advertisement

THE TERMINATOR IS ONCE again traversing time in an attempt to take out the saviour of the human race, John Connor. Can a reprogrammed 800-series (as played by California's Governer and the original Terminator, Arnold Schwarzenegger) save John Connor (and thereby the world) from total domination by SkyNet and it's cronies?

If you haven't seen the film (and you ought to - it's a blast), just know that things are pretty much where they were last time (T2). Sure, John's a little older and Sarah has long since passed on, but the human race is still charging headlong into a future in which the machines will obliterate the world as we know it. A new, deadlier model, terminator has travelled back in time in order to obliterate not only John Connor, but the people that will one day be his top lieutenants - even if they are serving junk food now.

The game starts off earlier than the film, with the player put immediately into the control of the Arnold Schwarzenegger Terminator whilst he is still in the future and still a bad guy. Yes, in Arnie's first ever appearance in a video game (his real likeness is used), you start off by mowing down the good guys with a vast array of futuristic weapons! This sounds like a real blast and will be one aspect of the game we will be paying very close attention to when it gets released.

Over the course of the game's 22 levels (which play out along the lines of the movie, which we wont ruin for you if you haven't yet seen it), you will get to participate in an impressive array of gameplay styles. From hand to hand combat, to shooting things, to driving, to driving whilst shooting things - you get the idea. Loads of weapons and vehicles (including many of the cool flying things previously only seen or shot at by gamers) will be available during the game in both single and multi player modes.

In addition to the coolness of actually controlling the "Arnie" Terminator, you will be able to unlock a series of extra video sequences, including an extended version of the awesome chase sequence from fairly early on in the film. This sequence (which follows, amongst other things, a huge truck as it bashes it's way through cars, buildings, the road - anything, in fact, which gets in its way) is easily one of the coolest and most expensive things ever seen in the movies - now you can watch an even longer version, should you be good enough to unlock it.

Whilst the timing of the release is interesting to say the least (normally film tie-ins are released around the time of the movie itself), Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines looks like it could well be interesting enough itself to stand on it's own. Whether it ultimately is, or is not, we will reveal to you soon after it's imminent release. Stay tuned, we'll be back.

Show me the screenshots!