Work/Destroy All Humans!
Destroy All Humans!
Controller-first UX, haptic feedback and a HUD that stays readable in the middle of the chaos.
- Role
- Senior UX/UI Designer
- Studio
- Black Forest Games · THQ Nordic
- Platform
- PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
- Year
- 2020
Overview
Destroy All Humans! is Black Forest Games' remake of the 2005 classic.
The challenge
A destructible sandbox where players need to read their status and weapons at a glance, without the UI breaking immersion.
My role
Senior UX/UI Designer on the HUD, menus and controller experience.
What I did
- Designed for controllers first, across controller types, which allowed a cleaner UI than touch.
- Designed haptic feedback for alerts, impacts and the destruction of buildings and vehicles.
- Worked on three layers of UI: the in-game HUD, the weapons submenu that shows what each weapon does, and off-game screens like settings, library and missions.
- Streamlined the pause menu, cutting steps to reach the Datacore and the Furon Handbook.
- Reworked the Mothership flow so upgrades and the Holobook sit in one place.
Outcome
Launched in July 2020 on PC, PlayStation and Xbox, later on Switch, and sold more than a million copies by May 2021, beating THQ Nordic's expectations.
What I learned
Feedback isn't only visual. A well-timed vibration can replace a line of UI.
Gallery
7 images · click to enlargeLet's build a better player experience.
Whether you need fresh eyes on your onboarding, a partner through your next milestone or someone to lead UX and creative direction, I'd love to hear about your game.