Browser game of the week: Robot Unicorn Attack Heavy Metal

​Robot Unicorn Attack was a great game, but the Erasure soundtrack and generally puffy visuals might have turned off people who have been looking for something more, ahem, metal. That's really the only reason to release the heavy metal edition, but it's reason enough for us.

Robot Unicorn Attack Heavy Metal has been available for the iPhone for a while now (and Robot Unicorn Attack Christmas Edition was just released for the iPhone too), but the Flash version was left behind until now. And thankfully it's out, because it's the perfect thing to kick any holiday cheer in the ass with a hefty does of Blind Guardian and robot unicorns.

The game is basically identical to the original Robot Unicorn Attack: You play a unicorn running to the right. It's a mechanic taken from the excellent Canabalt and covered in a heavy layer of irony, but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable. Still, there's less irony in the heavy metal version; it feels far more natural and less fake and sugar-coated than the original.

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Once you start playing, you'll realize how easy it is to accidentally waste half an hour. It's remarkably simple; you have only two buttons, jump and dash, but somehow -- like every other running game before it -- it's nearly impossible to resist. You'll get bonus points for capturing imps and smashing through pentagrams, but the main objective is clear: Run as far as you can.

It's nice to have a few things to make it a bit easier on twitchy trigger fingers like the double-jump and dash moves, but it's still impossible to "win" and difficult to get far. Like Pac-Man and every other early coin-op game, it's not about winning; it's about getting the high score. Of course, you can show off your high score on Facebook and on the leaderboards as well.

It's not ground-breaking or innovative, but it's a fun way to waste away the final hours of your day before you start your four-day vacation.

Play it here.