Terminator Salvation

"And it absolutely will not stop ... EVER, until you are BORED"

As the score line suggests upon entering your review, a 2 out of 10 means the game is TERRIBLE, where "severe problems prevent any real fun." Couldn't have said it better myself, as I feel cheated just RENTING this game ( and wasting my rent one free coupon on it!!) I just wish there was one of those industrial crushing machines available from the original "Terminator" film nearby so I could take out my frustrations and crush this lousy disk until its evil red eyes blinked out. Yes, folks, it's that bad.

1) Graphics - 4 -

Yes, they're not really bad graphics, but this IS an XBox 360 game after all. The problem is that they're really not that impressive either. The explosions are under-whelming, especially the hand grenades, which seemed about as destructive as a pack of cheap firecrackers and an equally comparable radius of damage.

2) Story - 2 -

There's a story. It's really not that interesting, or compelling, or well scripted. But hey, in the days of $60 titles like "Mass Effect" ... and "Bioshock" .... who needs a story .... oh, wait .....

3) Gameplay - 3 -

The only reason the game garners a three is for the cover system. I thought it worked (for the most part) and did add a certain sense of movement on a battlefield to the game. This was lost however, as there was absolutely no tension whatsoever in the fight sequences. After some of the firefights in COD4 and Gears2 this game seemed almost tame by comparison. It was seek cover, flank enemies and shoot them in the back ... or ... blow up the Terminator before he one-hit killed you with a punch from 10 feet away THROUGH the brick wall you were hiding behind. Not to mention that I kept thinking I was hitting enemies even though the red damage reticule or outline seemed absent from the screen (especially frustrating in one of the rail riding sequences in trying to destroy an enemy.) Also, the variety of both weapons and enemies seemed lacking throughout the game. Maybe the resistance had succeeded in blowing up all of SkyNet's machine molds except for three of them.

4) Other - subtract 2 from any good score I've given -

Yes, I am being whiny, but when a game drops the ball this badly I am very aggravated. As a for instance, when I fought the Terminators in an abandoned building ( Oh wait, I guess they're ALL abandoned ...) along with Dobkin and Angie and my BFF Blair, I actually defeated the Terminators with the bombs supplied... only to be left with my partners under cover, in a corner, REFUSING to move, and thereby refusing to advance the plot. I did everything. I blew them up ( and got " hey ... that was close"). I shot them. I stopped moving for a minute, and got chastised to "let's get moving". All for naught, until I reset the game and did it again. This time worked ... yippee .... I get to play more of this lousy game!!

In short, don't even RENT this game unless you a) want easy achievement points or b) have run out of bamboo shoots to stick under your fingernails.

Reviewer's Score: 2/10, Originally Posted: 07/31/09

Game Release: Terminator Salvation (US, 05/19/09)