Gaming Target - GameCube: Enter the Matrix

Written by Tim McGrew on April 28, 2003

First Impressions: Whoa.

As Morpheous said in the original film, УThe Matrix is everywhere.Ф As far as we're concerned, he's absolutely correct. Getting ready to appear in theatres mid May, the Matrix Reloaded, the sequel to the highly vaulted Matrix film, will be accompanied by a rather interesting videogame at the same time known as Enter the Matrix. Most interesting about the two, other than their simultaneous release dates, will be the way the two build off of one another. Elements from the game will accompany elements from the film and both will fill in perpetual gaps in the other.

In Enter the Matrix, players will fill the role of two characters, Ghost or Niobe, and play out their mission in the game as it unfolds similar to the film. Elements from the film that happen off screen will be played in the game, further demonstrating that the virtual world of the Matrix doesn't exist solely for the protagonists aboard the Nebuchadnezzar and players will be allowed to perform all those neat effects that we have come to love and expect from Neo and the other crew members.

Speaking of these moves, players will be able to experience a wide variety of them as the combat engine is the central crux of the game that most players will look forward to. The highly stylized bullet time effect has been translated in Enter the Matrix to something called Сfocus' where players basically slow time and perform moves that allow them to dodge bullets, avoid attacks, and disarm enemies faster than they can blink. The focus ability is limited by a meter on the side of the screen that is only partially filled at the start, but can later be expanded as the game progresses by defeating regular enemies and bosses.

What's extraordinary about Enter the Matrix is that both characters take paths that diverge and combine at different instances. They can take place in different parts of a level where they team up at the end of the stage and advance to a cooperative area or situation that requires both of their amazing talents. One example of this is a driving portion of the game where players will have to use both Ghost and Niobe to defend their car with machine gun fire and navigate the city streets while avoiding police cars and potential hazards along the way.

Aside from the programmed world of the Matrix, players will also participate in a number of missions in the "real world" where piloting a hovercraft will become a necessity. Whoever is selected to pilot the craft will blast through different tunnels, out maneuvering and outrunning Sentinels up to set destinations. In the game, the craft is known as the Logos and is similar to the Nebuchadnezzar in the first Matrix film.

The graphics of Enter the Matrix are shaping up nicely as the game features a slew of motion captured animations and highly articulated player models. The conceived world of the Matrix in the game still features that green hue that was present in the film while the real world is more monochromatic then anything else, seeing as how it's primarily a play on light and shadow as the humans hack into the Matrix and perform their amazing feats with their pirated signal on their hovercrafts. Above all else, the production values of Enter the Matrix really make this one stand out with a massive array of lighting and particle effects that will impress even the harshest of cynics.

The sound is still being finalized for the game and it will feature a number of tracks from the Reloaded film along with a few original tracks made specifically for the game. Plus, actors from the actual film who also stood in for some motion capture work for the game will also be voicing the original characters. It's possible that even Morpheous, Neo, and Trinity will make an appearance or two to help the game flow more succinctly with the elements from the Reloaded film.