Product Reviews

Humans jacked into a giant computer simulation: is it the plot of The Matrix, or a Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) game? The answer is both, as The Matrix: Online debuts on the PC.

Produced by the Wachowski brothers, the game picks up where the films left off. It doesn't explain what happened in the films' climax, but all that's important is that there's a truce between humanity and the machines, and sentient programs are vying for control of the online world.

After an installation and patching process that downloads a whopping 1GB file, you're plugged into The Matrix. Character design, as with other MMO games, is an essential part of the process. It's a shame that there's not much choice in the way you look, and you'll often run into doppelgangers.

In the skills section, you

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shape the way your character will perform. The Matrix is more flexible than many of the games we've played. Rather than having to pick a dedicated character class, such as warrior or wizard, you can load and unload different sets of abilities from any hardwired telephone point. However, you have to choose predefined abilities, such as Belief and Perception, which affect how good you are at certain skills. So while you can unload your combat moves to become a coder, you might not be any good at the new role.

As this is an MMO game, you can interact freely with other players, although you can fight them only if they agree to combat. Your initial plan should be to try the first set of missions to gain experience. These start off being repetitive, but they do improve. There are two kinds of missions: single-shot missions and plot devices. The plot devices help unfold the story built into the game and even trigger cut scenes.

We were a little disappointed by the blocky graphics. Also, the control system is big, cumbersome and confusing to use due to its large range of icons. It takes a long time to master properly and, even then, you can lose track of the task you want to do.

As with other online games, you'll get out of it what you put in. If you loved the films, you'll probably love the game. But the control system and repetitive missions will test your patience.