Terminator: Resistance is one of the best video game adaptions of the hit film franchise.
Originally released on PS4, Xbox One and PC in 2020, it was enhanced for PS5 in 2021, featuring not only improved performance and visuals, but also an additional Infiltrator mode. Though no matter which version you play, you’ll find that while it has some good ideas and a brilliant setting, its ho-hum gameplay and budget feel brings it down a little.
Just when players thought they were done with Terminator: Resistance, another DLC has just been released for the the title, though it’s only available on PS5 and PC. Annihilation Line offers a new, original story in the Terminator universe. Taking place mid-way through the game’s main campaign, Jacob Rivers receives orders from John Connor to investigate the Northridge Outpost after it’s gone silent. But he’s not going alone. He’s accompanied by a small team of Resistance fighters and Connor’s right-hand man, Kyle Reese.
Accessible from the main menu, you don’t need to have completed the campaign of Terminator: Resistance to play Annihilation Line. It is recommended, however, that you at least play as far as The Hunting Season quest to get the most out of it. Otherwise, you might be a bit lost when it comes to certain plot points.
Presenting a new story to play through that’s about half the length of the main campaign, Annihilation Line is pretty much more of the same. Playing as Jacob Rivers, there’s a mix of open levels with side-objectives, linear action set-pieces and conversation-based sections, providing a nice bit of variety. All the features of the main campaign are brought over too, such as crafting and the skill trees. Being separate from the main campaign, however, you don’t carry over the skill points you’ve already invested. Instead, you’re given a brunt at the outset to allow you to boost the skills of your choice.
Whether or not you should pick up Annihilation Line then, depends largely on how you feel about the base game. There’s little effort here to improve any aspect of the core gameplay; it’s perhaps a bit more challenging going up against the forces of Skynet, but that’s about it. Still, if you enjoyed the main campaign’s story, you’ll undoubtedly get a kick out of the fact that Annihilation Line provides extra context and fleshes it out further. Some of the set-pieces are exhilarating too, like running away from a massive Skynet ambush.
So, if you’ve played Terminator: Resistance and found yourself wanting more, Annihilation Line is definitely worth considering. It doesn’t really try to offer anything new gameplay-wise, but it does allow you fight beside Kyle Reese and go behind the titular Annihilation Line. Those two factors alone will be enough to convince most fans.
Terminator: Resistance – Annihilation Line DLC Review: GameSpew’s Score
