Chapter 1 ‘Is Your Masculinity Threatened? Then You’re Not Man Enough to Play’: Robot Unicorn Attack 2 and Beyond the Gender Challenge
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Abstract
‘Is your masculinity threatened? Then you're not man enough to play’, the tagline for Adult Swim’s 2010 game Robot Unicorn Attack, boldly captures the challenge the game offers. Robot Unicorn Attack ( rua ) confronts the player’s personal boundaries through its use of intentionally feminised visual material and the use of the gay club anthem ‘Always’ by Erasure. By comparison, its sequel, Robot Unicorn Attack 2 developed three years later, was forged under circumstances that fundamentally changed the trajectory of the game and franchise. This paper highlights how the fan reception of the original game altered the context under which the sequel was made, and how concepts of gender and choice informed the sequel’s design development.