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California-based MegaBots spells out its mission pretty clearly on the company’s website: Giant fighting robots. So far, though, they’re only two-thirds of the way to that goal.

The MegaBot Mark II is clearly a robot, and definitely giant, but it hasn’t really done much fighting yet. Since no one wants to watch giant robots grapple with their inner psychological demons and emotional issues, the Mark II needs an opponent, and its American designers have decided to throw the gauntlet all the way across the Pacific, releasing a video officially challenging Japan’s own currently on-sale giant robot to a duel.

The video showcasing the MegaBot Mark II is full of swagger, as you’d expect from a company which uses multiple variants of the word “badass” in the section of its website describing its organization and employees.

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Not only do we see a Mark II being put together in the factory, we also see it in action, blasting sponsor signs and parked cars with its massive paintball cannon.

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Those are all the sort of things you expect to see in a giant robot promotional video, but one thing does seem out of place. Despite the patriotic bombast of the presenters’ costumes and the video’s background music, the video is subtitled in Japanese.

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That’s because as proud as MegaBots is of its creation, the Americans know they’re not the only team to put together a giant, pilotable robot. There’s also Japan’s Suidobashi Heavy Industries and the Kuratas, which you can buy from Amazon Japan.

▼ The Kuratas at this year’s Tokyo Toy Show

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So, after introducing viewers to the MegaBot Mark II, one of the presenters faces the camera and addresses the Japanese outfit:

“Suidobashi, we have a giant robot. You have a giant robot. You know what needs to happen. We challenge you to a duel.”

▼ The translator also decided to go with omaetachi, “you punks,” in the subtitles, just to add an extra dash of bellicosity.

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Let’s take a look at the tale of the tape for the two prospective combatants.

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● Height
MegaBot Mark II: 4.6 meters (15 feet)
Kuratas: 3 meters (12.5 feet)

● Weight
MegaBot Mark II: 5,455 kilograms (12,000 pounds)
Kuratas: 5,000 kilograms (11,023 pounds)

Of course the American robot is bigger and heavier. We won’t know whether that means the Mark II is more amply armored or the Kuratas is more maneuverable until they step into the arena, however.

● Currently available armaments
MegaBot Mark II: Cannons that fire three-pound (1.4-kilogram) paintballs at over 100 miles per hour (161 miles per hour) according to Megabots’ video, or 120 miles per hour according to its website.
Kuratas: BB Gatling gun and plastic non-incendiary rocket launcher.

● Number of pilots
MegaBot Mark II: Two
Kuratas: One

The difference in number of human operators is a bit of a wild card. Ostensibly, having two pilots should allow them to divvy up combat responsibilities, with, for instance, one concentrating on movement and the other on managing the weapons system, like in modern two-seat military aircraft.

But if years of watching mecha anime have taught us anything, it’s that it’s impossible for two people to share piloting duties in a giant robot without developing a palpable amount of romantic and/or sexual tension. Will the MegaBot pilots be able to work through their differences by playing lots of Dance Dance Revolution knockoffs together, or will the solo-controlled Kuratas be able to lay down fire at its leisure while the MegaBot duo bicker over how “I didn’t choose this color of paintball because I like you or anything!”

Suidobashi has yet to respond to the video, but MegaBots draws a clear line in the sand, concluding its presentation by telling the Japanese company:

“Prepare yourselves and name the battlefield. In one year, we fight.”

Related: Megabots official website
Source: Jin
Top image: YouTube/MegaBots Inc
Insert images: YouTube/MegaBots Inc, RocketNews24, (edited by RocketNews24)
Kuratas photos ©RocketNews24