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[Crisko]

[PC] Matrix Online. Anyone jacking in?

[Ranger D]

Ahh. So many MMOs, so little time....

Right now World of Warcraft has a firm grip on me and won't let go. This is also why I'm never on XBL anymore.

I would like to hear more about The Matrix Online, though. What are your thoughts on the game so far? Are the different classes balanced? I really have no base of knowlege for this game so any little tidbits you want to share would be nice.

[Crisko]

Okay, so this is going to be my very unofficial review of what I've witnessed in the game so far.

It is amazing how they've set this up. I think my favorite thing is writing code.

In The Matrix you are only seeing code. That's all the matrix is: code. The clothes you wear, your weapons, your items, everything. When you get going in the game you get a tool called the code analyzer. Once you get the ability 'write code' you take 'bits' you get off of enemies and create 'code fragments' with this tool. If you successfuly write certain types of code fragments you can make weapons, clothing, items, abilities and other tools. It is a really neat approach to crafting in an MMO perspective.

Of course if you fail to write a certain code fragment or ability/weapon/item code you lose those bits/fragments and have to start all over again.

Classes are great and are very well adapted for The Matrix. You start off with the basic class of 'Awakened' where you gain certain abilities to survive in The Matrix. I.E: super-speed, self defense, heal 1.0, etc. Once you gain levels and earn $Info (Currency in the game) you can purchase more and more abilities depending on what you want to do.

There are three main classes/jobs:
-Coder
-Hacker*
-Operative

*Of course we all know that real hackers -are- coders, but the term is defined by the out-of-date term of 'cracker'. Coders build, hackers break.

Coders are the crafters/healers of the game. They write code and code fragments and make abilities/items/weapons to sell. Coders also repair worn clothing and items. Coders also specialize in healing code and are basically the cleric of the party.

Sub-classes for Coder would be Ability Crafter, Repair-man, Weapon Upgrader, etc.

Hackers are much like coders except that they are the offensive 'mages' of the group. They write viruses and infect enemies with them. Hackers can also write programs to infect certain states on enemies, such as dazed, confusion, etc.

A Sub-class for Hacker would be Virologist.

Then you have the Operative, the kick-ass with the code embeded into their weapons and the limbs of their RSI (Risidual Self Image). Operatives specialize in weapons and the martial arts. (any style you can think of. From Aikido to Kung-Fu to the ancient art of flipping out and being totally sweet.)

Sub-classes for Operative would be Soldier, Spy, Martial Arts Expert, etc.

And what's great about this is that you can mix and match any of these abilities. You could specialize in just one single discipline or be a jack-of-all-trades.

And then there's the battle engine, which is without a doubt the sweetest thing I've ever seen in an MMO.

There are two modes:
-Open Fire
-Interlock

Open fire is your average everyday MMO battle engine where you double click on your enemy and you shoot them. (Boring). Fortunately, you only need to use this to provoke your enemy, or get in one last shot while making a break for the hardline.

Interlock is what makes MxO exciting and totally sweet above nothing else. Just imagine this for a minute:

You're on a mission from Zion to interview a potential Red Pill. You enter the building in which they live and take the elevator to 6th floor. The elevator opens and what do you see? That's right. A Merovigian Exile trying to get to the blue pill before you do!

Shoot now ask questions later. You right click on the one the left and select close combat. The camera centers between you and your enemy and the guitars in the battle music start to wail. You have four different battle tactics to choose from: Speed Attack, Power Attack, Normal Attack, and Block (Defense). As mentioned before, this is RPS style with an RPG twist. Say you're strongest in power attacks when fighting someone with a normal attack. You select power attack and the numbers do the rest. If, after caluclating ability scores, attack scores and extra scores you have the highest number, you put in the damage for that round. That's when you take your chance, flip out and kick the guy right in the chest take a shot. While your character is doing this you select speed attack. Your enemy chooses defense and succeeds in dodging all your shots.

The battle ends when you click on the head butt ability. The numbers appear and you win. The exile tries a power attack but is too slow. You run up to him punch him in the face and then in SLOW MOTION head butt him. He falls to the ground and you win the battle. That's probably another cool thing about Interlock is the random Bullettime action. The action will slow down for you but if anyone else around you is watching it will appear to be normal time. I remember the first time I witnessed this. I got so pumped I almost kicked my dog in the face!

