Enter the Matrix

"Achieves visually, but not in playability..."

Well well, Enter the Matrix hailed as an evolution of the video game/movie crossover genre, it built up lots of hype and lots of expectation. My belief is that this game has many hallmarks of the typically rushed release.

NOTE: This review is based upon a 3-day rental period.

It contains a story which does run parallel with the second Matrix film, The Matrix Reloaded, and uses FMV sequences matched with real-time CGI's to tell the story. The trouble is, the story often interrupts the action, and parts of the game you wish you could play rather than act as a passive viewer. *POSSIBLE SPOILER!* (E.G. The whole window jump thing out of the Post Office early on...) This, in my opinion is the game's simultaneous downfall and success, that it certainly looks good but unfortunately lacks playability to match it.

The fighting sequences with the 'focus' ability is an example of this, allowing the player to slow down time in order to take out opponents and dodge bullets using lots of Matrix-esque jumps and suchlike. Trouble is, as the camera zooms out at an angle to capture the moves at their best, it leaves the player with little choice but to use up more focus time in order to try and hit any other opponents nearby, hitting nothing but air. The control system works fairly well, the standard kinds of buttons are present and correct, punch, kick, context-sensitive action button, move, strafe etc, etc which for the most part are practical and function well enough, though as I say the camera can make battles a tough job when not positioned properly.

One quick minor and randomly placed niggle while I'm still thinking about it, the running animation is truly horrible! The thing that makes it look SO ludicrous is that the character appears to be sprinting, whereas the background does not match their speed. Turning whilst running also makes the world around you slow a little, which seems to be an inherent recent problem within 3rd person action adventure games, as you're not pressing fully forward upon the control stick while turning, obviously.

The levels are DARK! Put the brightness up in the options menu before you play as another reviewer suggested, as otherwise you will be seriously hindered. OK, the Matrix and the Real World are meant to be fairly dark places, but PLEASE! The levels look a bit bland with textures and if you look into the distance (the driving levels for instance) the city doesn't look that expansive...So you could argue at this point that that's how the Matrix is *meant* to look after being unplugged, unrealistic, etc...but it doesn't really immerse you within the universe. Despite the Gamecube's lack of strength in the specifications department, these graphics could have pushed the machine much harder, countless other games have proved this. (Metroid, Starfox, F-Zero) OK, OK so I'm a bit of a Nintendo fan-boy but even so...

The levels are varied, from airports, to on a plane, post offices, city streets, sewers, but all feature similar things...go here, protect them, (HIGHLY FRUSTRATING AT TIMES), kill those people, blah blah...It doesn't take too long to complete as a whole, the game gives you little sections to go through at a time, and sometimes it feels like you are spending more time looking at the save screen than actually playing the darn thing. The replayability is debatable, seeing as no two people may share the same opinion at any one time, the inclusion of two characters does make the mission objectives vary, and if you're pedantic like me it can be fun discovering how the story goes from the other's point of view, but unfortunately they're mostly based upon similar levels, objectives, etc. One drives, the other doesn't...and suchlike.

The sound, in terms of music itself mirrors the films (as in the style, techno/alternative/rock fusion of some sort) and tends to complement the action sequences - for example when it kicks in during some of the bigger player VS troops fights. The sound effects also match the films, the punch and kick sounds are fairly well-timed, and sound authentic enough, but as the visual style repeats over and over (the same punch and kick combos with the same annoying camera) the sound repeats along with it.

All in all, though this review is my first and may not be entirely cohesive as I'd like or you'd probably like as a reader, I'd suggest this game should DEFINITELY be rented before buying, as it's fun while it lasts and looks pretty, but is not as spectacular as you may have been led to believe. Check the other reviews and see what you think.

If there were a sequel, many points could and should be refined and improved upon, and that emphasis should be focused (no pun intended) on the playability rather than the visual flow of the game. Interactive narratives have a way to go yet.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 12/24/03