moviefan15's Full Review: Enter The Matrix for Xbox
"Enter The Matrix" is probably one of the most hyped video games of all time. Not only was it heavily covered in videogame industry magazines, but other mainstream publications also covered it, as coverage of the game often hooked on to coverage of the movie. The game really couldn't have lived up to the hype, but there's a certain level of expectations that it should have met that it doesn't always manage to. There's also some problems with the game that look to be due to the rush to get the title onto shelves in time for the movie's release.
The game is a side story of sorts to "The Matrix Reloaded". You play as either Ghost or Niobe, who were supporting characters in "Reloaded". In other words, the game provides the adventure that those two characters had off-screen. Each of the two characters have some story elements that are their own (for example, Niobe drives in the driving areas while Ghost tries to fend off attackers), which does make for some additional replay value.
Lets cover the positives first. The "bullet-time" fighting has been covered in other games such as "Max Payne" and "Dead To Rights", but it's certainly best implimented here, as it allows all the slo-mo flips, cartwheels and other superhuman moves of the movies. Although the control is such that I flipped off something once or twice when I wanted to do something else, a perfectly executed use of this feature in the middle of a fight sequence is truly thrilling. Players have both "health" and "focus" meters. The "focus" meter drops at a reasonable rate when you try a "bullet time" move, but slowly refills mere moments later. The action slows down nicely during these sequences and the camera generally captures the action well. However, the camera isn't always in an optimal place and more camera adjustment available would have been nice.
Footage that was filmed during the movie production that adds to the story you're playing is also scattered throughout the game. It's also enjoyable to play through - at least according to the hype - scenes that, for whatever reason - not cinematic enough or maybe they'd simply take too long - that were not included in the movie. There's also echoes of the first picture - towards the end of the first level, players get the chance to "recreate" the lobby scene of the first picture, only this time in the middle of a closed post office.
There are a fair amount of negatives, though. While the camera often works quite well, there were moments where I'd be stuck looking the wrong way in the middle of a fight. The level design in some areas could be a bit more varied to make them less tedious (and repetitive - there's two helicopter attacks spaced fairly closely to each other, for example) at times. There could also be a tad more cover to use in the middle of battles. Strangely enough though, there were times when I thought I was behind cover that I still got hit. It feels like a few more months of work adding fine details could have really added to the atmosphere of the game and made it a more compelling experience. Other things like driving are included to vary things up, but the core fighting is the most involving and effective part of the game.
Enemy AI is inconsistent - some of the more advanced characters are impressive at times, but most will be able to steam past lower-level characters without much thought or strategy. There's an arrow guiding players throughout and lots of tips that pop up at various points. Both help, but both also take away the tension and/or immersion a tad. Some freedom would also have been nice, as the game feels too linear. Lastly, the load times on the PS2 version are rather troubling, as they're too long and take away from the involvement in the game. Load times are noticably improved on the XBOX version, however, and aren't nearly as tedious to sit through. I also haven't encountered the freezing problem that I did run into a few times with the PS2 version, nor have I heard the strange audio echo problem that the dialogue in the cutscenes suffers from. Although it doesn't effect gameplay, I was also surprised to notice a few blatant product placements during the game.
The DVD
Graphics: The negatives continue in the graphics department. It would have been nice if the game was given an additional polish before release, because the final product is inconsistent looking. Character models are fairly well-done, but some of the character animations (fence climbing looks...odd) are below-average. On the other hand, the slo-mo moves during the bullet-time sequences are well-rendered and fluid.
Players may also want to up the brightness level in the game's controls before starting. Although this isn't an issue in some levels, there are spots throughout where darkness would cause problems with gameplay or not spotting important things like, oh, gaps between buildings. Although still not graphically impressive, the XBOX version looks cleaner and more pleasing to the eye than the PS2 version. Sharpness and detail are improved, if not massively. The XBOX version also doesn't show the noticable framerate problem occasionally spotted on the PS2 version.
Sound: "Enter the Matrix"'s XBOX version does boast a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. There is plenty of surround use for effects, music or ambient sounds. Those with EX capability will find that the back surround adds to the soundtrack's envelopment. The actual actors do provide the voices for the characters in the game, and the music from the movie is also present throughout the game.
Gameplay:: The game's controls take a little while to learn, but after an hour or two of playing the game, I began to perfect how to use the "focus" effects best. Still, there were times when I wanted to use the focus to jump to another building and wound up doing a flip off the corner of the ledge - the results of that were not pleasant. Some aspects of the control scheme could have been somewhat simplified (and on the XBOX version, some of the button choices seemed counter-intuitive, such as having the black button be for weapons), but overall, I found the controls worked well enough after some getting used to.
Rating Issues: Rated "T" for a considerable amount of violence and some language.
Final Thoughts: Overall, I found "Enter The Matrix" to be neither a great game nor a poor one. The fighting is well done and, once one perfects use of the controls, putting the "focus" feature to use during attacks makes for more exciting gameplay. There's just the feeling that a bit more time could have helped make this a more well-defined and smoother experience. The graphics are very average and some of the level designs could have been more imaginative. Those interested should try a rental. Although the control on the XBOX version could be better, it does offer better load times, crisper graphics and a stronger soundtrack.
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