Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines [PS2]

Sound
Apparently, Kate Brewster and her future soldiers who sent back the Terminator this time found a later model quip-equipped T-850. Otherwise, we would have lost out on Arnold's trademark lines like "Got It" and "Terminated." Atari banked heavily on getting Arnold into the recording booth for this game, even if the end result is about as many lines as Midway's old arcade light gun shooter -- not too far past what we were expecting from the typically monosyllabic Terminator, so I guess they got their money's worth. Nick Stahl shows his youth by reprising his role in the game, while Claire Danes claims that skirts don't go with games and bows out to a replacement (who's a pretty good sub -- and I guess the devs got even with Danes by making her in-game character model look HORRIBLE.)

Impressively, there is a place where Black Ops has delivered on the high-profile of this franchise -- T3: Rise of the Machines makes use of the DTS Interactive sound engine. At first, we assumed the DTS logo on the back was just for cutscenes, but popping the game in to play, we were surrounded by panning surround effects from the running game. Not many PS2 games offer the effect, so big ups to the tech team in this department (Pro Logic II is also included for those without DTS receivers.) Whether gamers will want to crank up their DTS systems may be another issue.

The music in the game is pure Medal of Honor -- except for a few anvil hits, I can't imagine the heroic scales and trilling flutes in this score could be mistaken for music from any Terminator score. I don't know for sure what music played over the movie, but the clash in style and tone with the stark and cold original Terminator score by Brad Fidel just doesn't fit (which you'll be reminded constantly of when the memorable T2 score kicks in occasionally.)

Also, while the zapping blasts of the lasers in the game are replicated faithfully and there are a good collection of environmental effects (sparks and water dripping, with full surround effects, are impressive), there's a lack of lines from the NPC soldiers and cops that makes what's here repeat several times in a stage. Also, at least one stage sent me running for the volume -- the mixing of the claxon alarm when infiltrating Skynet was ear-piercing enough even before it went cranked up about twice the expected volume.

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