The Terminator franchise has been around for as long as I can remember having conscious thought. It has taken some 15 years for game developers to create a game that is even playable, and Terminator 3: Redemption is the best game in the franchise so far. Does that necessarily mean that it is a great game? No, but neither is it a horrid experience. In fact, I’d venture a recommendation for fans of the movies to at least keep an open mind and try this latest game from Atari.
Redemption takes the same path as Atari’s last big budget game; Enter the Matrix (not that we should hold that against them) in crafting an experience concurrent to the movie-going experience. The plot of the game takes place in between Terminator 2 and 3, with the ending playing out where the third movie picks up. This allowed the developers to create a story that is in sync with the themes of the films, while creating an entirely new story for the fans. You, of course, play as the titular T850 in a quest to reach a time portal, which is deep in enemy territory. The story should be familiar to anybody who sat through T3, and it will not disappoint fans.
The problem with the storyline, however, is the fact that most gamers will not dedicate enough time to finish it, due to the extreme difficulty. The first mission alone took me several tries just to complete. Normally this would set me singing about the return of old school difficulty levels and the weakness of today’s general gaming populace. The truth of the matter is that the difficulty is only due to vague mission objectives, and the severe imbalance in the gameplay mechanics. Your terminator seems to be made out of paper mache, instead of metal. For every enemy you face, you are sure to lose health, and though there are a few different ways to heal, most of them cause more harm then good.
For instance, you have a up close move that drains the energy of the opposing terminators, but you have to within arms reach of them to do it. This means that the whole time you are trying to reach them, they are gleefully pumping round after round into you. Other than that, your enemies tend to have uncanny aim, even when cruising in a vehicle at enormous speeds. While that again might be in line with the Mythos of the Terminator franchise, it doesn’t help the game become any less frustrating. One level has you riding a giant tank, which should give you a feeling of invincibility, but ironically enough, the tank is the most fragile vehicle in the game. Little imbalances like this really pull down the entire experience.
The gameplay is fun in short doses, though the mission objectives are split into only two separate categories. The first, and least fun, has you running around as the T850 in a basic third person action setup. There is nothing new here, but it is really well polished, and far out strips the previous efforts to bring the movies to a console. The second branch of the game is actually quite fun, though not at all any less frustrating than the on-foot missions. This part has you hopping into various vehicles, from cars to two-wheeled machine controlled vehicles, which control better than half the racing games I’ve reviewed. Kudos to whoever was in charge of the physics for the on land vehicles, as this was the best part of the game. You are given control over the movement of the vehicle, as well as the gun control so the battles can get a little overwhelming at times.
There is a definite pacing issue, between the slower on foot missions, and the insanely fast vehicle issues. I felt as the latter was the reward for slogging through the unfair run around missions. Those were the biggest areas of unfair difficulty in the game. When you died in most of the vehicle missions, (save for the tank level) you felt as if you earned the death, where as the run-and-gun levels were often far too difficult to enjoy.
One thing that does not lack in this title is the production values. Somehow, in between making T3 and running for public office, Arnold sat down and recorded all the one-liners that have made him famous. It is slightly amusing to think that the ruler of the fourth largest economy still found time to spout off dialogue such as “Take me to Skynet.” The voice acting and sound production of this game are really top-notch, as is the level designs and graphics engine. Nobody expected this game to look and feel this good, probably not even the suit who originally pitched the idea for this game. The graphics are very detailed, and the real-time damage to Arnold alone is worth at least a rental. I was continually surprised by the little touches that can be found throughout the game. Little references to the movies can be found throughout, as well as some surprisingly subtle bits of humour.
If you are a fan of the movies, then there is no reason why you should not at least try this game. It can be difficult, sometimes unfairly so, but the game itself is fairly solid. If this team handles the property from here on out, there is no reason why the next game couldn’t compete with the Dante’s and the Joe’s of the world.
Shawn Darnell
