John Paul M. Joaquin Games 01.09.2023 21:Jan PM EST

[RETRO GAMING] Do You Remember the PlayStation 2 Game The Matrix: Path of Neo?

"The Matrix" movie trilogy is probably one of the most iconic trilogies in the movie industry, and as such, getting a movie tie-in video game for the trilogy is only a matter of when.

Unfortunately, the video game industry has its fair share of bad movie tie-ins, with games like the infamous E.T., Aliens: Colonial Marines, Catwoman, and more recently, Marvel's Avengers giving gamers a reason to avoid such games altogether.

However, there are good movie-ins in the industry, and The Matrix: Path of Neo, is one of those games you'll definitely like.

The Matrix: Path of Neo History, Gameplay

The Matrix: Path of Neo is a sci-fi action third-person shooter developed by Shiny Entertainment and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Atari on Nov. 8, 2005, per The Matrix Wiki.

Much like other movie tie-ins, the game follows the major events in all three movies, though not as faithfully as many may think.

The game still follows Neo's path on his way to fulfill the prophecy of "The One," with the game fully stretching its legs with its shooting and action mechanics.

Players will find the game to be similar to the Arkham games in terms of its combat mechanics. Neo will employ a lot of improbable martial arts to defeat the many Agent Smiths sent to take him into custody, per Gamespot.

These improbable moves are usually unlocked when players trigger a slow-motion effect called "bullet time," allowing them to do so with a combination of button presses or a single one. This mechanic is limited by how much the yellow gauge is filled, just below Neo's health bar.

Dodging and counter-attacking are needed to get players through fights, but doing so requires only a button press or a push of an analog stick to do so.

As for gun combat, The Matrix: Path of Neo exclusively uses a third-person camera and mechanics similar to that of Star Wars: Battlefront II (the 2005 one). However, players can also trigger bullet time to allow Neo to shoot his target rapidly in a short amount of time.

However, the game's main pitch to gamers is its deviations from the movies, which makes it a somewhat unique experience despite being a movie tie-in.

These deviations include players doing something different from the movies, extended versions of certain scenes, and even an alternate ending to the trilogy, per Polygon.

For instance, choosing the blue pill over the red one in the early stages of the game will only result in Morpheus stating his disappointment in Neo, prompting the game to "wake" Neo from a dream version of the lobby, presumably at the start of the film.

Critical Reception

Critical reception of The Matrix: Path of Neo is great for a movie tie-in. Critical reviews for the game range from average to great, with Metacritic giving the game a critic score of 73 based on 39 reviews.

The game's players and fans of the movie trilogy, however, found it enjoyable.

However, both the players and the critics found that the game's graphics weren't something to write home about, nor was the combat mechanics' targeting system for situations with five or more targets.