The Terminator franchise’s overlap with video games is full of mixed results. Despite it being a universe overflowing with video game catnip-like explosions, robot skeletons, and laser guns, there have been plenty of misses and only a few hits. The same could be said of the film franchise, as well, but Terminator 2: Judgment Day is an undeniable classic – a defining action film of its time that is still entertaining more than 30 years later. Terminator 2D: No Fate is exclusively an adaptation of that film and seeks to recall both the movie and the era in which it was released. As a nostalgic recreation of that time in entertainment, No Fate feels just right. But it is also sometimes a frustrating retread of video game design that we have moved past.
Developer Bitmap Bureau has become an expert in creating pixel art and releasing games that feel like they’re from the past. No Fate’s art direction is some of the developer’s best to date, and seeing all the iconography of Terminator 2 translated into classic arcade visuals is a treat. The animations of all the characters, enemies, and robot tanks look great, and the cutscenes that play out the movie’s most memorable story moments are extraordinarily charming.
Gameplay is straightforward, primarily recalling Contra III: The Alien Wars’ run-and-gunplay with a handful of visually engaging vehicle levels that rely on quick reactions. The majority of No Fate’s levels play out with Sarah Connor, or an adult John Connor, in a ravaged future, taking a few steps, crouching to shoot enemies, and moving on. It works well and feels good, but I grew tired of the process, especially considering that beating the game and seeing all it has to offer requires replaying the same levels repeatedly. Making your way to the end (which takes about an hour), dying at the penultimate level, and restarting all the way back at the beginning is an outdated style of game that I don’t miss.
Thankfully, acknowledging the necessity of replaying, the vehicle levels, a beat ‘em up level where you play as the T-800, and a stealth level where Sarah escapes from the Pescadero State Hospital keep things from getting too monotonous. Replaying levels also means that when you do find secrets (like a better gun or additional continues), they are incredibly rewarding, helpful, and worth re-acquiring on every playthrough.
Once you make it through the game to credits, there are opportunities to replay the campaign and make a few key narrative choices that lead to big story changes and new original levels. I like this option a lot, as it’s fun to imagine a different version of Terminator 2 (with at least one really dour ending), and it makes me reminisce about bizarre video game movie adaptations of the past that had no problem going off the rails from properties that inspired them.
Terminator 2D: No Fate nails the feeling of a game that should have existed in the early ‘90s to coincide with the release of the film. It’s the kind of game that, had it released at that time, would have likely been revered as a great adaptation to this day. In 2025, it is still a strong retro adaptation of a beloved film, but it is not without some design annoyances that we’ve moved beyond.
