Enter the Matrix

"Great for a movie-based game, but otherwise mediocre"

From all the previews, it seemed like Enter The Matrix would be the first movie game that wouldn't suck in a LONG time. When I first put it in my Xbox, I was in glee at the exclusive movie intro, but after that, things went downhill. Sharply.

You finally get out of the FMV sequence, and you find Niobe and Ghost in the loading program. My God, I haven't seen so many jaggies on my Xbox since Namco Museum. Given, once you get out of the white backdrop you tend not to notice the jaggies, but it's still horrid considering the power of the Xbox. I suppose I should at least look on the bright side: It runs at 60 fps for the whole game, and only skips when you're about to enter an area with many enemies (a useful little precursor). Regarding the animations, those concerning the kung fu moves and cutscenes are tight, but all other animations look like the result of a high school project. It is strange that on a game so dependant on animations the programmers choose to do the bare minimum required for an interesting experience. Graphics: 5/10

The gameplay is basically Max Payne with hand-to-hand combat. You will notice that Niobe or Ghost's accuracy is so poor that it would make an Somali terrorist say, ''Hey, at least I'm not THAT bad...''. You have to go into Bullet Time (referred to as Focus in the game) for your gunfire to have any effect on your enemies at medium to long range. And at short range, you will probably prefer to duke it out with your enemies anyway. The fighting system in this game is probably the only reason you will play this instead of Max Payne, other than the story that intertwines with The Matrix: Reloaded, and makes the movie that much more understandable. Some pressing the punch and kick buttons in various combinations, you can execute some extremely bitchin' Jackie Chan-esque combos, worthy of any Matrix fight scene. And if you go into Focus while in hand-to-hand mode, you can use the terrain to your advantage to really put the pain on your enemies (wall-walking, cartwheels, etc.). Gameplay: 7/10

The game's story is related to the story of The Matrix: Reloaded, and several characters from the movie appear in it. Unfortunately, you do not see Neo and worse yet, he will not help you in your various capers. The story itself is basically get this, destroy that; pretty standard action game stuff. The game's cutscenes are, predictably, Matrix-level cool (The highest possible level of coolness one could hope to attain :), with the Wachowski Brothers having a heavy hand in them, after all. The cutscenes also have a much higher-quality of animation and graphics to them, which makes you wonder what this game could be if it wasn't rushed to meet the deadline of the opening of Reloaded. Story: 8/10

The default controls are in such a baffling configuration I now believe that the play testers were comprised of psycho masochists who enjoy torturing themselves and teenage bullies who enjoy torturing others. You can't even strafe, fer cripes sake! If you're going to copy off of Max Payne you may as well steal the controls, too! I seriously recomend that you switch the controls to the ''C'' configuration: It will still be pretty bad, but it's the lesser of two evils. Controls: 3/10

All in all, this game could have been so much more if it weren't so rushed. It feels more like a beta version than the final product. Go ahead, rent this game; it's fun while it lasts, and it's a big help in understanding Reloaded. But don't buy this game, pleeeeease, it won't last you more than 8 hours, not counting the 3 hours you'll spend getting used to the &%$@* controls...

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 05/23/03, Updated 05/23/03