The Matrix: Path of Neo

"Path of Neo is a Step in the Right Direction, Only 1 Step"

I must say, I had low expectations for The Matrix: Path of Neo after Shiny failed with the first Matrix game. I won't get into details, but let's just say Enter the Matrix was semi-polished crap. Many people had high expectations for Enter the Matrix, including myself, and it failed to deliver. This game is a step in the right direction, but isn't all that it could be.

Graphics – 5/10

The graphics seem at times quite excellent, but most other times they are crap. The character designs at times are blocky, resembling something from the late PS1 – early PS2 era. Not to mention at times the colors and bits of detail appear to be painted on. For a game late in the PS2's life, that's just not respectable graphics. I'm no graphics whore, that's for sure, but I do expect some effort in the department for its time. Not to mention the inconsistencies in the graphics make you wonder why they could not have taken just a bit more time. If one cutscene looks fairly good, but the next looks like crap…I just don't get why they would do that. Almost seems like they drew straws for which few cutscenes would get a graphical upgrade.

Gameplay – 9/10

The gameplay is definitely a huge improvement from its predecessor. There are a multitude of moves (some I only found out at the end of my 2nd playthrough!) and the combat is generally fluid. You point the right analog stick towards the targets you want to hit and press the attack button. There are plenty of combo's and you can switch between targets on the fly, giving you the feel that you really are The One. My only complaint about that is at times the controls are a bit unresponsive. And against some of the stronger bosses (Especially multiple ones at one time) that can be death to your character having to deal with that. But for the most part, all the buttons are a synch to use. Evading then attacking, focusing then unleashing a killing blow; all are mapped well so combat is fast, following the Matrix films in the speed of the combat. Also, auto saves are very well placed. Only on a couple frustrating missions did I wish the auto save would've saved before certain parts. But that definitely decreases the frustration factor. The game also has a battle sequence at the beginning to see what difficulty is geared towards you. It never lets you choose a difficulty it doesn't think you can handle, which is good in some respects but takes down the choice factor.

Story – 6/10

The story follows the films rather closely, adding in plenty of missions to the side though to make it a fairly long game (took me about 12 hours to beat I think). Unfortunately though, if you have not seen the films, the story will confuse you. The game assumes you've seen all 3 movies, showing a few clips of the movies smashed together before a group of missions. The game itself does little to explain what's going on, which would leave anyone who hasn't seen the 3 films utterly confused. The story itself isn't terribly that good (if you're a fan, you know the 1st movie was great, the 2nd was alright, and the 3rd stunk), but since it's geared towards the films it's not terribly by any means. A lot of the more confusing parts of the film were removed, which is a bonus. The ending for the movies could never work in the game, so they came up with a new one. Unfortunately, the new ending is worse than the movies ending (yeah, I didn't think that was possible either). In fact, I still wonder how the last boss could even fit into the Matrix world at all. Another big disappointment is how linear the game is. It claims it gives you options, yet both options eventually lead to the exact same thing. In most cases all the extra option offers is a different cutscene and skips a mission and starts after it. It's a sad attempt to make the game seem less linear, and it's almost like they assumed the consumers would be dumb enough to believe it wasn't linear. Nice try, Shiny.

Camera/Control – 7/10

The camera doesn't come that much into play during the combat. I never really had to fool with it all that much. But at parts the camera would get stuck behind something, or you had to correct it in the middle of combat. That's never good, especially when you have 3 or 4 enemies ganging up on you. But that's about the only complaint I have for the camera, and it doesn't cripple gameplay by any stretch of the imagination. The controls though, as I mentioned above, can be unresponsive. At times it's like the game is a little slow in figuring out what you punched, and loses some of the button presses if you're too fast. Also, the right analog stick which is used to look at enemies during combat doesn't always seem to let you hit the enemy you pointed at. Once again, nothing crippling, but very annoying.

Sound/Music/Voice-Acting – 8/10

The sound is really nothing to complain about. The voice-acting is good, utilizing the people from the Matrix Films. The musical score is also quite excellent. It uses a lot of music from the matrix films, and that's nothing to scoff at, I assure you. But all in all, this category isn't that much of a factor in the game. A lot of games utilize the sound category very well, but this game just does what it can, nothing over the top. That's all well and good, but it's nothing spectacular that really jumps out at you.

Replay Value – 4/10

Some would say I rated this too high, but I feel the combat was fun and gives the game some replay value with it. The game has highly addictive combat which may not lose its novelty for a couple playthroughs. As for reasons to really replay it, it has none. It has a few unlockable video's, but they aren't worth it for anyone but hardcore Matrix fans. Not to mention those video's can be unlocked through the first playthrough. The attempt to give the player choices is given a C for trying, an F for effort. You have a few choices throughout the game to pick your path, but all it does it cut off certain levels. Never do you feel that you are actually controlling a path like you should, and that's just too bad.

Conclusion – 6/10

The combat itself gives it such a high score, but isn't enough to hold the game up. If you want a game for some fun combat at a leisurely pace, this game is for you. But if you are looking for an indepth action game along the lines of Devil May Cry, keep looking.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 07/31/06