GamesRadar+ Verdict
Reasons to buy
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Depth of NOT shooting at times
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The price
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The frenetic pacing
Reasons to avoid
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Excessive visual clutter
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Sub-optimal camera placement
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The learning curve
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Wow. If you don’t know who game design guru Jeff Minter is, run away. This is not for you. If you do know Jeff, and loved (as we have) his previous games: Tempest 2000, Attack of the Mutant Camels, Gridrunner, and pretty much any game that mentions four-legged mammals in its title, prepare for either heartbreak or wish fulfillment. Minter’s psychedelic blastathon Space Giraffe is here. It is both fresh and timeless, both derivative and unlike anything you’ve ever played. And there's a 95% chance you will either love it dearly or absolutely hate it.
In general terms, this is a hyper-trippy, arcade-style shooter that looks at first to be nearly to Atari’s classic arcade shooter Tempest. You’ve got a vaguely C-shaped, geometric thing – your "giraffe" – that skitters on tiptoe around the rim of 100 differently-shaped levels like a cat trying to swipe a goldfish from its bowl.
