by Andrew - June 16, 2003

Everyone hailed at the idea of a Matrix video game. High expectations were set from the very start. It was supposedly going to break the law reigning over movie games. But sadly, not enough work was put into the game to break that law. The games graphics are a tearjerker, and the simplistic controls draw a monotone feeling to every single fight you have. The strategy for the game is basically run up to an enemy, punch a few buttons, run to the next enemy, punch a few buttons, and then repeat till the game is over. I�ve never played a �groundbreaking� game this bad.

It would have been nice if there was multiplayer�

The game revolves not around Neo, or Trinity, or Morpheus, but around Niobi and Ghost, who interestingly enough are not much of main characters in the latest film. The two characters plotlines mesh together� sort of. It�s almost basically the same thing, but as Niobi you drive, and as Ghost you shoot out of the passenger window. Sound interesting doesn�t it? Of course it does, it�s The Matrix! WRONG! The entire game is based on gunfights and dodging bullets� and that�s it. Maybe not to you, but to me that is not what the Matrix is all about. Also this spans over 20 levels. All I have to say, was that it was entertaining the first time I blasted a few people in slo-mo, but the 100th time it had gotten way old. I had never gotten this bored over a game before in my life.

One thing that that makes the PS2 version very different from the other versions, is that its lacking a multiplayer feature. Obviously, one would wonder why they would leave out this feature out just on the PS2. Shiny Entertainment released Enter the Matrix as a multi-platform game. So why leave out multiplayer on just one console? I don�t mean to complain, but I don�t think its right to leave out one feature for the PS2. Maybe Shiny has something against Sony. To me this seems too much like a Conspiracy.

This game also comes equipped with a hacking feature where you can hack into your game saves. You can hack into the game and make weapon drops and release characters to use. This is probably the best feature of the game, and when the best feature of a game is the cheat menu, that�s not too good.

And now for the severe beating of Enter the Matrix�s graphics.

I don�t know what Shiny was thinking, but this game has some serious flaws with graphics. Although the character models seem to be pretty decent, they can be just plain weird at times. (Ghost runs like he has something up his ass.) Also, when the battles get quite heated, the game turns into a slide-show. You know I didn�t spend 50 bucks to watch a slide show; I dished that shit out to watch some bad ass moves. I�m so mad at myself� Just for the sheer fact that Shiny was bragging about how good this game look and the fact that I finally got to see how good it did not look, I dare not recommend this game to anyone.

The Audio. Meh...

Not much to say about the sound, I just have to say that they did better on this than the graphics. I don�t really know what a gun sounds like when it is fired in slow motion, so I guess it goes over well in this game. The music tends to annoy you when you�re fighting a lot, and if you�re not into techno, it can really piss you off. Although it�s not the best in the world, I have to say that Shiny did an okay job implementing sound into this game, and if was all about that, this game would be worth playing.

Fun (n)- something that can make you exited and tingly all over.

Aww, darn, the game doesn�t meet the definition of fun. This game loses its fun after the first level. It blows after that. It loses its glamour right after the large lobby shoot-out. Everything you�ve done from that point, you will do 5 million times after. So is it fun? NO!! Well, maybe to a few people. When I speak general audience here, I guess it can be fun at first. I did enjoy killing a few people in a creative way, but even after that, the game tends to repeat itself.

I� must� vent� more� anger�

Four years in development, and look what came out. I would say the game was rushed, because four years is plenty to make a decent game. I�m in shock I drove all the way across town to the local Toys R Us to buy this crap for 50 dollars. Sad to say I�m another hype victim. I should start a program where you wait in line to get your money back and you get to slap the Dave Perry in the face. Then we all get to dance around the copies burning in a fire. Like that idea? Look for it in a city near you sometime soon...

Maybe next time Shiny will shine brighter.

Well, what a great disappointment. But I will say this. All of you tried really hard. And you released a half decent game. A good idea, lots of bad-ass moves� but it was just a disappointment. I recommend this game only to people once � play through it for the storyline, then THROW IT AWAY! Oh and by the way Dave, I�m mad you left out the multiplay feature for the PS2. I�m going to have to go to a friends house just to play it. Thank you very much.