Review
Destroy All Humans! (2020) Review: A Faithful Remake
Black Forest Games rebuilt Pandemic's 2005 alien invasion for a new generation and changed almost nothing that mattered. That turns out to be exactly the right call.
Released July 28, 2020Reviewed on Xbox One XAlso on PlayStation 4, PCDeveloper Black Forest GamesPublisher THQ NordicPrice at launch $29.99 USD
Fourteen years after his last outing, Cryptosporidium-137 is back. The setting is still a 1950s America of nuclear families, white picket fences, Red Scare paranoia and the constant threat of the bomb, and the biggest danger turns out to be a small grey alien. Destroy All Humans! is a remake of the 2005 original, and it is ridiculous amounts of fun.
It returns to the arcade-style action common in the early 2000s, without the layers of systems typical of modern open-world games. An arsenal of alien weapons, a fully armed flying saucer and a grudge against the United States turn out to be plenty.
The invasion
The player controls Crypto, a member of the Furon race, sent to recover the body of his predecessor Crypto-136 from Area 42, and to enslave humanity along the way. Guided by his superior Orthopox (Pox), Crypto works through six compact open areas, from farm country to sunny California to top-secret government facilities.
Each area has a handful of straightforward objectives plus optional ones that pay out extra human DNA, the currency for upgrades. Missions include investigating mysterious men in suits, hijacking the airwaves to broadcast a message of “peace”, controlling minds and causing destruction at every opportunity. DNA from missions and hidden alien probes buys weapon and saucer upgrades between missions.
Weapons, minds and disguises
Crypto starts with the Zap-O-Matic and soon adds a Disintegrator Ray that sets people alight, an Ion Detonator that vaporises whole squads, and the infamous Anal Probe. Psychic powers let him read and steer human minds, or extract brains entirely as a snack.
For stealth, Crypto can wear a human disguise called a HoloBob. Copying the right person opens restricted areas and lets him walk around unnoticed.
The saucer is the real toy. Death Ray and Quantum Deconstructor level whole blocks, and the environment is fully destructible, something few modern games bother with. Once Explore is unlocked for an area, players roam freely without objectives, taking on challenges or simply abducting people and cows at will. That open playground, more than the campy main missions, is where the game shines.
A remake that respects the original
Fans of the 2005 game will find it intact: same jokes, same voice actors, same over-the-top missions, same weapons, all rebuilt and polished. Black Forest Games even reworked the original dialogue so it would not need re-recording. J. Grant Albrecht’s Jack Nicholson-style sarcasm as Crypto and Richard Steven Horvitz’s insults as Pox, the same voice behind Invader Zim, are exactly as they were.
Everything is essentially the same, yet it feels far better. That balance is what remakes should aim for. Some remakes fall short of the original; others add features nobody asked for and upset the balance. This one keeps the humour and play of 2005 and still feels like a 2020 release.
There are additions. A previously unreleased mission in Area 42 has Crypto stopping the humans from building their own flying saucer. Explore mode adds challenges: Rampage (maximum casualties), Abduction (bringing specimens back to the mothership) and Armageddon (maximum property damage). Completing all optional objectives on certain stages unlocks new skins for Crypto.
What still feels dated
Faithfulness has a cost. Some NPCs float above benches or car seats where they should be sitting. Mission structures and enemy AI are as simple as they were in 2005; the only real addition is a target lock, which helps but is rarely needed given how fights flow. Returning players will likely enjoy the throwback; newcomers are more likely to notice how basic some of it is.
Value
At half the price of most new releases, it is excellent value. The campaign runs roughly 13 to 15 hours, about as long as the original, and the challenges and skins give reasons to revisit all six areas.
The verdict
Destroy All Humans! is a model of how to remake a classic: true to the original in every way that counts, modern in how it looks and plays. Dated mission design and AI hold it back slightly, but its simple, cheerful destruction is hard to resist. There is no other game that puts the player on the invading side of a 1950s alien invasion with this much wit, and it leaves a strong case for giving Destroy All Humans! 2 the same treatment.
Questions readers ask
Is the Destroy All Humans! remake the same as the original?
Almost. The 2020 remake keeps the 2005 story, missions, weapons and original voice recordings, with new graphics, a target lock, a previously cut Area 42 mission and new Explore challenges.
How long is Destroy All Humans! 2020?
The campaign takes roughly 13 to 15 hours, plus optional challenges and unlockable skins across the six open areas.
Who voices Crypto and Pox in Destroy All Humans!?
J. Grant Albrecht voices Crypto with a Jack Nicholson-style drawl, and Richard Steven Horvitz, the voice of Zim in Invader Zim, plays Pox. The remake reuses their original recordings.