In 2005 I began my journey in Destroy All Humans! to, well, destroy all humans. In 2020 I find myself right back at it again and it’s never felt so good to be so bad. Originally the game was published by THQ and developed by Pandemic Studios. The remake appropriately titled Destroy All Humans! is now published by the new and improved THQ Nordic which owns the intellectual property and developed by Black Forest Games.
Can They Remake Nostalgia?
Let’s snort a big fat line of nostalgia and get right into it. Blasting my way through 1950’s America I find myself astounded at how ahead of its time Destroy All Humans! was. Blowing stuff up, vaporising, disintegrating and anally probing people just never gets old. These are just some of the things Cryptosporidium 137 has on his agenda. Starting off as the classic old-time model for all aliens back in the day you play as a little green spaceman called Cryptosporidium 137. He’s actually grey in the game but I love how they keep referencing that.
Destroy All Humans! has you running through the streets of America as an angry grey alien with an attitude and an insatiable sex drive. Running into 1950’s-era police, military and G-men in black suits. Which I still think is a missed opportunity to call them the Men in Black. You’re an unstoppable force hunting for brain stem DNA. Upgrading your arsenal of weapons, powers and flying saucer as you progress to the game.
1950’s Yet Still Ahead Of Its Time!
Destroy All Humans! was one of the first games to do open-world gaming across multiple levels. What games such as Shadow Warrior 2 or Metro Exodus are doing currently. The original developers did well on portraying a parody on the Cold War anti-communist America and the highly paranoid state of its government back in the 1950s.
That’s why it’s so nice to see that Black Forest has kept all the good stuff from the original game in the remake. All the original voices, level designs and interesting an old level that was scrapped from the original game.Not going to lie, my mouth began to water when I got there.
The diversity in the open world levels is quite applaudable actually. You get to play your way through farmlands, beachside communities, a city and military base. All being decently diverse in their setting. In the 1950’s America’s greatest fear was communism. Now it’s aliens, who they fear are communist.
Same Same, But Different
While it is a remake of the original 2005 version let’s talk about what’s different in Destroy All Humans.It was so nice to see the controls were slightly updated to mimic what most modern games would do. If you played the original it had some clunky handling feature which didn’t deliver a smooth control experience. This was most noticeable from the shooting and the saucer controls. The enemy AI could have done with a little modernising to make it a little more difficult or even to arrive in a smoother transition rather than just spawning on the screen.
The levels have a good diversity in the settings but it could have done with a little more populating to make the game feel lived in. Back in the day of the PS2, we were limited in how many objects we could have moving around the world but today that limitation is mostly gone, so why not add a few more citizens interacting with the world?
How Do We Rate Our Space Overlord?
A simple and satisfying game which there’s a lot to be said for. Just like the original the humour can be hit or miss. Destroy All Humans! makes sure to show you that it doesn’t take itself seriously. You’ll realise that the game wants you to have a good old time. It’s a game that I remember being a lot longer when I was younger. Relatively small compared to any game today. However it’s still a good time for any fans of the original.
For more updates stay tuned to GamEir and check out our Facebook page for everything gaming!
Leave a Reply