.7 \ , // |\.--._/|// /\ ) ) ).'/ /( \ // / /( J`((_/ \ / ) | _\ / /|) \ eJ L | \ L \ L L / \ J `. J L | ) L \/ \ / \ J (\ / _....___ | \ \ \``` ,.._.-' '''--...-||\ -. \ \ .'.=.' ` `.\ [ Y / / \] J Y / Y Robot Unicorn Attack Y L | | | | L | | | \ A J | I | /I\ / | \ I \ ( |]/| J \ /._ / -tI/ | L ) / /'-------'J `'-:. J .' ,' ,' , \ `'-.__ \ \ T ,' ,' )\ /| ';'---7 / \| ,'L Y...-' / _.' / \ / / J Y | J .'-' / ,--.( / L | J L -' .' / | /\ | J. L J .-;.-/ | \ .' / J L`-J L____,.-'` | _.-' | L J L J `` J | J L | L J | L J L \ L \ | L ) _.'\ ) _.'\ L \('` \ ('` \ ======== ) _.'\`-....'================== `-....'============================== ('` \ ======== `-.___/ Mrmehmeep===================================================== =============================================================================== Robot Unicorn Attack Game Mechanics Version 1.21, 06/01/2010 Copyright 2010 ZancleCornu =============================================================================== =============================================================================== Table of Contents =============================================================================== 1. Table of Contents 2. Legal Mumbo Jumbo 3. Update History 4. Introduction 5. Game Concept 6. Unicorn Mechanics i. Unicorn ii. Jump iii.Dash 7. Game Elements i. Pixies ii. Star Structures iii.Death iv. Dolphins 8. Frequently Asked Questions 9. Song Lyrics 10.Closing 11.Contact 12.Credits =============================================================================== Legal Mumbo Jumbo =============================================================================== This guide may not be reproduced under any circumstances except personal or private use. It is not to be placed on any website or other source of public distribution without written permission. Use of this guide on any other website is strictly prhibited and a violation of copyright. All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their respective trademark and copyright holders. =============================================================================== Update History =============================================================================== Version 1.21 (6/01/2010) Rob from www.robvincent.net corrected a line in the song; thanks Rob! Version 1.20 (5/19/2010) Yesha Ouyang found me a wonderful ASCII unicorn for the guide, which I affixed to the top, and going to a new version of the guide; song lyrics were added Version 1.15 (5/18/2010) Yesha Ouyang added a few more corrections about dashing, in particular the ability to dash ledges and wait times Version 1.14 (5/18/2010) Fixed some more minor errors like formatting and typos Version 1.13 (5/17/2010) Fixed some typos, kudos to Mr. Zeng Version 1.12 (5/17/2010) Fixed even more corrections sent in by cool people; there were so many updates today because the first version finally got accepeted by GameFAQs and people were quick to comment on my guide; thanks folks Version 1.11 (5/17/2010) Fixed some corrections sent in by cool people; affixed them to credits; started Frequently Asked Questions due to the plethora of questions asked Version 1.10 (5/17/2010) Added ASCII unicorn; decided to go up a whole 0.1 version because of how substantive it is Version 1.03 (5/15/2010) Added Yesha to credits to accomodate his assistance in helping write this guide Version 1.02 (5/15/2010) Added some notes to dash mechanics; changed a heading Version 1.01 (5/14/2010) Margins fixed; some typos fixed; contact details added Version 1.00 (5/14/2010) Guide first written =============================================================================== Introduction =============================================================================== First of all, welcome to the sad and horrible world of Robot Unicorn Attack. Although the game may fool you with its pretty graphics and terribly optimistic themes, be forewarned that this game will easily take over your life in the most insiduous of ways. Your life will be at this game's every command, and you will never be able to escape. As Robot Unicorn Attack itself puts it, "Persistence is futile!" This game looks to be a rather simple one. I mean, only two buttons? Pfft, I'm going to go do something more meaningful, right? Ah, if only. This game has a vicious mechanic to it: a score. And guess what? You don't have the highest score! (If you do, why are you reading this?) Unfortunately, neither do I and this guide wasn't written to help you get over 4.1 million points. It will however, provide a simple introduction to this horrific realm of rainbows, robots and unicorns. You can put away your illicit hallucinogens, because Robot Unicorn Attack provides an incredible, "out of this world," experience like no other. =============================================================================== Game Concept =============================================================================== Robot Unicorn Attack features a protagonist in the shape of a robotic unicorn. The unicorn is unnamed, but decked to the teeth with a myriad of fabulous musings. You'll note a flaming rainbow mane along with flashy stars that come out as you run. This is the character you take control of. The game features a bleak landscape that the aforementioned unicorn must aimlessly traverse across. This is where all of the action takes place, in a simple sidescrolling environment. The landscape is built of small squatches of land that you must jump to and fro. Whoa, you just learned pretty much everything about the game! The unicorn naturally moves across the landscape, and you get points as long as you are not dead. That is to say, as long as you are still moving, you are getting points. Robot Unicorn Attack doesn't feature much in the way of achievements, a campaign or much else, so this score is really all that matters. You are equipped with just two weapons: the ability to jump and the ability to dash. Although you may not think much of them now, you will soon realize that a combination of the two is absolutely necessary to progress well at this game. Although there are just two buttons controlling