Some of the very first video games ever made were based on sci-fi concepts, from defending the Earth from incoming harmful objects in Asteroids (1979) to depicting potential warfare to come in Spacewar! (1962). The medium continues to be one of the best ways of portraying futuristic environments grounded within their own scientific or pseudo-scientific worlds, as evidence by recent hits like the Horizon Zero Dawn and Mass Effect series, to name but a few.
While a lot of these science fiction games take themselves extremely seriously, a lot of them are also inspired to take these stories into more wacky directions. These humorous titles are reminiscent of radio plays like The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (1979) or films like Space-Balls (1987). This list seeks to bring together a collection of science-fiction games that will provide players with thrilling future visions that will also make them laugh their socks off.
10 Destroy All Humans!
Destroy All Humans! sees the player take on the role of Cryptosporidium, also known as Crypto, as he attempts to achieve exactly what it says on the front cover: Destroy All Humans!
This game pokes fun at plenty of mid-century sci-fi tropes. Crypto is depicted as a classic "gray" type alien, cows are randomly snatched up into spaceships, and the very setting of the game is a pastiche and parody of 1950s Americana. This game, both in its original and remake forms, is sure to make bringing the human race to its knees a riot of a time.
9 Duke Nukem 3D
Many sci-fi movies feature some kind of scumbag hero, who turns out to reveal a heart of gold by the end of the story. Han Solo of the Star Wars films and Tony Stark in the MCU are some of the best examples.
Duke Nukem 3D doesn't quite flip this trope on its head, but rather does away with it entirely. The eponymous main character starts out with little regard for the humans he is saving, viewing the people around him as foot-stools for his own ego. He ends the story with just as much disregard, and an even bigger ego after having saved the planet.
8 Rex Nubular and the Cosmic Gender Bender
Rex Nubular and the Cosmic Gender Bender's main setting is a planet that depicts the "what-if" scenario of a world where the female sex of a species establishes an oppressive matriarchal society over the males. It's a classic sci-fi trope, usually found in the 1950s and 1960s.
However, as Rex Nubular himself finds out, this situation comes with a slight twist, and it is this twist that provides much of the subversive comedy of the game. The females of the planet can no longer give birth, and so transform the male "Stock" into breeders capable of giving birth, using the titular "Gender Bender." What follows is a tale that feels both ahead of its time, and very much of its own era.
7 Orion Burger
Sci-fi stories have always been used as allegories for real-world issues. From films like the original Godzilla (1954) to video games like Final Fantasy VII (1997), the varying messages and themes of these pieces can reflect heavily on real-world events.
This is what makes Orion Burger so much fun. It is both a legitimate commentary on the real-world meat industry, but remains self-aware of its own allegorical message. It is able to make fun of itself and other sci-fi works with serious messages.
6 Portal 2
The Portal series is essentially one big parody of the "Evil Corporation" trope that is prevalent in many dystopian sci-fi works. The company Aperture Science is depicted with massive disregard for professional work safety, human life, and ethics in science. It's so over the top that in many fans' minds, it is the funniest example of this trope.
The series also pokes fun at the idea of "rogue A.I." Portal 2's two main antagonists are a misanthropic killer A.I in the form of G.L.A.D.O.S, and a power-hungry robot with the capacity for betrayal in the form of Wheatley.
5 South Park: The Stick of Truth
South Park: The Stick of Truth is, for the most part, a parody of fantasy RPGs rather than of sci-fi. Yet, one of the most iconic (and with no doubt most controversial) moments of the game is a parody of the idea of "Alien Probing."
The sequence, which shows the main character being abducted by aliens and then being brutally probed, proved so offensive that some countries, like Australia, refused to release the game unless the moment was heavily censored.
4 The Space Quest Series
The Space Quest series of point-and-click adventure games is essentially one long parody of many, many sci-fi tropes. Indeed, almost every single screen acts as some sort of joke or reference to a larger trope within the genre.
Some highlights from the series include a parody of Mos Eisley cantina from Star Wars in the original game, a tricky sequence from Space Quest III where the player has to outrun what is essentially a robotic Arnold Schwarzenegger from the Terminator series, to heavily spoofing William Shatner in the series' 5th installment. If a sci-fi fan can think of it, this series has probably parodied it.
3 Sunset Overdrive
Sunset Overdrive spends most of its time being an outrageously fun, over-the-top, and intentionally mindless romp of a third-person shooter. But hidden in front of all the noise, it takes a blatant critical look at the powers that corporations have in our society.
Despite being overtly critical, the game decides to parody its rather serious subject matter. This works to prevent the plot of the game from clashing too much with the silliness and all-out absurdity of its gameplay.
2 The Space Bar
It is a shame that The Space Bar seems to have become a rather forgotten title. Many contemporary reviews it was hailed as extremely ahead of its time, with its non-linear approach to storytelling and incredible sense of humor.
The game functions as one big parody of the Mos Eisley Cantina scene from Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, itself being the prime example of the "Bar Full of Aliens" trope. The titular space bar functions as a home to many wacky and wild characters that the player needs to interact with to solve the game's central mystery. In turn, each character acts as a parody of an individual sci-fi trope. It's essentially a detective game, and is a big hit with fans of games like Return of The Obra Dinn.
1 Adventures In The Galaxy Of Fantabulous Wonderment
Sadly, this title is an unreleased gem. In his Let's Play series "Let's Drown Out," video game critic, author, and game developer Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw stated that he did not complete Adventures In The Galaxy of Fantabulous Wonderment because it just wasn't the right time in his life. The fact that this game was never completed is a true shame, as it contains an interesting mix between space-faring adventure game, SIM ship management, and the comedy that would go on to define Croshaw's later novels.
The game was truly an ambitious undertaking for a solo developer, but what really drives home the disappointment of this game never being finished is the glimpses of hilarious parody of TV shows like Star Trek and video games like Elite Dangerous. While technically unavailable, it's possible to get a sense of the overall comedy in this game from the creator's own playthrough on the YouTube Channel, Yahtzee19.