Post by: whilhorst on September 03, 2026, 11:15:00 AM
The King of the Monsters Comes Back to Show Us How It Is Done
As much as I adore the big lizard, I’ll have to admit that I’ve never really played a Godzilla game. Which to me, as a massive classic Godzilla fan feels like I’ve been missing out. But after going toe-to-toe with Leon in Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee - Remastered I’m pretty sure I’ve taken a crash course of the peak in 2005. This melee brawler feels like a great entry point for 3D arena fighters while a ton of movesets and treats for fans of the King of all monsters.
During our demo we were dropped straight into the action. In a one-on-one fight you can choose from a wide selection of Godzilla icons. Of course the King himself in several iterations is here, but King Ghidora, Anguirus and Gigan were all playable. Each monster comes with its own unique moveset and abilities that we quickly got the hang of. Grabbing not just the opponent, but buildings and environmental pieces can be picked up and thrown across the map as well. Charging your atomic breath or ranged attack takes time, but can really knock monsters around as well. What really struck me is that the game is a lot slower and more tactical than most fighting games I’ve played. That’s not a detriment, it makes the monsters feel weighty and true to their depiction in the film. I half expected the monsters to take off a mask and show the human performer inside the suit.
Thankfully the game leans into the weirdness of the Godzilla series. Power-ups can be picked up to unleash a supporting attack, such as Mothra when playing as Godzilla. I never felt like the fights never became too one-sided. Until the very last bit of the health bar was removed I still thought I had a chance against Leon, though ultimately his timely dodges did beat my strategy of getting up in his face. Pipeworks Software has apparently stayed as true as possible to the original design, but quite literally wrapping the code of the original into Unreal Engine 5. Making the game visually look better, but retaining that feel of the GameCube title.
In terms of modes we only got to play around with the one-on-one versus mode. Though I was told that all the original modes will make a return in this version and the game will support online gameplay as well. At the end of every match points are received that can be used to unlock new characters, stages and gallery art pieces. While there are slight tweaks and additions to the overall experience, such as a new local co-op mode and weather effects to choose from on the stages, you can pretty much expect a true to form remaster here.
And I think that emphasizes the back-to-basics approach that Pipeworks is taking here. It was so much fun to grunt and shout at each other while trying to make punches and kicks connect. We got really excited breaking through a wall of boulders and we began tossing each other into a fiery lake of magma. Game like these were great on the GameCube because of the excitement playing against your friends on the couch. Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee Remastered is totally a throwback of this era of games. Without battle passes, live-services and paying for additional characters it is refreshing almost 25 years later.
