Game Review: Destroy All Humans!
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that DESTROY ALL HUMANS! features
plenty of killing: killing innocents, police officers,
soldiers, government agents, the President, and even cows. But
the game's mischievous, playful tone defuses much of the impact
of the violence. While blowing the brain out of a victim's head
though overzealous use of an anal probe sounds horrific, it's
played for laughs and presented with the kitschy sheen of 1950s
alien invasion movies.
Families may want to talk about whether or not comic relief and a playful spirit make the violence in Destroy All Humans! more palatable. Can a game that keeps track of the number of buildings your raze and humans you slaughter ever qualify as good clean fun? In an era when threats of terrorism dominate the news, is there anything unseemly about being able to totally destroy a digital model of Washington DC?
Common Sense Media Review
Earth (specifically America) in the 1950s looks pretty
harmless from space in Destroy All Humans!, the latest
third-person sci-fi shooter from THQ. Perhaps that's why the
warlike Furon race has decided to invade the planet and enslave
its human inhabitants.
It might also have something to do with collecting human DNA to revitalize the fading alien race, nearly cloned out of existence. Or maybe it has something to do with the Furon scout that was accidentally shot down over a military test site, sending his saucer crashing to the ground and his body into human captivity.
Whatever the reason (and it quickly ceases to matter), the people of Earth aren't going to stand idly by as aliens turn the Sun's third planet into an intergalactic war zone and genetic harvesting ground.
That's where you come in -- warring for the aliens, not the humans.
Players control Cryptosporidium, the sarcastic and mean Furon solider leading the invasion. Crypto (as he is affectionately called by his leader) uses a collection of weapons to collect human brains, fight off military and government agents, and generally cause havoc in the game's six invented American cities. Hand-held weapons like the Zap-o-matic (fires lightning bolt that electrify opponents), ion detonator (a kind of space grenade launcher) and an anal probe (somewhat self-explanatory) help Crypto kill humans and steal their brainstems for Furon use.
Psychokinetic powers allow Crypto to read and control minds, lift heavy objects and forcibly extract human cerebellums. Add to that a mean flying saucer with its own collection of weapons and you're looking at one potent invading force.
Along the way Crypto has to solve some minor puzzles -- such as impersonating a small-town major to convince locals that recent alien activity is actually the work of Soviet spies, or hypnotizing a T.V. personality to use his show as a method of massive mind control. But most of the gameplay focuses on steet-level battles between Crypto and human forces, or saucer-bound aerial assaults where buildings are destroyed, people are vaporized and cars are sent to the junk heap.
It's a fun premise, but while these battles -- both on the ground and in the air -- can be thrilling, they tend to get repetitive. Every building starts to look the same, all the humans explode in the same burst of flames and the thrill begins to wane. Add to that the unending quest for DNA (which allows you to buy the weapons upgrades necessary to advance in the game) and boring mini-missions (fly around the city or tip 10 cows before the clock runs out) and you've got a game that makes a great immediate impact but offers little replay appeal.
