[ PLAY TERMINATOR:SALVATION WEB GAME NOW ] +MAR 06 2008

TERMINATOR:2018 continues its coverage of the TERMINATOR:SALVATION multiplayer online game, which opened for play today at Sony's TerminatorSalvationGame.com.  Here are some screen caps of what you'll see when you assume the role of a human Resistance Soldiers or Terminator machines battling through multiple future war scenes:

The Play Now image above is your access screen to the game after an animated clip of human/Terminator battle, narrated by John Connor.  At this screen, you can either create a Username and Password account to save your statistics or join in as a Guest Player for quick anonymous action, though Guest players' scores are not eligible to appear on the Leaderboard.  Players can also choose one of 12 languages for international game play on this entry screen.  Clicking the Instructions link opens a pop-up window illustrating gameplay features and techniques:

PLAYING THE GAME The Resistance Fighters must either kill the Machines or destroy the Skynet Satellite Receiver. The Machines must kill the Resistance Fighters or destroy their Helicopter.  If all your characters are killed, or if the target you're defending is destroyed, you lose. CONTROLS There are three way to activate your characters: Click on the desired character on the gameboard, click on a character's icon on the right side of the screen, or cycle through each character using the TAB key. You can only control one character at a time. Once you've selected a character, you will see a circle around it.  Use the arrow keys to move the active character. Use the following keys to make an attack with your character: 1: Main Attack 2: Special Attack INTERFACE The display at right tracks your team health levels. The map at left indicates player positioning. Use the chat box to speak to your opponent. WEAPONS Both the Resistance and the Machines have a variety of guns with different fire settings. Resistance Fighters also have the ability to set mines. SYSTEM DELAY The System Delay meter appears when your computer is not keeping up with your opponent's actions. Slower machines may experience more delay when playing an opponent with a faster machine.  When illuminated, the bars will indicate the severity of your game latency. The bars can be reduced by stopping the movements of your characters until your system catches up with the game. For best performance, close out other applications.

Here in the Game Lobby, you have the option of entering Quickplay mode, jumping into the next available game which needs a live player, or you can Choose one of the numbered game scenes.  In Choose Game mode, you select whether you want to play as Resistance Fighters or Terminators, and you'll see other current games being battled by other players listed by Usernames.  The Lobby also lists the current number of active players and the Top 5 players on the Leaderboard.  Above the Leaderboard you can view your game play record in Wins, Losses and Kills of opponent player characters.  Each time your complete a play level by either eliminating all opponents or destroying the mission objective, you earn a Win and increase your standing on the overall Leaderboard.

The Team Roster shows your list of available characters in the current level, either Terminators (shown above) or Resistance Fighters, and you can assume any one of these active characters in your play: use the Tab button on your keyboard to toggle through character avatars and the screen pans to the location of that chosen character.  Each character's Health Level is displayed in a percentage bar, with killed characters appearing X-ed out as unavailable.  You can view the location of your team members and those of your opponent on the Game Map , giving you a heads-up display for navigating the current battle level.  Navigate the map grid, seek out your enemies and destroy them, or destroy your mission objective before all your team members are killed and you win the level.

Suggested game play strategy: since there is no teacher like experience, go ahead and challenge another live player!  You'll have to learn fast when the live ammo is flying from your enemy's team, but the game interface is simple enough to master quickly.   Stay on the move, use the map to seek out opponents and blast first before you get terminated.  Fire in bursts and shift your position in small moves so your enemy cannot target you easily, then chip away at their health level until you prevail.  When you gain a tactical advantage, choose to either destroy the mission objective (a Skynet communication dish or a Resistance helicopter, for example) or eliminate your opponent's team and earn the win!

The graphics of the TERMINATOR:SALVATION online game are quite good and detailed for web-based play — not as high-def as console games, but gritty and moody just like the look of the film's trailers which keeps players in the post-Judgment Day mindset of McG's movie.  Character animation is simple to be sure, but this game isn't about artistic simulations of running humans or Terminators, it's about strategic attacks and unloading ammo on your opponents!  The audio quality is good, and happily not so intrusive and repetitive that it becomes annoying, with muted play mode available silent late night (or office hours) play.

The best way to learn is to play it for yourself, so head to Sony's TerminatorSalvationGame.com and fight for the future!  If you see 'FILMEDGE' on the battlefield, that will be me representing TERMINATOR:2018.  Good luck, players!