| The Terminator | |
|---|---|
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| Developer | Bethesda Softworks |
| Publisher | Bethesda Softworks |
| Director | Julian LeFay |
| Producer | Christopher Weaver |
| Programmer | Julian LeFay |
| Artists | Nancy Freeman Sheila McKisic J. Rainey |
| Writers | Julian LeFay Craig Walton |
| Composer | Tom McMail |
| Series | Terminator |
| Platform | DOS |
| Release | July 1991 |
| Genre | Action-adventure |
| Mode | Single-player |
The Terminator is a 1991action-adventure game developed and published byBethesda Softworks forDOS. It is based on the 1984film of the same name, and was the first video game based on theTerminator film series.
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Set in 1984, the player takes on the role ofKyle Reese and protectsSarah Connor from theTerminator, a cyborg sent back in time to kill her. Alternatively, the player can become the Terminator and try to eliminate Kyle and Sarah. Either way, the player chases his opponent through Los Angeles, buying or stealing weapons and equipment, while attempting to eliminate his enemy and avoid the police.[1][2][3]
The game takes place within a huge (roughly 10 × 6 miles or 16 × 10 kilometres) 3-D rendered area of central Los Angeles. The game area runs roughly from Beverly Drive to Central Ave (lengthwise), and fromMulholland Drive to National Blvd (vertically). A game map is included in the box for reference. Though the buildings and their placement within the world is generic, and highways/overpasses have been removed, the streets and their layout are largely accurate. The game also includes some landmarks, such asDodger Stadium,Griffith Park, and the Silver Lake Reservoir.
In mid-1990,Bethesda Softworks announced a deal with theHemdale Film Corporation to create computer video games based onThe Terminator.[4] Digitized voices were used for the game's opening credits and victory screen.[5] According to the game's end credits:
This game was written in 100% assembly and takes up more than 35,000 lines. The game contains approximately 20,000 3D objects. It was developed usingTurbo Assembler andTurbo Debugger with all debugging being done remotely. It was created on a variety of 286 and 386 computers. All graphics were created on IBMs and Amigas usingDPIII andDA. More than 700 frames of animations were created. The delta mode compression yielded a 100-to-1 ratio.
The game was released in July 1991, coinciding with the theatrical release of the filmTerminator 2: Judgment Day.[6] It was the first video game based on theTerminator film series.[7][8] Two companies had madeprevious attempts to create aTerminator game in the late 1980s.[9][10]
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Aktueller Software Markt | 5/12[11] |
| Computer and Video Games | 88/100[8] |
| Los Angeles Times |   [6] |
| Play Time | 55%[12] |
| Power Play | 73%[13] |
Todd Threadgill ofComputer Gaming World wrote that the game did an "excellent" job of capturing the original film's "spirit." He also wrote that the film had always seemed like "perfect material" on which to base a computer game, and that, "One can only wonder why designers waited so long to produce a game based onThe Terminator, but gamers should be thankful that the wait is over."[7]
Jeane Decoster and David Crook of theLos Angeles Times found the game's recreation of the city to be "pretty faithful". However, they were critical of the complex controls and wrote, "Even with the joystick, game movement takes more than 50 keystroke combinations. Just starting the manual transmission vehicles and getting them on the road requires at least 5 finger pretzeling keystrokes".[6]
Reviewers forComputer and Video Games offered praise for the game and the ability to play as either Reese or the Terminator. However, they noted initial difficulty in figuring out the gameplay due to an unclear instruction manual, and also wrote that the 3D effects occasionally go "completely haywire".[8]The Age praised the game's title sequences andTerminator theme music.[14] Guido Alt ofAktueller Software Markt criticized the graphics and controls.[11]
The game topped the charts when it was released.[15]
Danish software house cum hardware manufacturer Robtek acquired the licence to interpret Terminator and Terminator II over a year ago, but sadly went into receivership before anything saw the light of day.
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