hand Held Game more than my son. This measures about five inches tall and is a heavy-duty solid plastic with the LCD screen roughly 1 ¾ x 1 ¾. At the current price this is a good deal for siblings to battle it out against each other with their scores or using two Rock Em Sock Em Robots
The one complaint I would make is there is no listing of how many points you can achieve each round and how high you can go. I would also like to learn what the voice is saying, too bad there is no website that offers tips for this product, or if there is I have not found it yet.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 20.00
Type of Toy: Action Figure
Age Range of Child: Kids to Teens
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Epinions.com ID:
bonniesayers
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Location: Los Angeles, CA
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