I’ll be back. Those three words still hit like a steel pipe to the chest if, like me, you spawned in the glow of VHS rewinds and Channel Ten reruns of Terminator 2: Judgment Day. It remains one of the greatest action films ever made. Not just for the explosions or the one liners, but for how it blended blockbuster spectacle with genuine heart, groundbreaking effects, and catchphrases I still utter 30 years later.
So yes, I came into Terminator 2D as a super fan. I also came in deeply suspicious. The 1990s taught me to be wary of movie tie in games, especially because Ocean Software’s Amiga era take on T2 still haunts my memory like a bad dream of clunky controls and unearned frustration. This is a film that deserved better back then. The question is whether it finally gets it now with no problemos at all.
Let’s cut to the meat of things and spill everything quicker than the T1000 shishkabobbing Todd the stepdad. Terminator 2D looks phenomenal for a pixel-centric production. This is fine art done with reverence, care, and an almost obsessive desire to recreate the look and feel of James Cameron’s 1991 juggernaut. The attention to detail is staggering. From the neon soaked Los Angeles streets to the cold steel blues of Cyberdyne interiors and the hellish reds of the future war, every screen feels like a carefully composed still from the film.
Character sprites are chunky and expressive, with animation that sells weight and momentum. Explosions bloom beautifully, muzzle flashes briefly illuminate the darkness, and the iconic industrial settings are packed with visual flourishes that reward slow observation as much as forward momentum. It feels nothing like a cheap cash in and more like a fan project that somehow escaped into a commercial release.
That said, there are disappointments to be had, and they are impossible to ignore. Cutscenes occasionally resort to awkward framing or shadowy obfuscation to avoid showing Arnold Schwarzenegger’s face (or the visages of other stars) too clearly. Perfectly understandable, given the lack of likeness rights, but it can still be distracting. The game knows exactly what it is dancing around, and sometimes the dance is a little too obvious.
Those likeness issues bleed into the gameplay in a more meaningful way, however. In practice, Terminator 2D is far less about the T 800 than the name and cover art might suggest. This is overwhelmingly Sarah Connor’s game. In fact, it would not be unfair to jokingly call it The Sarah Connor Chronicles: Pixel Edition.
Sarah is the primary playable character through most of the campaign, with a handful of future John Connor segments framed as alternate “what if” Skynet infiltration scenarios. If you are coming in expecting wall to wall minigun mayhem and endless shotgun cocking as Arnie, you might be surprised or even disappointed. There’s really only a smidge of that here and there.
Personally, I was not too fazed. Give it up to her, folks; Sarah Connor is one of cinema’s great action heroes, right up there with Ellen Ripley. She is resourceful, furious, and pretty bloody terrifying in her own right. Using her and an (often secreted away) assault rifle feels appropriate for a game that leans more toward vulnerability and grit than unstoppable power fantasy. Still, it is worth flagging for anyone whose nostalgia is tied almost exclusively to the big man himself.
In mechanical terms, Terminator 2D wears its inspirations proudly. This is a classic side scrolling run and gun in the vein of Contra and Metal Slug, albeit a more restrained take on the genre. You move, shoot, dodge, directionally snipe, and occasionally manage simple environmental interactions or engage in some precision jumpy-jump to progress (or the isolated bit of stealth). Weapons feel punchy enough, enemies react convincingly to fire, and boss encounters are readable without being overwhelming.
I also like the annoying route of era-similar platformers like the Super Star Wars series. You know the bullshit I reference — ridiculously inflating minor movie characters or encounters into boss battles as action padding. If anything, there were one or two moments which were glossed over that I thought could have done with representation in the game. Case in point: the game teleports from “come with me if you want to live” to taking on Cyberdyne. No stabby elevator assault or trying to fend off the T1000 as he tries to run down Sarah’s reversing cop car.
Speaking of things this game does not have: the sheer brutality or complexity of its genre forebears feels pared back. Controls are simple and approachable, sometimes to a fault. Enemy patterns are forgiving, checkpoints are generous, and even on higher difficulties the game rarely pushes you into the white knuckle tension that defines the best run and gunners.
That accessibility is not inherently a bad thing. It makes the game welcoming and easy to pick up. The downside is that veterans of the genre, like yours truly, may find it lacking depth. There are moments where the game feels like it is holding back, afraid to truly punish mistakes or demand mastery.
The biggest issue with Terminator 2D is its length. The main story mode is short. Shockingly so. You can see the credits in a single sitting without breaking a sweat. While the pacing is tight and there is little filler, it still feels like the experience ends just as it finds its groove.
To its credit, the developers have tried to stretch that runtime in clever ways. There are narrative shatterpoints where Sarah can make binary decisions that diverge from the film’s canon, leading to alternate paths and a handful of new levels. It is a neat idea and thematically appropriate for a story obsessed with fate and free will. Unfortunately, these branches are more novelty than revelation. They are fun to see once or twice, but they do not radically reshape the experience.
Additional modes help pad things out, too. A boss rush mode lets you replay the game’s standout encounters, while Arcade and/or Mother of the Future modes offer score chasing and tighter structure. That arcade mode also ends with a cheeky, bloody brilliant nod to the iconic end screen of Sega’s Golden Axe, which absolutely tickled me pink.
Hidden collectibles and secrets provide further incentive to explore, but they are not transformative. They add minutes if you resort to YouTube (and you probably will, be honest), not hours.
This is where things get tricky. Terminator 2D is a beautifully made, respectful, and rather fun tribute to one of cinema’s all time greats. It is also a product that feels slim for its asking price. When the credits roll, there is a lingering sense that you wanted more. More levels. More mechanical depth. More reasons to return beyond curiosity and affection.
My advice is simple. Wait for a discount. When that price drops, this becomes an easy recommendation for fans of the film and retro action alike. When you do jump in, crank the difficulty up as high as you can stomach and shoot for S-ranks in levels that have been now layered with more environmental hazards and extra healthier foes. It transforms the experience from a tasty snack into something closer to a proper meal, forcing you to engage more deeply with its systems and enemy encounters.
Terminator 2D is not the definitive T2 game some of us have been waiting decades for, but it is the closest we have come. It understands the film, respects its tone, and delivers pixel art that borders on reverence. Its shortcomings are rooted less in execution and more in ambition. There simply is not enough of it. Perfect but never-gonna-happen world: its runtime gets bolstered with some sort of low cost RoboCop vs. Terminator DLC somewhere down the line (because goddamn I loved that Mega Drive game).
But I digress. For lifelong fans burned by past tie in sins, you’re now living in a bizarro timeline where your ardent childhood hopes and dreams from 1991 can somehow still manifest in this future. In an insane world such as that, a purchase of this can still feel like the sanest choice.
