Terminator: Resistance is an excellent video game!

Before diving into the game, I highly recommend watching the films, The Terminator[www.imdb.com] and Terminator 2: Judgement Day.[www.imdb.com] The 10 minutes of future war footage in these two films serve as the core inspiration for Terminator: Resistance.

The first thing that stands out about this game is how it perfectly captures the essence of The Terminator. From the visual design to the iconic soundtrack, the developers did an excellent job pulling these elements directly from the films. Within minutes of stepping into the shoes of Jacob Rivers, the sounds, scenes, and enemies immerse you in 2029 A.D. California, during the height of the Terminator universe's future war. While the gameplay and graphics are fairly standard, the real draw is the storified experience, which fully immerses you in the setting. This is the game's most impressive aspect, with the story seamlessly weaving into the films' narrative. New, memorable characters join well-known ones like Kyle Reese and John Connor. While these characters don’t look exactly like they did in the films (the same goes for the T-800 Infiltrator), it’s easy to overlook because the experience captured by the game is so authentic.

The experience is what makes this game unforgettable. You truly feel like a weak resistance fighter, constantly facing an onslaught of formidable Terminators. The game also allows you to see the backstories behind iconic scenes from the films. The settings are believable, with many familiar locations and enemies expanded upon, such as the resistance bases, T-600s, T-800s, and Hunter Killers. On Extreme difficulty, the Terminators are truly formidable, forcing you to strategize and making you experience the same terror Sarah Connor felt in the films—and then amplifying it to a whole new level of dread.

The main game offers two modes of play. The first mode is where you push forward with your team to take out the enemies, while the second involves open-world missions where you talk to people, find things, and fight or avoid enemies (sometimes a mix of both modes). The DLC adds even stronger ties to James Cameron's films, so be sure to grab it. All together it offers a 70+ hour-long experience in the resistance, doing justice to the source material while elevating the future war experience to legendary masterpiece status! I was so captivated by the game from the very start that I literally spent an entire evening trying to survive against the Terminators in the opening mission (spoiler: you can't ).

When compared to Alien: Isolation and Mad Max, two games that paid great homage to their source material of their respective franchises, Terminator: Resistance surpasses them both!

To get the most out of this package, which includes 1 Comic, the 28-Chapter Base Game, the 1-Chapter Infiltrator Mode, and the 12-Chapter Terminator: Resistance Annihilation Line DLC (sold separately), follow this order of play:

• 1: Read the comic located at <InstallDir>/Zero_Day_Exploit_Comic/. It provides the backstory of Lt. Jessica Baron, Dr. Mark Sloane, and other characters from the game. The two-part comic is set in 2026 A.D., three years before the events in the game.
  
  
• 2: Start the main game by selecting PLAY > NEW GAME. Play until you defeat the Infiltrator Terminator in Chapter 17 - Dock Ruins. As the cut-scene for Chapter 18 begins, return to the main menu.
  
  
• 3: Play the DLC by selecting PLAY > NEW ANNIHILATION LINE CAMPAIGN. Complete the Terminator: Resistance Annihilation Line DLC.
  
  
• 4: Resume the main campaign by selecting PLAY > LOAD GAME > Chapter 18 - Resistance Shelter. Continue and complete the main story where you left off.
  
  
• 5: Try Infiltrator Mode by selecting PLAY > NEW INFILTRATOR MODE at any time. In this mode, you play as The Terminator, and you'll attempt to eliminate the human resistance from Pasadena.

I played Terminator: Resistance on the Steam Deck, with video settings set to Epic. I only had to drop it to Medium a few times during my playthrough of Terminator: Resistance Annihilation Line DLC when the frame rate dropped to 12-15 FPS on Epic. I also played with the difficulty set to Extreme, experiencing the psychological horror few would dare to tackle, which is why it took me 70+ hours to complete the entire order mentioned above, and obtain all the achievements!

I highly recommend this game to all Terminator fans. Without a doubt, you will thoroughly enjoy the experience of fighting for the resistance (or as the infiltrator) in the future war. You will love all of the tie-ins to the films. You will be satisfied with the ending. You will appreciate the films even more after experiencing this new perspective! Don't miss out on this amazing video game experience!