these two valuable abilities, the game will end a lot sooner than you think. As Robot Unicorn Attack puts it, "You will fail!" =============================================================================== Unicorn Mechanics =============================================================================== UNICORN: The robot unicorn is the character you control. As said above, the unicorn is constantly moving across the screen at an increasing velocity. There are two main functions it is capable of; JUMPING and DASHING. -> JUMP Press the "Z" key to jump. The unicorn, is capable of two jumps. Even if the unicorn finds themself in the air without jumping into it (that is, the unicorn ran off a ledge) the unicorn is still capable of two jumps. After touching the ground, you regain both of your jumps again. After dashing, the unicorn gets an additional jump. Holding down the "Z" key gives your jump more height and also a further range. It is important to be able to control your jumps. -> DASH Press the "X" key to dash. The game formally refers to this as "RAINBOW ATTACK" on the start screen but as bad ass as that is, in-game they tell you to "DASH (X)" so I'm just going to call it that. The main function of this is for breaking STAR STRUCTURES. (More on that to follow) When you dash, you dash along whatever surface you are on. For example, if there is a groove on the ground and you dash along it, you will dash in that curve. This is particularly useful when there are minute ledges, as you can often dash over them without the need to jump!* This ground hugging feature only works when the ground is sloping up; if the ground slopes down the unicorn will dash forward without any upward or downward influence, similar to a jump in the air. You can still dash over small ledges with DASH, though. Dashing over ledges with the dash can be done, but you already have to have a certain amount of height to do so. For example, merely running will result in a crash, but if you employ the DASH with even a small jump, you can clear ledges. Velocity has no impact on being able to jump over dash, but at higher velocity your jumps will naturally have more oomph and it will be slightly easier to do the short hops needed to dash over ledges. In the air, the dash cancels any upward or downward momentum you had and propels the unicorn immediately forward horizontally. This is useful if your jump would thrust you over into land, or if you need just a bit more horizontal coverage to clear a jump. If you use it so that you would move into a slight groove or curve above you, you would slide along this curve as you would with regards to curves on the ground. The dash has the capability to destroy STAR STRUCTURES from the moment you press the "X" key up until a split second before you are able to dash again. The dash cannot be used consistently; there is a bit of a pause between dashes. However, even when the dash animation ends it still has the capability to destroy STAR STRUCTURES. Keep this in mind, and don't falter when it looks like you may crash into a STAR STRUCTURE at the end of your dash. I've been able to dashes at about one dash per second, so it appears that that would be the effective wait time between dashes. However, the capability to destroy star structures lingers on for a fraction of a second even after the first dash is "over" and even when the animation has ended. =============================================================================== Game Elements =============================================================================== PIXIES: These indistinguishable beings look like different things contingent on the eye of the beholder. I've always regarded them as fairies, but another player told me they were butterflies. I think I heard the term pixie thrown around, and I think it most accurately sums up the appearance and purpose of them, so I'll go with that for this guide. Despite their murkiness upon first sight, an enlarged picture has confirmed that the pixies are in fact not butterflies. They are very obviously either a fairy or a pixie. Perhaps they could also be a faerie. The pixies are small, about 3/4 the size of the unicorn. They are present at the end of a small scrap of landscape and are usually at a slight elevation. They are placed so that if your jump goes through, your landing ends up being very appropriate. It's a good idea to try and aim for them because it makes keeping track of jumps easier, and they usually land you in a good position. Getting the pixies also nets you bonus points, and since the game is all about getting a score it's important that you boost your score in whatever way you can. The pixies have a simple multiplier. The first one gets you 10 points, the second 20, the third 30 and so on. Each consecutive pixie increases the amount of points per pixie by 10. However, if you miss any pixies, the multiplier gets reset and it begins once again. STAR STRUCTURES: These star structures look like stars and if you run into them, they cause DEATH. However, if you DASH through them, they will net you a lot of points! They are placed in seemingly random locations throughout the stages, and their appearance is never certain. At higher velocities, they appear more frequently. You can dash through them, netting the point score, or you can simply avoid them. The star structures have a simple multiplier. The first one gets you 100 points, the second 200, the third 300 and so on. Each consecutive star structure increases the amount of points per star structure by 100. However, if you miss any star structures, the multiplier gets reset and it begins once again. I, personally, have found myself in situations where the multiplier continued even though I missed a star structure. However, much more frequently I've found that that isn't true. A possible theory I've come to terms with is the lag nets you the increased score, but then the next star will reset back to 100. I've yet to confirm this, but contact me if you have more concise information. DEATH: Death is prominent in this game. Death can be incurred in several different ways. You