The Terminator is a platform shoot 'em up game. It takes place across several levels, based on locations from the film. The player takes control of Kyle Reese, a soldier fighting in the human resistance against Skynet and its machine army. In the first level, set in 2029, Kyle must infiltrate a Skynet facility while fighting various machines along the way. He eventually finds a time machine and travels to Los Angeles 1984 to protect Sarah Connor, who one day will give birth to the human resistance leader, John Connor.