Destroy All Humans!

Destroy All Humans! is a video game developed by Pandemic Studios and published by THQ. It was released for the Xbox and PlayStation 2 computer entertainment systems on June 21, 2005. The game is set in 1950s U.S. and parodies the lifestyles, pop culture, and politics of this time period. The player controls Crypto, a member of the Furon race of aliens, who has come to Earth to harvest DNA from humans to continue the cloning process of his species.

The game

In Destroy All Humans!, players assume the role of Cryptosporidium-137 (Crypto for short), a warrior and member of the Furon alien race. After centuries of warfare against inferior species using unchecked nuclear weaponry left their species impotent and without genitalia, the Furons were unable to reproduce sexually and became forced to turn to cloning as means of reproduction, as well as a process by which to achieve immortality. However, after generations of clones, the Furon DNA is degrading, and each clone is becoming less and less stable.

Fortunately for the Furons, a Furon scout ship came across Earth many millennia ago while returning from destroying the Martians. The Furon spacefarers eventually bred with the ancestors of the human race at some point in time, inserting a strand of Furon DNA into the human gene pool.

Because of this, it is revealed, each human contains a small amount of Furon DNA in their genetic code. Crypto is sent to Earth to harvest this DNA from human brain stems, locate and rescue his previous clone, Cryptosporidium-136 (referred to as his brother in the instruction manual), and spearhead a Furon invasion of Earth. The game is set up in a "sandbox" fashion, much like Pandemic's January 2005 game, Playground of Destruction. The player has a selection of weapons and mental abilities at their disposal, as well as access to Crypto's flying saucer. Destroy All Humans! implements the Havok physics engine, allowing for ragdoll effects on bodies and highly destructible environments.

The 1959 B-movie Teenagers from Outer Space becomes available to view once the main story campaign has been completed.

Characters

Cryptosporidium-137 — Wise-cracking, Jack Nicholson-esque protagonist of the game. He has an unlimited amount of clones that will take his place if he dies during a mission, all of which have the same personality, but an increasing number appended to their name (Crypto-138, Crypto-139, and so on). His name comes from the cryptosporidium protist, as THQ said. Voiced by Grant Albrecht.

Cryptosporidium-136 — Our hero's "brother" that he is sent to Earth to find. Unfortunately, he meets an untimely end at the hands of human scientists: dissected in the name of "science."

Orthopox-15 — A Furon scientist who sends Crypto on his missions, and supplies Crypto with saucer and weapon upgrades. Called "Pox" by Crypto, he is the fatherly figure to Crypto. Contrary to what appearances may suggest, Orthopox is not the Emperor of the Furons. The emperor himself is never named or shown during the game. His name may come from the genus Orthopoxvirus. He is voiced by Richard Steven Horvitz, who, coincidentally, provided the voice for the titular character in the cartoon Invader Zim.

Bert Whither — Respected radio newscaster, used by the Furons because of the influence he has over people. With Orthopox tracking his broadcasts throughout the game, he also serves as an informant. Voiced by Jim Ward.

General Armquist — Leader of the American military, out to destroy all Furons (and Communists). He walks with a slight limp on his right side. Voiced by John Cygan.

Silhouette — Shadowy masked figure who seems to be leading Majestic against the Furons. Not much is known about this person, only that she's a female, under the mask. Voiced by Nika Futterman.

Setting

Destroy All Humans! is set in 1950s-period United States and consists of six settings. These include:

Turnipseed Farm, a Midwest farm community.
Rockwell, a small rural town, also located in the Midwest. The name is a pun on sentimental artist Norman Rockwell, and possibly the Roswell UFO incident.
Santa Modesta, a Southern California suburb.
Area 42, an Area 51-style military base in the desert.
Union Town, an Eastern seaboard industrial city.
Capitol City, which looks very much like Washington, D.C.

Most buildings and structures in these environments can be destroyed, although humans can become alarmed by Crypto's presence at these locations, and while some run or hide, others are armed and will fight back. An alert system, much like Grand Theft Auto's "wanted level," denotes how much attention Crypto has attracted. Which can lead to police, military, and eventully a group called the Majestic joining the chase.

The hub of the game is the Furon mothership, in orbit around Earth. From there you can receive missions, upgrade weapons, and view unlocked content. This is also the portal to each of the game's Earth settings.

Furons

Coming from the planet Gorta in the Proxima Centauri system, the Furons are led by their emperor. They have a similar appearance to Greys and are a highly advanced race, who use their technology not only for science, but also for war. And since they are a warlike race, their weaponry is extremely deadly. Orthopox was sent with Crypto-137 to Earth to harvest the brain stems of the ruling race there, like on many other worlds set for Furon invasion, and also to find out what happened to Crypto-136, Crypto-137's (you) clone "brother".