can die by: -Crashing headfirst into a elevated edges or hanging ground -Falling -Contacting a star structure without dashing Each of these will result in a fiery explosion proceeded by the unicorn's head being blown off screen. DOLPHINS: Dolphins make you happy. The more dolphins there are, the happier you will be. Generally, the presence of dolphins means you are proceeding well into the level. More dolphins means you are further along. =============================================================================== Song Lyrics =============================================================================== The song featured in Robot Unicorn Attack is "Always" by Erasure. Erasure is a synthpop duo from England, with prominent New Wave influence. They are really cool guys, basically. Anyways, without further ado, Erasure - Always Open your eyes I see Your eyes are open Wear no disguise for me Come into the open [prechorus] When it's cold outside Am I here in vain? Hold on to the night There will be no shame [chorus] Always, I wanna be with you And make believe with you And live in harmony, harmony oh love I wanna be with you And make believe with you And live in harmony, harmony oh love Melting the ice for me Jump into the ocean Hold back the tide I see Your love in motion [prechorus] [chorus] [prechorus] [chorus] I wanna be with you And make believe with you And live in harmony, harmony oh love I wanna be with you And make believe with you And live in harmony, harmony oh love I wanna be with you And make believe with you And live in harmony, harmony oh love [fade out] =============================================================================== Closing =============================================================================== There you are! A short introduction to the fantastical world of Robot Unicorn Attack with a little introduction to some of the finer concepts. Sure, this guide isn't incredibly concise or anything, but then again, this is a game with two buttons for Pete's sake! I created this guide because as I played the game, many of the mechanics, the star multiplier in particular, confused and irked me to no end. Thus, I enlisted the help of a few friends by asking them irritating questions while they played the game to confirm some mechanics. Then, with some of my own testing I deduced a few of them, but still need to confirm some of the details. Be wary as you play Robot Unicorn Attack; the game gets addicting really quick. Reckless playing at a social event amongst my peer group led to us competing within ourselves for the highest score. I managed to nab it on 05/14/10, but there's still a lot of time left. Furthermore, the international high score is crazy high; there's still a lot of work let for you and I. Here's to Robot Unicorn Attack. "Always, I wanna be with you and make believe with you and live in harmony harmony oh love" =============================================================================== Frequently Asked Questions =============================================================================== Q. What are unicorns? A. Flamboyantly coloured horses with a narwhal-esque horn upon its head. They are made of everything pure, good and fabulous. The ingredient to make the Powerpuff Girls were harvested from unicorns. They are endangered now because of the incredible demand for their use in merchandising crappily made products to young girls and boys. Q. Must I be under the influence of narcotics while playing this game? A. Well, you don't *have* to be, not that I would suggest you do. The "x" and "z" keys are awfully close together and it would be a shame if you flubbed that up. Q. What's a good tactic for survival? A. There's two tactics I'm accustomed to. 1. Dash upon every landing, and use that momentum without fear of running into any star structures. The speed and power will let you power through most levels. Jumping becomes a tad tricky as you progress. 2. Use your middair dash to progress through levels, ignoring any obstacles and just powering through the stage. This method may make it easier to make tricky jumps even at high velocities, but as you're floating over the stage as opposed to running on the ground, you'll miss out on a lot of points. It's usually a good idea to aim for the pixies as they give you, for the most part, a good indication of where to aim for with your jumps. These are but two tactics I've familiarized myself with. I'm sure there's more, don't hesitate to inform me. Q. Why is the background so psychedelic? A. I said you don't need to be under the influence of narcotics to play this game! =============================================================================== Contact =============================================================================== You can contact me at bearnescities@gmail.com Feel free to do so if you have any questions. Even more than that, I would appreciate it greatly if you are able to tell me things like, "in your guide you said x happens but for me y happened instead." The purpose of the guide was to confirm the mechanics, and I would still like more data to be sure of my information. =============================================================================== Credits =============================================================================== -To Adult Swim for creating this marvelously infuriating game; -To Yesha Ouyang for finding a wonderful ASCII unicorn as well as a myriad of other indispensable information; you truly deserve your own bullet, bud; -To my wonderful friends who introduced me to this sickeningly entrancing game; -To Erasure, for the composition of Always, the song that cements this disgusting game's perfection; -Furthermore, to the following for finding mistakes and/or introducing new critical information: >Joel Zhang, for fixing some ambigiuous wording concerning multipliers and for confirming that the pixies were in fact, pixies/fairies and not butterflies; >Jonathan Zeng, for dilligently correcting all my horrendous typos; >Vyas Saran, for his wonderful suggestions; >Rob T Firefly, for his correction of the song lyrics;