Terminator Salvation is fun while it lasts; the problem is that it doesn't last long.
User Rating: 6.5 | Terminator Salvation PC
Another high profile movie, another movie tie-in game and this time its Terminator Salvation, based upon the film directed by McG and starring Christian Bale and Sam Worthington. The game was released on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 a few days before the film came out in theaters but the PC version had some installation error, leading to a total product recall. I just got my hands on the game yesterday and I have beaten it...today. Terminator Salvation has a few neat ideas but the overall game is just too easy and the pacing feels rushed. Taking place in 2016, two years before the film, you play as John Conner, still an up-and-coming soldier with the Resistance. Conner and his team are in full retreat battling the T-600's but before they can get back to base, they receive a distress call of a group of Resistance fighters trapped deep in enemy territory. Conner goes rogue and with a small team, resolves to rescue the group. As you can see, the plot is quite flimsy but at least it gives you an excuse to pump lead into Terminators. The game plays like Rainbow Six Vegas or GRIN's own Wanted Weapons of Fate, where you take cover with pop-and-shoot gunplay. You get into cover with the Spacebar and if you hold the WASD keys, you'll get a semicircle with a white dot, showing all possible cover locations you can move to. Its a well-done gameplay mechanic but sadly, its the only unique feature. You'll have your standard assault rifles, shotguns, RPGs and there will be grenades aplenty. Enemies are kinda smart but the T-600's never really flank you. The T-7T's, the one that moves like a spider, are more cautious as you can only destroy them from the back. There are also the Aerostats, more like annoying pests as they can be killed with a few gunfire bursts. The last enemy type is the HK but apparently they are so weak, 4 RPG's can kill them. While you encounter a Harvester, you never get to fight one and a cutscene just shows you have managed to disabled it. At least you do get to pilot it, with the famous red Terminator HUD. The enemy list is pretty small and even you're faced with overwhelming odds, there's plenty of ammo to be found. Considering how hard it was to destroy a Terminator in the first movie, its weird seeing Conner kill 4 with just a grenade launcher and a few bursts to the head. Graphics are okay, its the same engine as Wanted but some of the ground textures are muddled. It just looks very...polygonal. Bale opted out to voice the game so Conner looks like some regular shmuck but Moon Bloodgood and Common voice their respective characters in the film. Rose McGowan also voices a character exclusive to the game. Music is an orchestral score with the Terminator themes playing. There is no multiplayer except single player and co-op; it was probably omitted due to the lack of time. The PC version runs pretty well, between 60 to 80 frames and yes, there are no video settings besides resolution and aspect ratio. Terminator Salvation's 9 chapters can be completed in 5 hours; you'll also get interrupted by cutscenes alot. This game is really not worth $60 for consoles and if you must play, just rent the game and PC people....there are better stuff to play but if you are really interested, I can't stop you from buying. The game is fun for the weekend but that's pretty much it, just another throw-away movie tie-in game.