Furon weaponry

The Furons have a wide range of weaponry. The clones sent down to Earth, called Cryptosporidium, carry four weapons with them. All weapons are upgradable by obtaining and spending "DNA", the game's currency. At the start of the game, the Zap-O-Matic is the only weapon available, but the other weapons are unlocked during the course of the story:

Zap-O-Matic: This emits a blue electricity bolt at the enemy for a period of time, yet it wears down the battery. Upgrades allow for 'Chain Lightning' in which a single bolt can jump from one target to the other. Upgrading allows for the lightning to jump to multiple enemies at once.
Anal Probe: Shoots a green jelly-like ball with a green trail into the anus of the victim. A single shot will cause certain people to run into the hills grabbing their ass (this does not happen all the time; for this to happen, you may have to shoot the target several times). Shooting a fully charged anal probe will cause the target to run clutching their ass for a short time, but the sheer impact of such a strong probe will cause the target's head to explode, giving you the maximum amount of DNA possible from the target. No upgrades are available for this weapon.
Disintegrator Ray: Fires a yellow bolt at the enemy, disintegrating them instantly. Once this has been fired, and the target has been disintegrated, a brain stem (or DNA) can not be extracted as the brain has been destroyed. The Disintegrator Ray can also be used to blow up vehicles. Upgrades include double and triple shots, therefore increasing the firepower.Not unlike from the weapon in Mars Attacks.
Ion Detonator: The most destructive. This weapon launches a grenade into the air; the range of the weapon is determined by the length of time the "fire" button is depressed. On the second pull of the trigger, the grenade detonates, "ionising" anything in its blast radius (including Crypto). Upgrades include increased blast radius and damage.

Saucer weaponry

The Furons method of travelling is a flying saucer, heavily equipped with weapons. The weapons are as follows:

Death Ray: This shoots a red beam at the target, incinerating it. This is somewhat similar to the Heat-Ray used by the Martian tripods from The War of the Worlds.
Abducto Beam: When activated, the saucer picks up anything from humans to tanks with a yellow beam of light. The player then has the opportunity to move or throw the object around the environment.
Sonic Boom: Fires a blue concentrated ball of sound at the target, damaging everything in the blast radius. Failing that, this weapon blasts the objects in different directions.
Quantum Deconstructor: The most lethal of all Furon weaponry. This launches a bomb at the target, triggering a green radioactive explosion, obliterating everything in its radius.

Crypto begins the game with the Death Ray and the Abducto Beam, while the other weapons are automatically unlocked as the game progresses.

Mental powers

The Furons have many mental abilities. Using these requires "Concentration", which regenerates. Crypto apparently does not have the higher psychic functions possessed by a Furon such as Orthopox, but in 1950s America, his limited abilities are still impressive.

Psychokinesis: allows Crypto to move any target through the air, and throw them as he wishes. The player has to purchase upgrades if they want the ability to pick up cars, tanks and robots. Lifting the object eats up concentration, and the heavier the object the faster it runs out (so picking up a person will slowly use it up, but lifting a car or a tank will use it up a lot faster). Throwing an object uses a set amount of concentration, and if Crypto only has half, for example, of the required amount, then the object will only travel half the possible distance.
Cortex Scan: reading the minds of a human, or even an animal, can provide comical insight into 1950s life, and also quickly replenishes Crypto's concentration.
Hypno Beam: grants Crypto the ability to implant commands into a human or animal, similar to hypnosis. The basic commands are:
- Distraction: causes the target to sing and dance, distracting nearby humans and quickly reducing the alert meter.
- Sleep: forces the target to sleep. Used in one mission only.
- Follow Me: the ability to command targets to drive vehicles or walk to Crypto's saucer.
Brain Extract This does exactly as it says. Like the anal probe, this ability extracts DNA from the target. The stronger the target (for instance Majestic agents) the longer it takes, and so the more concentration it uses.

HoloBob

The Furons can imitate the appearance of any nearby human. This allows a Furon to travel amongst humans unnoticed, or in some cases, take the appearance of a public figure to send out a message to humans. The HoloBob requires psy energy, or Concetration in the game, which can be continually replenished by reading the thoughts of unknowing humans nearby (or 'scanning' the humans, or animals (cows, chickens etc.)). This disguise is not without flaw, as the Majestic, have the uncanny ability to see through and destroy the disguise. Crypto will flash red when nearing a Majestic.

Enemies

Various humans will fight Crypto on sight, in addition to human civilians who merely run away.

Farmers: Farmers walk around Turnipseed Farm and Rockwell, carrying their shotguns everywhere they go. They will shoot at Crypto on sight. The weakest of the enemies. Cortex scans reveal them to be stupid, often with an odd "love" of their farm animals.

Police: Sometimes patrolling the cities on foot or by car, they will appear once the alertness level reaches the second stage. They are armed with either pistols or shotguns. They take more damage than farmers, requiring two disintegrator shots, more Zap-O-Matic, or longer brain extraction time. Cortex scans reveal them to be crooked cops who feel they are above the law and often taking bribes. They are not present in Area 42, replaced by the Army.

Army: Found patrolling by foot in Area 42, Union City, and Capital City, they will also show up in trucks once alertness level 3 is reached. They carry rifles. Tougher than police. Cortex scans reveal these soldiers to be disgruntled with the Army, but they remain due to their desire to shoot someone.

