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1.01 Game Details
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Developed by Probe Development and released by Arena Entertainment in 1993.
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1.02 Story
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CYBERDYNE SYSTEMS
SERIES 800
MODEL 101
SYSTEM ACTIVATED
10 YEARS AGO;
THE MACHINES OF
SKYNET SENT A
TERMINATOR FROM
THE FUTURE TO KILL
SARAH CONNOR.
THEY FAILED.
NOW;
THE MACHINES WILL
TRY AGAIN.
THEIR NEW TARGET;
THE FUTURE LEADER
OF THE RESISTANCE
SARAH'S SON -
YOUNG JOHN CONNOR.
AS BEFORE,
A LONE WARRIOR
WILL BE SENT TO
PROTECT HIM.
THE ONLY QUESTION
IS.....
WHO WILL REACH
JOHN FIRST?
===== 2.0 THE BASICS ==========================================================
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2.01 Game Start
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Start:
Begin a new campaign.
Options:
Adjust the Skill (difficulty), toggle Music, and toggle Effects.
Energy:
The red bar on the left represents your health.
Machine Gun:
The blue bar on the right is your available ammo. This recharges when you're
not shooting.
Credits:
The number in the upper-left corner. You start with four of them.
Points:
Your score is displayed across the center of the screen.
Guided Missiles/Shotgun:
The ammo count for the guided missile or shotgun is displayed in the upper-right
corner of the HUD.
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2.03 Controls 'n Techniques
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Command | Action | Other
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Start | Pause | -
D-pad | Move aiming reticule | Select in menus
1 button | Fire gun | -
2 button | Fire special weapon | -
Gun: The machine gun ammo depletes as you fire, and your rate of fire drops
as the bar gets lower. Short, sharp concentrated bursts are the most efficient
way to shoot.
Players: Get a second player to join in for extra help.
Weak Spots: Aim for enemy heads.
Stockpile: Build up your weapons supply at the beginning of the Skynet level.
There's an analysis of your performance after each level.
They display the numbers of different enemies destroyed and the shooting
accuracy. Bonus points are awarded accordingly. These are also special bonuses
like damage bonus for destroying the environments. Points are deducted for any
humans killed, and your energy is filled up to the max before the next area.
T-800 Endoskeleton:
They carry standard-issue battles rifles. Some also have plasma grenades, and
some of them jump. The gold-colored endoskeletons are more resilient.
T-800 Cyborg:
They all carry machine guns. When they get in close, shoot away the
synthetic skin before blasting the endoskeleton beneath.
Missile Launcher:
Missiles are destructive and plentiful.
Flying Hunter-Killer:
They are designed to pick off ground-based resistance soldiers. Blow them
up before they shoot missiles.
Ground Hunter-Killer:
Destroy the sidemounted beam weapons and head first. They have endless supplies
of missiles.
Orb:
They hatch from eggs that fall on the screen. Armed with machine guns and they
move very quickly.
Silverfish:
Don't allow them to get close.
SWAT Team:
Armed with machine guns.
Scientist:
They throw acid and are covered in protective clothing.
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3.01 The Battlefield
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Los Angeles:
July 11, 2029
---
It's a dark and deadly future. There won't be a briefing or any time to get the
lay of the land because you'll start right in the middle of a BATTLE FOR YOUR
LIFE!
Your main weapon is a machine gun. You'll be tempted to simply hold the fire
button but it's best to shoot in bursts. Move your cursor over an enemy, shoot,
then release and move on to the next enemy. This will be faster and save ammo.
You'll start with some of the basic types of enemies. The endoskeletons are
your run-of-the-mill killer robot skeletons who stand there and fire in your
general direction. You'll only see the muzzle flash but if you allow them to
stand there too long they'll cause major damage. Destroy them before they get
too close! The grenade lobbers are slower but DO NOT allow those grenades to
get too close. And keep an eye on the bottom of the screen where some endos
will come right up on you and shoot you in the face.
The flying hunter-killers fire real slow missiles that you can shoot out of
the air. Aim for the gun to take out the missile before you shoot the main
body. If you see one flying by in the background, take it out!
Each screen will contain its own unique elements, but one especially important
part is the kit cases. These are silver boxes. The second screen will contain
three of them, and you can repeatedly shoot them to unlock more stuff. If you
have a clear screen make sure to head down to those kit cases and open them.
And even if the screen is full of enemies, you never know when a kit case will
contain a smart bomb to clear out all the enemies on screen.
Naturally, you'll wanna avoid shooting your fellow freedom fighters. They'll
usually be hunkered down and safe from enemy fire, so watch your aim.
