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Additionally, all discs at NexWave Games are carefully inspected and assessed for quality. When discs arrive, we do not accept any that are so badly damaged that they are unlikely to work. We only accept discs with light scratches at most. Discs with scratches are then treated in our professional disc repair machine. By warming the disc and polishing it with soft brushes, these machines can remove a very thin layer from the disc. This removes the layer containing surface scratches and improves the disc’s readability. This ensures the disc works properly, even on consoles with ageing lasers that have difficulty reading games! Great news for the player.
Enter the Matrix for PlayStation 2
Enter the Matrix for PlayStation 2 follows Niobe and Ghost, two crew members of the rebel ship Logos. You choose one of them and play a story running alongside the events of The Matrix Reloaded. Chases, shoot-outs and close combat take you through offices, an airport and other guarded locations. Operator Sparks passes on information along the way. Your choice of protagonist changes parts of the route and determines whether you drive or shoot during vehicle sections.
Focus lets you perform moves that break the ordinary laws of physics within the Matrix. You dodge bullets, make longer jumps and use acrobatic attacks while the action slows down. The meter drains as long as you use this power and replenishes afterwards. You therefore keep choosing between attacking immediately and finding some breathing space. Outside these moments, you alternate firearms with punches, kicks and disarming moves. An enemy at close range calls for different actions from a gunman behind an obstacle.
You play the story campaigns alone with a DualShock 2. The PS2 version also contains a local duel option unlocked through the built-in Hacking section. Fighting a second player requires two DualShock 2 controllers, not a Multitap; the campaign cannot be played together. Hacking is a fictional computer terminal inside the game, where you investigate files and unlock extras. It is not an online connection and does not require access to a real computer.
Region and language
Our PlayStation 2 games are PAL editions and come with a Dutch or English box, unless stated otherwise. By default, you receive the version for the European market. We note it in the product details if the region is different or the box is in another language. In almost all cases, the game is playable at least in English, and often in the other five common European languages too.
Manual
Enter the Matrix for PlayStation 2 includes the manual unless the product title states otherwise. If the booklet is missing, the title says “No Manual”. This lets you see before ordering whether the game comes with a manual.
The manuals included with our games usually contain at least English and often around six European languages. The exact languages vary by edition, so Dutch is not always included. The booklet explains the controls and the main rules. You can use it to check how to control the game, which actions are available and how its different features work.
The history of Enter the Matrix
Shiny Entertainment developed Enter the Matrix for Atari. The game appeared in May 2003 for PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube and PC, alongside the cinema launch of The Matrix Reloaded. The Wachowskis wrote and directed the additional story. Rather than simply replaying the film, the game followed two characters given less room on the big screen. Their missions showed what was happening elsewhere while Neo and his allies fought their own battle.
The connection to the film went beyond familiar names and locations. About an hour of new live-action footage was shot for the game, using actors, sets and staff from the film production. The developers also used scenes constructed within the game engine. Jada Pinkett Smith and Anthony Wong returned as Niobe and Ghost. This combination means the story alternates between filmed events and actions you perform yourself. The two playable routes do not offer exactly the same view of every mission.
In June 2003 Atari reported that the game had sold 2.5 million copies across its different platforms in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific excluding Japan. That figure therefore does not apply to the PS2 release alone. In 2005 Shiny followed it with The Matrix: Path of Neo, placing the films' main protagonist at the centre. Enter the Matrix retains a different angle: it provides a side story to Reloaded and shows the crew of the Logos at work instead.
Similar games for PlayStation 2
The Matrix: Path of Neo uses the same film world and slowed action, but casts you as Neo during events from the three original films. Enter the Matrix follows Niobe and Ghost alongside Reloaded and divides the experience between two playable routes. The built-in Hacking section also belongs to Enter the Matrix. The choice is therefore between an additional story seen through two supporting characters and the development of the best-known hero.
Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne, like Enter the Matrix, lets you slow time during shoot-outs and dive away from enemy fire. It places much greater emphasis on aimed shooting and a crime story involving Max and Mona. Enter the Matrix combines its slowed action with wall moves, unarmed combat and vehicle sections. If you recognise the shared slowdown, you therefore get a broader range of physical actions within a science-fiction story here.
Oni also combines shooting with close combat on PlayStation 2. Konoko must alternate her use of weapons with punches, kicks and throws, keeping the distance to opponents important. Enter the Matrix adds its Focus power and two separate protagonists. Oni's anime influences and original world give way to actors and events from the Matrix films. Both demand more than merely walking backwards and continuing to shoot when an enemy gets close.
James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing shares the behind-the-character perspective and the alternation between action on foot and vehicle missions. Bond uses gadgets and spy technology in an original cinematic story. Niobe and Ghost rely on firearms, martial arts and the possibilities of the Matrix. Enter the Matrix connects directly to Reloaded, while Everything or Nothing tells a standalone Bond mission. This also changes how much prior knowledge of the film world is helpful.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time also uses acrobatic moves and special time powers. However, wall-running routes, jumps and palace puzzles form its core, and the dagger lets you undo a mistake. Enter the Matrix uses Focus mainly to act faster and more nimbly during fights; it is not a general rewind button. Both let their protagonist perform impossible moves, but focus your attention on different questions: a route through the space or a way out of enemy fire.
