Destroy All Humans - Pandemic - Xbox

[schild]

Did you ever think to yourself, "Grand Theft Auto is a good game, but it has too much driving because I love running around, people should scream when they see me and I really should be able to use an anal probe as a weapon"?

Of course you haven't. Regardless, Destroy All Humans exists to fill this void.

Destroy All Humans' biggest issue is that by the end of the first three missions, you've seen every facet of the game. Your surly Jack Nicholson-sounding alien called Cryptosporidium-137 kills humans, expodes their heads in order to collect the DNA in their brains (the currency used to buy upgrades), reads the minds of humans to obtain information and flies around in a saucer armed with a death ray that can level buildings. That's pretty much the game. There are various objectives in each mission (most of which are pretty short) but there's not a lot of variation, just new weapons that achieve your goals.

This damns this game with faint praise to some extent. The setting and dialogue is clever (but not funny ha-ha) and based on 1940's / 50's American stereotypes facing the Red Threat - mocking white bread America never gets old. Blowing up things in your saucer is fun. Being able to disguise Crypto-137 as a person and wander around the suburbs has its charms. But there is not a lot to the game.

One thing that does particularly irritate though is the currency collection aspect. Since you can only harvest the brain of one human at a time, and a brain will usually only give between 10 and 100 DNA at a time, you can spend some time in this process and it's honestly just a grind. The Anal Probe is probably the most efficient way of collecting DNA (it's not as exciting and / or perverse as you think) but it's still a laboured process.

Destroy All Humans is certainly quirky - you can unlock a full version of "Plan 9 From Outer Space" to watch as part of the gameplay - but sadly it's a bit shallow and repetitive. As a game it's probably best suited to fans of B-movies or those wanting a short-term distraction.

RATING: Rent It

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Sent in by UnSub.

[HaemishM]

I take it this is talking about the first DAH game? If so, you're review was pretty spot on. It's a fun and funny damn game, but the environments don't have the randomness and depth that make the GTA parts really worthy of being called GTA parts.

[Xanthippe]

I loved the first one, thought the second merely ok.  Haven't played the latest yet.

For some reason, it's relaxing to just fly around and blow everything up from the saucer.

[Sky]

I thought it was fun, got it out of the bargain bin. I agree 100% with the BIIF. Short, repetetive, but fun. Good rental or bin game.

[UnSub]

Yeah, it's the first DAH game. I picked it up very cheap for my Xbox a while back.

It's turned me off trying DAH 2 or any other sequels.

[rk47]

something like assassin creed with an alien twist to it?
Is there a PC port? I'm still cautiously waiting for A'Creed PC Port, played the console version on friend's house, he warned me the rest of the game would just be like the first 3 missions. But I enjoyed it nonetheless.