The Terminator: Future Shock

The Terminator: Future Shock takes the Terminator universe into first-person 3D and does considerably more than simply provide another excuse to shoot robots. Set in a devastated future, the game combines exploration, firefights, stealth and vehicle sequences while giving the player a surprisingly open environment to investigate. The atmosphere is one of its greatest strengths: ruined buildings, dark streets and the constant threat of machines create a convincing sense that humanity has already lost the argument. The controls and graphics show their age, naturally, but the ambition is easy to appreciate. There is a nice mixture of missions, weapons and exploration, and the story adds genuine atmosphere rather than existing solely to connect shooting galleries. The Terminator: Future Shock is an important early example of a first-person game trying to build a world around the action instead of merely putting corridors around it.