Due to a strange delayed rollout, Terminator: Resistance is already available in Australia and Europe but won’t be launching in North America until January 7, 2020. Sadly for fans of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s terrifying robot, the first-person shooter received largely negative reviews. So, there’s really no need to anticipated the Teyon-developed game releasing. However, there have been some excellent Terminator titles in the past, so revisiting those instead would be a better use of your time. With that in mind, let’s take a look at 10 Terminator games to play instead of Terminator: Resistance.
Terminator Games | The Terminator (DOS)
The first adaptation was a great one as Bethesda Softworks made a solid adventure game based off the film series. In it, players can either attempt to save Sarah Connor from the Terminator, or play as the killer cyborg instead. The game allows players to chase the other around Los Angles while obtaining weapons and there are even some real-life landmarks to be found like Dodger Stadium. While it’s not graphically impressive anymore like it was in 1991, it’s still a fun title to go back to just for novelty’s sake.
ALSO: The Terminator NEEDS to pop up in these upcoming games
Terminator Games | Terminator 2: Judgment Day (Arcade)
This arcade shooter goes through the plot of the 1991 movie of the same name as players assume the role of a reprogrammed T-800 Terminator. It quickly became popular as getting to use an assault rifle to shoot down cyborgs is a great setup for a shooter. While it is quite difficult, each of the seven stages are fun to get through if you have unlimited credits. This arcade cabinet is still found in many movie theaters, so it is pretty easy to play in 2019.
Terminator Games | Robocop Versus The Terminator (Genesis)
While we sadly never got a film crossover between RoboCop and Terminator, we did get a comic book mini-series and this 1994 video game. Developed by Virgin Games, players get to take on the role of RoboCop as he has to take on Skynet baddies and Terminator cyborgs. It winds up being an enjoyable time-travel story in both RoboCop’s past and the Terminator’s future. There is also a Super Nintendo version, which is fine, but the Genesis is the best version of this 16-bit action game.
Terminator Games | The Terminator: Future Shock
Bethesda Softworks returned to The Terminator license with 1995’s The Terminator: Future Shock. It was the successor to its 1993 first-person shooter, The Terminator: Rampage, which was a bad Doom wannabe. Thankfully, Future Shock was much better as it was one of the first fully texture-mapped 3D titles. The game has the player aiding John Connor and the resistance and has some really cool moments later in the game once Skynet starts using time displacement to warp enemies on-screen.
Terminator Games | Skynet
Originally meant to be an expansion for Future Shock, Bethesda wound up turning it into a standalone title. It retains the first-person shooting action and offers up eight new levels and added in deathmatch multiplayer. It was impressive for its variety as there are three ways to get through each level’s objectives as players can either go on foot, ride a jeep, or use a modified Terminator. Sadly, neither this game or its predecessor have been made available on current storefronts like GOG or Steam, but they are easily found online.
Terminator Games | Terminator Salvation
So this isn’t actually a good Terminator game. In fact, it seems to be a lot like Terminator: Resistance in that it offers a competently put together experience that never does anything well and is never truly awful. The reason it makes this list is due to a very specific audience that will love it and that is trophy hunters. This is one of the PlayStation 3’s easiest and fastest Platinum trophies, and players will just need to run through the game on the hardest difficulty to get it. It will be annoying at times, but this is just as generic a cover-based shooter that could have been made in 2009.
Terminator Games | WWE 2K16
Did you know that World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame inductee Arnold Schwarzenegger is playable in WWE 2K16? Well, he is as 2K used his likeness as the primary reason to get fans to pre-order the professional wrestling game. He actually doesn’t appear as himself but rather his character from the Terminator films. There are two alternate versions that players can choose from that are from the original film and Judgment Day. It’s a very dumb addition that I am totally on-board with, and it let to some very entertaining commercials for the 2015 release.
Terminator Games | Mortal Kombat 11
The Terminator was originally under consideration to be a guest character for Mortal Kombat X, but it finally became a reality in Mortal Kombat 11. One of the game’s DLC characters, it features Schwarzenegger in his Terminator: Dark Fate look as well as skins inspired by some of the other movies. He’s a blast to play in the fighting game and has a couple of decent Fatalities The only downside to his inclusion is that unfortunately the character isn’t voiced by the famous actor himself.
Terminator Games | Gears 5
If you want to play Gears 5 multiplayer as characters from the Terminator universe, then you can do just that as they are available as downloadable content. Originally, just the T-800 Endoskeleton (pictured above) and Sarah Connor (who is voiced by actress Linda Hamilton) were available as a pre-order bonus. However, in October, developer The Coalition added two more characters from the latest film: an assassin cyborg named Grace (voiced by actress Mackenzie Davis) and the new Terminator model, Rev-9. So, there are plenty of ways to enjoy the third-person shooter with a character from the Terminator films.
Terminator Games | Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint
While not a great game in its own right, Ubisoft’s Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint is still better than Terminator: Resistance. It was announced during Ubisoft’s E3 2019 presentation that there would be a special Terminator event for the third-person shooter. It hasn’t happened yet, but it’s supposed to occur before January 2020 ends. So, expect to see it in-game sooner rather than later. Ubisoft is still adding a lot to the disappointing shooter, so it should keep getting better over time.