And that covers gameplay. The first level will be several repeated screens
with endos and H-Ks moving about. Make sure to open kit cases because you'll
need all you can get for the boss: a giant hunter-killer with a mean arsenal!
You'll want to use any missiles available to you to quickly take this guy out.
Start by shooting out the two gun arms to cut off his machine gun capacity.
Then, focus your fire on the top and move your way down. The H-K will keep
shooting missiles for the duration, but if you focus your fire on the central
areas you can shoot many of the missiles before they reach you.
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3.02 The Human Hideout
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Infiltrator units reported in our sector.
Protect all human life.
---
This battle takes place in the human slums. This means you'll need to be extra
careful with your aim as there will be multiple innocents in the mix. They'll
wear bright clothing to make it easier to spot them.
The enemies in here are mostly T-800s with endos in the mix. T-800s wear fancy
human skins to try and blend in. They'll be the guys with guns shooting bullets
at you. They're as easy to take out as the skinless variety, though sometimes
they will fall and then get back up. It's good to linger over the bodies for
a moment or two longer.
The kit cases in here are dressed up as wooden crates and shopping crates.
They're also tougher to open, so you'll have to linger on them with the fire
button for just a bit longer.
This level introduces the orbs. These dudes hatch from gold and silver eggs
that fall from the top of the screen. They shoot at you just like everything
else, but they're also quick and fly around, making them more difficult to
target. Your best bet is to destroy the eggs before they hatch.
The last couple of screens will be rife with enemies, so if you have many
missiles don't hesitate to use some of them to clear the screens.
And that covers it. It's a relatively short level that simply ends without
a boss encounter. Consider it a respite from what's to come.
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3.03 Trip to Skynet
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Human alert. Skynet has used its time field generator to send a terminator
back to kill young John Connor.
You must stop it!
---
John Connor himself appears in this level. Your mission is to continue to take
out enemies but also escort John Connor to Skynet. How difficult can it be to
escort a lone human through an apocalyptic wasteland full of killer robots?!
Your goal here is to protect the pickup truck from damage. Watch your aim and
make liberal use of your missiles to take out enemies as quickly as possible.
You'll get a score bonus if you do prevent damage on the pickup truck.
The H-Ks that fly toward the screen are only there to drop a missile and leave.
Focus on the missiles to make sure they don't hit their marks. From there
you'll move on to a screen with John Connor in a pickup truck and the chase is
on. The H-Ks that fly in are the bigger threat, so watch the sides of
the screen to take them out ASAP. The gold endos that wander in are slow and
won't shoot right away, so take them out when H-Ks are handled.
Another fairly short level if you manage to protect the truck. No boss, either!
Your mission is to infiltrate the security barriers around Skynet. The
enemy count will increase significantly now that you're in the heart of enemy
territory, but don't forget that your goal is to get inside.
The first screen, for instance, has a closed gate. Focus on it between waves
of enemies and make use of missiles to open the gate as quickly as possible.
If you have to take out enemies, focus on the ones at the bottom of the
screen. They'll cause the most damage.
You'll notice security berms and walls in the background as you move to the
right. Take them out for major bonus points.
The next security barrier will be a series of hangars that launch orbs and
silverfish. Your goal is to destroy each of the ten hangars by shooting them
when they open up. Orbs are the bigger threat here since they can shoot from
far away, so take them out as they appear. It's better to take your time and
survive the waves of enemies. Eventually, you'll get all ten hangars and
move on.
The next barrier is a ground H-K way in the background. Like the one from the
first level, start by taking out the hand guns and then start at the top and
move down. Shoot the missiles as you're able and take out that H-K so you can
move on the next barrier.
The final barrier will be a real doozy. There are four missile launchers
around the door, followed by another series of missile launchers when the door
opens. Focus on the four corners of the door and make sure to use all available
missiles. The machine gun can do the job but it will be a much slower process.
As always, take out those missiles while you're aiming for your targets. There
are about eight different targets to take out along with the center of the door
which will fire white missiles the entire time. Your own missiles will be the
most effective countermeasure.
Once you take out the door it'll open to reveal the time travel apparatus.
Some lasers and a few seconds later, you'll find yourself transported to the
wonderful town of Los Angeles circa the 1990s!
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3.05 Cyberdyne Systems
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Destroy Everything!
---
Try not to shoot John Connor or his mother, Sarah, who regularly appears to
deposit shotgun shells on the floor.
The enemies in here are SWAT guys who have nothing to do with the evil robot
army you just fought your way through. Take them out quickly to make them limp
away in pain.
