NilbinSec
The DEF CON forum announcement and RENXCHANGE product page identify NilbinSec as the creator of the Hack 'Em Crack 'Em Robots badge set.
SourceDEF CON 33 · United States · 2025
NilbinSec DC33 Hack 'Em Crack 'Em Robots
Unofficial badgelife robot-fighting badge set
NilbinSec's Hack 'Em Crack 'Em Robots was a DEF CON 33 badgelife release announced in the DEF CON #Badge Life forum, sold as a limited full-size badge set through RENXCHANGE, and listed in the DC33 community schedule as a badge drop.
EventDEF CON 33
SeriesDEF CON
LocationLas Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada
CountryUnited States
People
Authors & Credits
2PAC
The DEF CON forum post and DC33 schedule mirror tie 2PAC to the Hack 'Em Crack 'Em Robots announcement and badge-drop slot.
SourceWhy It Mattered
It expands DEF CON 33 coverage beyond the official badge into the hallway badgelife economy, where independent teams fund free SAO drops, ship limited badge sets, and design cross-badge games around EEPROM-backed add-ons.
Hardware
Public product and forum sources describe a main robot-fighting badge with a Raspberry Pi Pico, OLED display, four buttons, badge-to-badge fight mechanics, and two included SAOs: a blue fighter and a red fighter. The sources also describe EEPROM on the SAOs for badge game data and hidden SAO interactions.
Software & Apps
The public trail documents game data stored on SAO EEPROMs, ready-to-play behavior out of the package, badge-to-badge robot fight mechanics, and extra SAO-hosted challenges. This pass does not recover firmware source, protocol documentation, or a public repository, so no implementation-level firmware claims are made.
Lore
The DEF CON forum announcement says NilbinSec had spent the prior three years giving away SAOs at DEF CON and used this first full-size badge release to fund more free SAO production for DEF CON 33. The DC33 schedule entry records a community badge-drop slot at the Badgelife Community area.
Lifecycle
Add-ons & Upgrades
badge-to-badge game
source-backed
Robot-fighting badge game
The product and forum sources describe a main badge that uses onboard controls and supports robot fights against other badges.
Source
distribution event
schedule-backed
Badgelife Community badge drop
The DC33 community schedule lists a Hack 'em Crack 'em Robots badge drop by 2PAC in the Badgelife Community area.
Source
included SAO set
source-backed
Red and blue fighter SAOs
The NilbinSec announcement and product page describe two included SAOs, red and blue fighters, with game data and hidden interactions carried through EEPROM.
SourceOperational history
Issues & Camp Impact
hardware and firmware source gap
note
The public sources document high-level Pico/OLED/button/SAO/EEPROM/game behavior, but this pass did not recover schematics, PCB files, BOM, firmware source, protocol documentation, production files, or a public repository.
Component and firmware claims remain limited to the public product and announcement text, with no invented electronics or implementation details.
- Confidence
- source-backed but incomplete
- Status
- needs public technical archive
- Timeframe
- current catalogue build
- Source note
- DEF CON forum announcement, RENXCHANGE product page, and DC33 schedule mirror.
missing rights-cleared image
note
No NilbinSec DC33 image is published because the forum and product-page images are not paired with a reusable image license, exact attribution, and processing provenance for local publication.
The record stays source-backed and image-free rather than copying product photos, forum images, social-media previews, or generated artwork.
- Confidence
- local project policy
- Status
- needs licensed original replacement
- Timeframe
- current catalogue build
- Source note
- badge.gallery image policy, DEF CON forum announcement, and RENXCHANGE product media.
unofficial badge classification
note
Hack 'Em Crack 'Em Robots is a NilbinSec badgelife release connected to DEF CON 33, not the official DEF CON 33 attendee badge.
The catalogue includes it as an unofficial community badge artifact while keeping the official Mar Williams DEF CON 33 badge as a separate record.
- Confidence
- first-hand forum plus product and schedule sources
- Status
- documented
- Timeframe
- DEF CON 33
- Source note
- DEF CON #Badge Life forum announcement, RENXCHANGE product page, and DC33 schedule mirror.
Resources
DEF CON 33 badge drop schedule
community schedule · DEF CON 33 schedule mirror source listing the Badge Drop - Hack 'em Crack 'em Robots session by 2PAC in the Badgelife Community area.
Hack 'Em Crack 'Em Robots product page
product page · RENXCHANGE product source for the limited DEF CON 33 NilbinSec badge set, Raspberry Pi Pico, OLED, buttons, badge-to-badge fighting game, SAO roles, hidden interactions, and sales/shipping context.
NilbinSec Hack 'Em Crack 'Em Robots announcement
forum announcement · DEF CON #Badge Life forum source for NilbinSec's first full-size badge, SAO giveaway funding, included red and blue SAOs, EEPROM game-data behavior, DEF CON 33 release context, and pricing note.
Sources
DEF CON 33 schedule mirror / 2PAC: Badge Drop - Hack 'em Crack 'em Robots
Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Schedule source placing the NilbinSec badge drop at DEF CON 33 in the Badgelife Community area.
DEF CON Forums / 2PAC: Introducing Hack 'Em Crack 'Em Robots!
Retrieved 2026-05-15 · First-hand badgelife announcement source for NilbinSec's DEF CON 33 full-size badge, prior SAO giveaway context, red/blue SAOs, EEPROM-backed game data, ready-to-play packaging, pricing, and social-media drop plan.
RENXCHANGE: Hack 'Em Crack 'Em Robots - Limited Badge Release for DEF CON 33 by NilbinSec
Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Product-page source for the badge-set name, NilbinSec attribution, Raspberry Pi Pico/OLED/buttons hardware summary, robot-fighting badge-to-badge game behavior, SAO interaction, edition size, and sales/shipping caveats.