Space Giraffe

Platform: Xbox 360. 400 MS points.
Verdict: Psychedelic Marmite.
Rating: 4/5
Few games rarely generate such divisive opinions yet Jeff Minter’s latest animal inspired opus has exploded the gaming community alight with vitriol and praise in almost equal measures. With its distinctive visual style, sense of humour and dance music, Space giraffe has much to please or offend the gamer.
Taking the classic Tempest 2K (Minter’s popular remake) as its starting point, Space Giraffe is a psychedelic shooter concerned more with synchronised audio/visuals and complex gameplay strategies than actually shooting.
Placing you in control of the titular Space Giraffe, an auto-firing abstracted shape that can move left and right along a floating neon web, you have to destroy enemies floating up towards you. Shooting them is the obvious solution, yet use of the Power Zone, Jump Pods and Bulling technique will net you a far greater score and that’s what dangles in front of Space Giraffe like a virtual carrot made of psychedelic gold.
Points may not mean prizes but they certainly go a long way in giving you an incentive and you can even attempt to topple Minter’s own high score off the leader board. To do so, certain techniques (that notably stray from the Tempest formula) are necessary - charging up the Power Zone allows you to ram enemies off the web when they reach the top. Shooting enemies or using Jump Pods charges the Power Zone so a careful risk/reward balance has to be struck in order to reap the benefits of point heavy Bulling.
Online leader boards, a constant (and in my case damning) assessment of your progress by the game and the continual hypnotic mix of pulsating visuals and synchronised music (including your own custom soundtracks) all serve to egg you on to that next multiplier bonus and brain melting moment of gaming zen as you enter the zone.
Such glory comes at a price though as Space Giraffe is no simple shooter to pick up and play. The tutorial could be more clear cut in its instructions and the ‘trippy’ visuals can get in the way of gameplay but despite its niche shooter status and love it or hate it stylisation, its budget price and sheer exuberance means it should at least be given a chance to puke its addled charms out of your TV.