The Terminator (Sega CD version) and a rant

Today I bring you a review of one of the few good games of the Sega CD: This is The Terminator.

Developed by Virgin Games, the Sega CD version came out a time after the Genesis version passed on and I remember seeing an ad in an older edition of EGM that featured Arnold as the badass T-800. I remember it well because in that issue of EGM there was the first big look on Super Street Fighter 2 and my big bro got me the mag for my birthday years ago. Alas, I never did have a Sega CD (I did have the Genesis model from the Sonic the Hedgehog package), but from the first pics on the ad I realized this game looked very good and it seems like it had a nice quality in it.

Years later, with the power of emulators, I finally play The Terminator and I have to say it blew my socks off. For the most part, the game is pretty faithful to the original movie's plot as we see what is going on via cutscenes straight from the movie. They're grainy, sure, but it's clear enough for you to see what's happening. As you may know by now, you take control of Kyle Reese, who has been given an important mission by John Connor to infiltrate Skynet's stronghold, get into the Time Displacement Machine to travel back to the past (no AVGN pun intended :P) and protect his mother Sarah Connor, who has been targeted by Skynet in a heinous scheme: It will send one of its T-800 units (Played by Arnie in the movie, of course) to Los Angeles in the past, seek out and kill Sarah, as in a few years she will give birth to the one man who stands between the machines and mankind's extinction.



Needless to say, Reese must double time towards the HQ and get back into the past pronto before Sarah becomes a statistic in the death toll, destroying many T-800s, thugs and of course the Terminator along the way. For starters, the graphics are well detailed for a game of its time, as Reese looks just like himself, as do the T-800s and the colors are well placed to add a bleak, yet dangerous atmosphere as you shoot your way through 9 stages that get more challenging as you progress further into the game. In addition, the backgrounds have good detail as well as some elements in the foreground; you can see a pile of human skulls as you blaze through a battlefield that doubles as a graveyard hosting the thousands of lives lost in the nuclear holocaust.

The sounds and music of the game are top notch, especially the music. The composition was made by Tommy Tallarico, which should ring a lot of bells for gamers as he's one of the great music composers of his time. He has contributed in such games like Earthworm Jim, MDK, Wild 9, Out of this World, Prince of Persia and of course, The Terminator. As an added plus to his impressive resumé, he's the co-creator and headsman of the awesome Video Games Live (which I shall talk about another time) and thus you have an idea how good this game's music is. My favorite tracks are Visions, Metamorphosis and Destination Unknown, as they give a unique mood of the stages you come across. My spine gets awash of raw emotion as I'm driven to blast killer cyborgs into pieces left and right as I get through Stage 3 and I dare say if you put Destination Unknown into such games like Gears of War and Halo you'll be inspired in awe as this particular track fits like a glove and will have you riveting for more.

The controls and gameplay are solid; you can change the button configuration as you like it, but in the default setting A lets you throw bombs, B fires your machine gun or shotgun and C lets you jump. Quick and easy, no? You must have a good pace as you fight your way to complete your mission as the cyborgs are relentless and will stop at nothing to prevent you putting a single foot into their home turf and once you go back to the past, you must contend with packs of hoodlums who have nothing better to do than to shoot Reese into a bloody pulp on sight (Any resemblance to real life violence is merely incidental). You'll also have to contend with the Terminator, who has also arrived as well in order to kill Sarah and you, so in key stages you have outmanuver and outgun him to prevent Judgment Day from arising.

There are powerups to help you out. The bombs will increase your stock by 3, you'll see two Medikits that either restore your energy by 1 unit or refills it completely, a gun powerup which increases the overall performance of your gun by giving you auto-rapid fire and increased firepower, a bulletproof vest that gives you limited invincibility and 1-Ups. That last item in particular is what sets the Sega CD version apart from the others. You get extra lives, sure, but this game will test your capabilities to see if you're fit to prevent Judgment Day and you will be tested every step of the way as you look for ways to get through the stage, get the powerups and beat the bosses. The one constant that it shares with the other versions is once you lose your last life, that's all she wrote; do not pass GO, do not collect 100 bucks.

This game is what action platformers should be, and more. I honestly think there is nothing wrong with the game, as everything is neatly into place. If you're looking for a game with a good challenge that gives you a great time and with the premise of the kickass movie backing it up, The Terminator is a must-have, a gem for your collection. As such, it gets a perfect rating of 10/10.

Now here's a small rant I have about the Sega CD.

Around 16 years ago, the peripheral was released as part of the 4th generation console of the Genesis which introduced FMVs for the first time, as well as games that had complex and longer levels, animated games and new franchises such as the Lunar series. However, because Sega had put too many eggs on the FMV basket rather than taking adavantage of the aditional storage and capacity given by CDs, the videos weren't as high quality as they were first hyped and instead of full-screen videos, they have only 1/4 of resolution. Adding this to the limited color pallete at the time and the AMV were grainy and not so detailed in games.

I have to see a bright side of what the Sega CD brought to the table and later folded in 1995.

When it was released, the technology that made this peripheral and its features possible was practically in diapers and while it was a promising premise, it only lasted a few years and there were only a handful of good games that pushed both the Genesis and the SCD to their limits, such as Snatcher, Sonic CD and The Terminator. As such, while it didn't get much love as Sega would have liked, we must look at it this way: If the Sega CD never came into light, Neither Sega nor Nintendo would have something of their own to create as 32-bit console gaming would be born; Sony would have never come up with the idea of creating the Playstation (and I take in consideration the failed project they were going to have with Nintendo), we would have been deprived of the Playstation, Saturn and Nintendo 64, games wouldn't have been so great in the 32- bit era, there would have been no evolution without PS2, X-Box, Dreamcast and Gamecube. In fact, I daresay YOU would never, EVER, be able to play games with a PS3, X-Box 360 or Wii in your possesion because they would either have never existed at all or it would have taken a loooong time to come to light! Henceforth, in my POV, no Sega CD = no 32-bit consoles = no cool games = no PS3, no Wii, no X-Box 360 = NOTHING.

Just tyring to shed some light of what might have been a dark future for gaming. So, even though it wasn't successful, we have a lot to thank for to the Sega CD because without it, perhaps we would have played 125- bit games in the year 2029.

I'm not sure I could watch the Steelers vs Bengals game, as I probably see a blowout in the horizon. The near-toothless Bungals barely managed a tie and Pittsburgh looks strong despite Big Ben not being 100% healthy. A 34-10 score is possible.

I'm outta here. :P