Terminator 2: Judgment Day It debuted in theaters in 1991 and remains one of the greatest science fiction films in history to this day, and its influence is still strong. It is therefore not surprising that almost 35 years later, Bitmap Bureau and Reef Entertainment have decided to revisit this universe – but with pixels, sprites and that 16-bit spirit that so shaped an entire generation.
Terminator 2D: No Destiny he does not seek to modernize the past. He rebuilds it with pride. It’s like someone found a cartridge in the lost files of the Mega Drive that never existed – but should have. The result is a retro game that respects cinema and embraces classic video games, through the aesthetic that dominated video stores in the 90s.
The end result was incredible, and you can now check out more details about the game here on Terra Game On!
The war against machines
At the time of the film’s release, the Mega Drive, Super Nintendo and other consoles even received official adaptations, but no one remembers them fondly. They brought superficial, limited and, in some cases, frustrating experiences. Interestingly, Terminator 2D borrows a lot more from 1992’s The Terminator for the Mega Drive (that cool but very short game based on the first film) and the expanded version on the Sega CD (which few people got to play) than from the weak adaptations of T2 at the time.
In Fate, however, it takes everything to another level. It recreates the story of Terminator 2 with surprising fidelity. Iconic scenes have been reinterpreted in pixel art, key dialogue receives new details, and there are even new clips that expand on quick moments from the film. The game lets you control Sarah Connor and the T-800 in missions that chronicle the escape from the mental hospital, the attack on Cyberdyne and, of course, the inevitable clash against the T-1000.
But the real nice surprise is what lies beyond the film: missions into the future, with adult John Connor leading the resistance. Here, the player takes command of humanity’s last bastion on devastated battlefields – content that resembles “T2 1.5”, exploring what James Cameron only showed in small flashes.
And, as a very welcome bonus, Terminator 2D even plays with alternate endings. The choices made at specific moments modify the course of history, opening paths outside the cinema chronology. It’s a gift for fans who know every scene in the film by heart.
Oh, and a tip: rewatching the movie before playing it makes it even tastier.
Brutal 16-bit action
The soul of Terminator 2D lies in action and rhythm. It’s essentially old-school run-and-gun – fast, straightforward, and no-nonsense, honoring classics like Contra and Gunstar Heroes. You can play like:
- Sarah Connor: agile, versatile and fierce, balancing melee combat with small arms. It translates the definitive heroine of the 90s into 16 bits.
- T-800: slow, heavy and almost unstoppable. His attacks have impact and his arsenal is more brutal, perfect for those who like to advance without fear.
- John Connor: more tactical, using plasma rifles, improvised bombs and various munitions. It’s not as fast as Sarah, but it makes up for it with range and strategy.
The legendary moments of the film are here in the form of playable levels: the fight in the naked bar, the chase by truck and Harley-Davidson, the destruction of the police fleet. All lovingly reworked in pixel art and detailed animations.
Like any good retro game, the learning curve is part of the fun. To dominate No Fate, you must memorize enemy patterns, learn to survive massive bosses, and of course, replay over and over again. And the game encourages this with four difficulty levels, allowing players of different skill levels to enjoy the adventure.
If you don’t have much experience with retro games, I recommend starting on the “Simple” difficulty, which provides a more balanced experience. However, more experienced players of the genre can now start with the “Hasta La Vista” difficulty, which is much harder (and even recommended by the folks at Bitmap).
We still have the “Judgment Day” difficulty, the hardest of all and unlocked only after completing Future Mother mode. The benefit of completing Story Mode on this difficulty is that you unlock a cheat menu.
In general, the differences between difficulties revolve around the positioning of enemies and the damage done, in boss fights, the number of follow-ups and whether or not the delay is activated. The “Easy Money” difficulty has no duration limit (except in one phase) and allows unlimited sequences for example.
Visually, Terminator 2D is a delight. Huge sprites, fluid animations, scenes full of references, and a whole charm that could very well have come from a cartridge from the 90s. The soundtrack follows the same line: fast, electronic, dramatic. It’s the kind of track that sounds like a 16-bit remix of the film’s soundtrack.
If there is a weak point, it is the one that accompanied the games of the time: when you learn and memorize everything, it becomes easier than it should be. Story mode can be completed in just over an hour by anyone who’s already familiar with it – but that’s part of the DNA of this type of retro experience.
However, anyone who wants to go platinum and complete the game 100%, it will take a long time to achieve this, especially finishing on the highest difficulty, which is very difficult.
Regards
Terminator 2D: No Fate is Bitmap Bureau and Reef Entertainment’s love letter to the Terminator franchise and retro action games of the ’80s and ’90s, and especially the explosive games of the Mega Drive, which dominated the genre like no one else. This is the game that should have been released when the movie came out.
For fans of retro games, the game is a real treat. For fans of The Terminator, it’s a celebration. And for anyone who lived in the 1990s, it’s almost like meeting an old friend on the shelves of a video store. This is the perfect opportunity to relive one of cinema’s greatest classics in the good old 16-bit style.
Terminator 2D: No Fate arrives December 12 for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series.
This review was conducted on PlayStation 5, with a copy of the game kindly provided by Reef Entertainment.
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