Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Terminator 2: Judgment Day was released by LJN for the Game Boy in 1991 as a game adaptation of the eponymous blockbuster film, offering a mix of platforming action and straightforward shooting in which the player, as John Connor and his allies, faces robotic enemies from the world of Skynet. The levels combined forward progress with picking off enemies from various angles and occasional sections that demanded quick reactions to waves of opponents – a typical formula for movie action licenses of the time, translated into a handheld shooter format. Individual missions also loosely follow key scenes from the film, so the player gradually moves through events well known to audiences of the famous movies, albeit in a necessarily simplified, game form.

The visuals tried to evoke the darker, industrial atmosphere of the source film, which on the Game Boy's monochrome screen came through mainly in high-contrast, stark environments and mechanical enemy designs. The sound stayed within the era's handheld limitations, yet still managed to evoke a tense, action-driven atmosphere matching the film's tone. Distinguishing between the various types of robotic enemies on the small screen was handled well enough that even in faster firefights, players could recognize which opponent posed the greater threat.

Movie licenses tended to be uneven in quality at the time, and Terminator 2 on the Game Boy was received as an average-to-solid representative of that trend – not a groundbreaking game, but an honest attempt to bring the film's popularity to the portable format. Today it appeals mainly to fans of the license and collectors who appreciate its period atmosphere and the demonstration of how big Hollywood blockbusters were adapted into games on Nintendo's handheld in the early nineties. Among other movie adaptations of the era, it ranks among the more honestly crafted ones, even if today it comes across more as a historical curiosity.