Enter the Matrix

"You may want to Dodge This!!!"

What is Enter The Matrix? Fortunately, you can be told what Enter The Matrix is. Then, you will want to see it for yourself.

Based on one of the most hyped films of recent years, Enter The Matrix has you playing as Niobe and Ghost, two minor characters from The Matrix Reloaded. The story intertwines with that of the film, letting you see many things that you would not otherwise have been able to see. Shiny Entertainment worked closely with the Wachowski Brothers who wrote and directed the game, giving Shiny an opportunity to do more than most movie tie-ins, getting an hour of footage, shot especially for the game.

Gameplay

The game is a hybrid of many genres, namely driving, 3rd shoot 'em ups, and 3rd person action/adventure. Sadly, this doesn't work as well as it should have done. The driving levels are very stroppy, with cars that look as if they can defy gravity, floating upwards at every bump, handling like you're driving on ice. The awful enemy AI of the police cars, which, even though they are supposed to be driving towards you, look as if they’ve just spotted a 7/11 across the road and plan to stop off for some donuts, certainly doesn’t help these levels.

Thankfully, things do pick up, if only a little. Most of the game has you running around, kicking ass. Your character (supposedly) has a move list of over 1000 different moves/combos, but sadly it appears like most of those are exactly the same moves. The fighting is enhanced by the use of the bullet-time feature, called Focus, which slows down time and lets you run up walls, and dodge bullets. It can be quite fun, but it will get a little annoying after a while. There is a wide-range of weapons available, but they are too few and far between. Overall though, the running around, kicking ass, shooting swats is quite fun, and it helps to relieve some of the boring-ness of the basic running around the very linear levels.

If you're looking for some light-relief in between smashing some SWAT faces in, you might want to check out the hacking mode. While it looks overly complicated, you should get the hang of it rather quickly. Once you do get in to it, you'll be able to access lots of things, like viewing FMVs, images of models from the game, etc. Once you're really into the hacking, you'll also be able to use different codes that you've discovered throughout the game, and in other places too. These things really help to redeem some of the poorer features, and make you feel like you are playing a part in the movie.

Graphics

The game's graphics are not great, but they're not awful either. The character models for Niobe, Ghost and one or two other characters clearly weren't just done in a few seconds, and the models for other NPCs like the SWATs, Police and Security guards aren't too awful. One of the biggest disappointments though, is that it looks like Shiny couldn't be bothered working on the Agents so they just threw them together as if they were in a rush to get to their lunch. The cut-scenes are rather nice, and are necessary to make the game seem like it's more than a mindless A to B kick/punch/shoot 'em up. Sadly, though, there do appear to be some texture problems in a few cut-scenes, as well as some out-of-synch voices, although these don't really hinder their quality too much. Coupled with the footage shot especially for the game (and some shared by Reloaded and EtM), which weave nicely with the action in game, it really brings the experience of EtM to life. The level design is adequate, with some nice areas, my favourite being the Chateau, which has some nice lighting effects. Sadly, many of the levels suffer from an overused long route from A to B design, which can be a little tedious.

Controls

The characters handle quite well, and with excellent controls, the Gamecube controller is clearly ideal for this game. The layout is nice enough, with everything set to ensure that you don't have different fingers all over the controller, trying to press 7 buttons at once. The first-person view is rather rusty, limiting your movement to sidestep, although the zoom is great with most weapons. You may find that you need to take a little while to get yourself used to the controls, but in time, you'll find it easy to do what you're supposed to be doing. Perhaps too easy. The game offers 3 difficulty levels (Easy, Normal, Hard), although they don't really differ too much, and the Hard difficulty level is rarely any more strenuous that Easy mode.

Longevity

The game, while taking only 5-9 hours to get through once, has a lot of longevity and offers a great deal of playability, with Niobe's and Ghost's levels differing in some areas (in driving levels, Niobe drives and Ghost shoots), and there are some sections exclusive to each character, making the game well worth playing through again. As previously mentioned the hacking mode, which is full of nice tricks and touches and unlockable goods, also provides a lot of replayability. If you're not too keen on the hacking thing, and can't be bothered playing through the game numerous times going through a lot of similar levels, then you might be better off renting this, but if all of the good things mentioned have set off your thirst for more-things Matrix, then this may be the thing for you.

Summary

Good Points

The fighting is fun
There’s a lot of joy to be had from Hacking
The graphics are good enough
Great plot and gives more insight to the goings on of The Matrix Reloaded
Footage from the movie

Bad Points

The hybrid of genres does not work too well, mainly with the driving sections
For those who don‘t want to go through with the two characters, it won’t last long
Replaying your favourite levels could get annoying having to switch between two discs

Gameplay - 7
Graphics - 7
Controls - 8
Longevity - 8

Buy or Rent

If you’re a big fan of the The Matrix movies, and are in need of something to quench your thirst for a game based on them, then this is definitely a buy, but if you’re just looking for a once-through, quick romp, you’d be better renting it.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 05/28/03, Updated 05/28/03