This whole office deal includes computers, cabinets, and windows, all of which
can be destroyed for bonus points and more importantly MUST be destroyed to
prevent Cyberdyne from continuing their research. This will show up as a bonus
at the performance analysis screen. The screens will be generally easy to clear
of enemies, so focus on the environment. It is CRITICAL that you destroy the
required number of Cyberdyne equipment in order to get the best ending in the
game.
The latter part of the level is a white laboratory. The enemies become lab
nerds wearing white contamination suits and hurling beakers full of acid in
your direction. They're slow to get set up, so pop them quickly to get to the
end of the level. There you'll face a whole new kind of the terror: the T-1000!
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3.06 Van Chase
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You have escaped from Cyberdyne in a SWAT van. John and Sarah are inside.
The T-1000 is in pursuit!
---
The T-1000 will appear in a helicopter which it will use to ram the van. A
single hit from the helicopter will destroy the SWAT van, so your goal is to
keep the reticule in the top-left corner and immediately fire your machine gun
when the helicopter appears. Once again: the helicopter CANNOT be allowed
anywhere near the van or it will blow it up.
After that, the T-1000 gets into a 18-wheel tanker and chases the van on the
ground. Move your reticule behind the van and keep it there because that's where
the tanker will appear. The trick is to use the machine gun to IMMEDIATELY
fire when the tanker appears, then let go of the button when the tanker backs
off. This will give your machine gun time to refill before the next attempt
at ramming the van. It's critical that you lay down fire each time the tanker
appears or it WILL ram into the back of the van. Four hits like that and the
van will get taken out and you'll lose.
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3.07 The Steel Mill
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This is the confrontation you have been waiting for... The T-1000 has
trapped you in the steel mill. Protect John Connor!
---
The first thing to pop up will be shotgun shells from the sky. Shoot these
shells to collect the shotgun shells for the battle ahead.
You'll face the T-1000 with a liquid nitrogen tanker in the background. The
T-1000 is nearly indestructible, but some liquid nitrogen can weaken it enough
to take it out. Your machine gun can eventually pop some holes in the tanker,
but the shotgun will make it much faster. Follow the T-1000 as it moves and
pop holes in the tanker to pour the liquid nitrogen over it and lower its
temperature.
But ugh, this battle is going to suck! Your goal is to lower its temperature
down to -200 degrees but the temperature recovers VERY quickly. The most
effective approach is to stock up on shotgun shells until you have several
hundred, then assault the T-1000 by shooting it while he rolls to lay it
on his back. At the same time, move your cursor up and shoot holes in the
tanker to pour the liquid nitrogen while he's on the ground. Rinse and repeat,
but do not ever let up or his temperature will rise again. It'll take time so
make sure you've prepared by stocking up on lots of shotgun shells.
Once it hits -200 degrees the T-1000 will be weak enough to immobilize. Shoot
it a few times to FINALLY break it apart. Collect a few more shotgun shells
and follow John Connor to the final area.
If you made it this far then congrats, IT'S ABOUT TO GET WORSE!!!
The next area isn't too bad. The problem is if you lose or allow the T-1000
to kill John, you'll be forced to replay from the tanker, and we can agree that
is a big bag of suck that's best avoided.
Alright, so here we are. You need to push the T-1000 back and into the molten
steel below, which will require a lot of shotgun shells. Collect them and keep
blasting the T-1000 with the shotgun to prevent it from getting near John.
He'll eventually pop up right in front of you. Shoot it in the face three times
to get it in position right in the middle of the platform. Once there, blast
the T-1000 back repeatedly until he's standing at the far edge of the platform.
A grenade launcher will then fall from above so make sure you shoot it to pick
it up. Once you have the grenade launcher, fire your special weapon at the
T-1000 one more time. This will knock it down into the molten steel and finally
end the battle.
---
And that's it! If you missed out on destroying the equipment back at Cyberdyne
Systems then you'll get a less than satisfactory ending. But if you did destroy
the equipment back there then you'll have saved John Connor and prevented
judgment day.
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5.01 Version History
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1. The creators at Arena Entertainment and Probe Development.
2. Wilson Lau for his excellent guide to 'Bart vs. the Space Mutants'. It
inspired the over 60 guides I've written to date.
3. You for reading.
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5.03 Contact Information
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1. T2: The Arcade Game (C) 1993 Carolco, (C) 1993 Acclaim Entertainment Inc.,
(C) 1991 Midway Manufacturing Company.
2. This guide copyright (C) 2016 SubSane. This guide may be distributed freely
as long as it remains in its ORIGINAL and UNALTERED form. It is only for
private use and may not be reproduced for commercial purposes.
If I should discover that this guide has been altered in any way and is
being displayed publicly, I reserve the right to have the guide removed from
that location.