Majestic: Showing up later in the game, the Majestic patrol the larger cities and will arrive at alertness level four. They carry either laser blasters or more powerful disruptor rifles based on Furon technology. The strongest of the humans, they also seem to be the most comedic humans in the game. Cortex scans reveal them to be intelligent, sometimes dumb though some are hinted at being aliens as well.

Majestic Psi-Mutant: A Majestic agent with modified genes to access their latent Furon DNA. However, they are much less intelligent than normal humans, as evidenced by their thoughts. An example is "One plus one equals...window. Hurr hurr hurr." They attack with force waves, can raise a defense shield, and can send out waves draining Crypto of his mental reserves.

In addition to human enemies, there are also machines.

Tanks: Typically seen at alertness level three with the Army. Tanks shoot at Crypto and at the saucer. They do little damage to the saucer, but one shot will nearly kill Crypto.

Gun Turrets: Small guns that shoot on sight.

Anti-Aircraft Guns: They will lock onto Crypto on the ground, but will only fire at the saucer or if Crypto flies with the jetpack.

Anti-Aircraft Missile Turrets: They will only shoot at the saucer. They fire heat-seeking missiles which do fair damage.

Robots: Seen in Area 42 and Capitol City, as well as briefly in Santa Modesta. They are large automatons that can either shoot Crypto or stomp the ground.

EMP Mines: Majestic tools which emit an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) if Crypto nears them, briefly disabling his weaponry and jetpack.

Tesla Coils: They will fire energy bursts at the saucer doing decent damage. They are best destroyed on foot as they can not fire at Crypto.

There are also three boss characters:

Armquist: Armquist will pilot a giant robot himself. More powerful than the basic robots, it will fire basic shots, a barrage of missiles that will rain down on Crypto, and can stomp the ground if you are nearby.

Roboprez: A 50-foot robotic replacement president built by Majestic, you must use the saucer to fight it.

Silhouette: This final battle takes place at the Octagon. Silhouette has the ability to shield temporarily and heal. Silhouette is armed with a pair of laser pistols.

Reception

Upon release, Destroy All Humans! received mostly positive reviews,^* although some reviewers complained of repetitiveness in mission design and gameplay. Graphics were described in a generally good light, except for the large amount of pop-up in the game. Most praised was the game's satirical tone and comedic gameplay, highly derived from 1950s era science fiction movies. With Crypto's mind-reading abilities an important feature of gameplay, much humor comes from the repressed thoughts these inhabitants of this supposedly-innocent period of American history hold— including their fantasies about taking Bettie Page and Rock Hudson over Doris Day, reactions to the findings of one "Dr. Kinsey", current and possible-future presidents, and of course, the Red Menace.

Of course, just standing idly by a group of people talking while HoloBobbed often yields some funny comments. The phrase "My mind says ___, but my heart/body/stomach says ___" appears a lot as well. The game's writing team included Brad Welch, Dan Teasdale, Matt Harding and Tom Abernathy.

Sequel

At the end of the game, and after the player defeats the final boss, Silhouette mentions that America is not the only area on Earth with humans, and the Majestic will be everywhere that people are. Following the outro movie, the words "THE END" are printed across the Earth. The globe then rotates, bringing into view Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia, before finally appending a question mark.

THQ announced that the sequel was expected to be coming out this autumn for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. The sequel will be set in the 1960s and will include four new open-world environments: Bay City (San Fransisco), Albion (London), Takoshima Island (Tokyo), Tunguska (Moscow), and will also allow you to travel to different planets. There will be new weapons and mental abilities, while the old ones will receive a new look and appear more menacing. Co-operative multiplayer is also planned for inclusion.

Marketing

Those who pre-ordered Destroy All Humans! received either a soundtrack CD or a copy of the 1959 Ed Wood, Jr. sci-fi movie Plan 9 from Outer Space. The game contains many references to the movie, including actual scenes from the movie shown at a drive-in theater, and on the Mothership.

TV show

On October 26, 2005, THQ announced that Fox Broadcasting has purchased the rights to the game and is planning a computer-animated comedy, based on the game, to air in primetime.^* Jim Dauterive, previously of King of the Hill, will be a writer and executive producer of the TV version of Destroy All Humans!

Trivia

"Area 42" is a spoof of Area 51.
"The Octagon", where Crypto fights Silhouette, is a spoof of The Pentagon.
There are several subtle references throughout the game to the Church of the SubGenius, including repeated instances of the name "Bob" (the name even being applied to a major alien power in the game, "holobobbing") and a "J.R. Dobbs Building" in Rockwell.
Leaving the game sit inactive in the mothership for extended periods of time will cause Orthopox to say various things, often meta-references. For example, "Didn't anyone tell you? The game is called "Destroy All Humans!", not "Screw Around on the Mothership!""

External links

Destroy All Humans! official website

2005 computer and video games | Mobile phone games | PlayStation 2 games | THQ games | Xbox games

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