Good evening and welcome to the AOL GameDaily news desk. Tark Tarkenton here (not really, that's just a stage name), and we'll get to tonight's top story, competitive bikini waxing, in just a moment. But first, it appears that an outbreak has struck 1960's London, with a small alien named Crypto, the same creature who terrorized innocents in the 50's. Further details can be found on this story in the new THQ game release Destroy All Humans! 2. Unfortunately, there's very little new information to report.

Crypto was available for comment, and explained several reasons for his latest assault. First, he noted hatred for the "Russkies", aka the KGB, as a Russian missile struck his home base above his recently acquired planet, killing his boss Pox and leaving only a virtual guide for his missions. But it appears Crypto also has a distaste for hippies, who have begun to take refuge on his planet and are pretty much creating unnecessary peril. Crypto also muttered something about feuding alien races before packing up his Zap-O-Matic and returning to what he does best: torturing human beings!

After gaining a first-hand view of Crypto's antics, it's easy to see why everything is so familiar. Most of Crypto's abilities are the same, including being able to take over humans and using mind powers to obtain their DNA... or blow off their heads. The flying saucer sequences are still one huge guilty pleasure, but no new weapons are available, leaving a taste for something more. As for the new weapons that are featured in the game's on-foot sequences, such as the Meteor Attack, they don't hold up to the classics. Nothing beats a great anal probe!

Using the aged Xbox hardware, aliens haven't yet updated their technology as quickly as we thought they would have. The game looks good, complete with themed backgrounds, character design, and little animations (swaying hippies, for instance) that fit into the 60's. But some of the finer details are fuzzed out, a victim of out-of-date technical misfires. Perhaps Crypto should make a visit to the nearest Best Buy and snag himself some tools to give him a next-gen sheen.

The sound is pure 60's, through and through. Viewers will find several songs yanked straight from the decade, and will also be treated to humorous (if repetitive) comments and banters from the passersby as Crypto runs about. However, things just aren't as amusing as they were in the previous attack. The sound effects could use more variety as well, as most of them are carried over from the first game.

Pandemic tried to make a few changes to the formula, although they're not quite as good as one would hope. Crypto, it seems, has access to some kind of virtual shopping gallery where he can pick up new items and weapons in his quest for world dominance.

If anything sticks out in this latest assault, it's that Crypto doesn't actually handle all of this by himself. Along with the virtual Pox, Crypto finds assistance from some interesting sources, including a second player who can join the fray at any time for some quick team-up action. There are also some little enjoyable co-op mini-games, including an interesting game of tennis that uses mind abilities.

Destroy All Humans! 2 is decent enough, but it's time for something new. It's great that the little alien that could continues to drive through each decade and make it his, but the creators at Pandemic should consider something new before they begin their assault on the 1970's. It's time for a move to the new consoles, where online co-op and updated visuals would really be out of this world.

Related Links

Destroy All Humans! 2 game page

THQ's home page

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