Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines

"The Terminator fights as well as he governs."

When one thinks about the smash hit "Terminator", you think of a desecrated Future Earth where the last humans make their final stand against their robot oppressors. This game takes place around the time Terminator 3 began. Sarah Connor's son sighs as he jumps onto his motorcycle and drives into the night. Little does he know, in the near future; A horrible gaming experience is taking place.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is probably the worst First Person shooters I've ever played. Then again, I wasn't expecting a lot since the movie that this game is based on barely has any fighting other than the explicit punches and kicks that go back and forth between the Terminator and (the hot) T-X. The game starts with the Terminator being reprogrammed by the Humans when suddenly Skynet sends an army of Robots and...flying robots.

Fighting, shooting, jumping, and any other action the Terminator performs is completely dumbed down. Terminator can punch enemies, but there isn't a lot of action while he does it. It's like his fists just swing into enemies and the stumble back. Sometimes, it looks like you're actually going to hit something, but there isn't a damn response.

Shooting is also a big problem, the cross-hair moves too fast to actually be very effective. You may be able to kill the Humanoid-like Robots, but the Flying ones will be more frustrating that you can imagine. Also, the lasers that the enemies fire from their guns and the lasers you shoot out of your guns are basically bland blue lines. Pathetic.

The final action, jumping is probably the worst. The fact is, it's almost useless since you really can't get to places you'd think you'd get. Unlike most shooting games this Gen, where you're given a big areas to explore by jumping into small spaces to hide from foes, or ledges to give you an advantage...Terminator 3 has none of this. All areas have no exploration. Want to jump down a floor? You can't. Walking down stairs is you only answer. You'd think a Hulking Robot Killing Machine wouldn't mind jumping down a steel railing. I guess it's against their ethics.

The music is absolutely horrible. The only way to really describe is to say one word: Monotonous. The sound effects are also pretty bad. When you or your enemies fire their weapons, it sound like a small "Phreew". Now, think of that word, play it in your head, then multiply it by 10. That's one room of fighting.

The graphics aren't that bad, but character designs should have been better. Most enemies stick out like sore thumbs and they clash with the background which also is pretty trashy. Due to the destruction-like feel of this game, I guess it needs to look bad.

Closing
All in all, this game isn't worth your time and it doesn't deserve any recognition from fans.

Reviewer's Score: 1/10, Originally Posted: 01/03/05, Updated 01/05/05