Then you have the Missions. Politics in The Matrix post-truce is firing up and The Machines, The Exiles, and Zion are all battling for power within The Matrix. You enter the game as a human awakened from The Matrix. You do a few missions for Zion and then you have the chance to choose who you work for from these three factions. Depending on your actions your reputations with the factions will increase or decrease. Currently my reputation with..

-Zion is 3
-Machines is 1
-The Exiles/Merovigian is -4

And then there's clothing. There are so many different combinations of outfits its insane. If you have the $i or the ability to write code, you can go anywhere with what you want your character to look like through apparel.

Last but not least, the city is HUGE. Once the game begins practically every single room in every building will be accessible. All the rooms are complete with furniture, decorations, office appliances and even trash. Even the rooftops have random clothes lines and lawnchairs on them. The enviroment can only get better.

Seriously, by the time this thing launches it is going to be so polished up. With all the stress tests and beta players testing out the game Monolith has turned The Matrix into a real-time interactive virtual reality that is The Matrix as portrayed through the movies. I'm having a blast and I think this is the best MMO I've ever played, (though I haven't played a lot so I wouldn't take my word to heart.)

If you're a die-hard matrix fan like I am, you will fall in love with this game. If you're just an MMO fan looking at a new game, there are definitely things in MxO that are unique to others I have played/seen.

But then again The Matrix isn't for everyone. Whether you choose the Red or Blue pill will only be up to you.

_______________

Links:

http://thematrixonline.warnerbros.com/web/index.jsp
http://thematrixonline.warnerbros.com/web/live/index.jsp
http://thematrixonline.warnerbros.com/web/live/news_display.jsp?id=020805_training&frompromo=021105_training <--WATCH THESE!

[fugitivesoldier]

I want this game so badly.

How much per month will it cost?

[Crisko]

Its going to cost $15/month or $29.99 for 60 days (on a pre-paid card). This is a pretty good price in my opinion.

[fugitivesoldier]

$15/month or $29.99 for 60 days seems like the same price per month.

It may be worth it, but compared to $50 for 12 months for Xbox Live for ALL the Live games, it seems pretty high...

I need a job. ;P

[thunderclap8]

Yeah I can't justify paying a monthly subscription fee that's that high. The $50/year for Live is about as much as I can make myself think is OK (the fun I have with you all makes it worthwhile!).

There's been lots of online games I wanted to play over the last few years, but they're always simply out of my budget range. City of Heroes, this new Matrix one, WWII Online, etc.

That and my laptop barely handles modern games anyway.

[Clayfoot]

[Crisko]

[fugitivesoldier]

On the MxO site they still won't say the price in the FAQ.

But it is for sure $15/month? Hmm.

[Crisko]

[The Watcher]

I was in the beta a long time ago. I was even in an elite clan (Furious Angels, you may have heard of them). Ultimately, I quit playing the game.

It just didn't offer anything new or exciting. It felts like they took the standard MMORPG frame, and stretched a Matrix skin over it. Then they adapted it for AOL users.

The quests are tired and repetitive. The combat is horrendously slow-paced and boring. The expansive maps may be the only good feature- but a good map a good game doth not make.

An MMORPG I'm really looking forward to is Guild Wars. Lots of good innovations, and no monthly fee!.

That's just my opinion, of course.

[Crisko]

[water10]

Is this game level-based like WoW? Personally, I don't like level-based games ...

One important question to me. On the movies, even though Zion has a pretty big population, inside the matrix, they're largely outnumbered by the population still plugged into the matrix. It just wouldn't feel right if you're playing the game and most people you see on the matrix are actually unplugged people! That's one thing I always thought would be strange on a Matrix MMORPG! I'm assuming you can only play as a character that has been released from the matrix. How do they treat this on the game? Do they have instance-based portions of the map (like some new MMO's do nowadays) to give you the feel you're in the matrix? Or, like someone mentioned, you're just playing a regular MMO (where most characters on the game are player-controlled) in a matrix skin?

[Fenwicked]

Well, as I understand it, the game is supposed to continue the story after all three of the movies. And at the end of Revolutions, when the Oracle and the Architect are talking, they mention that all the humans will now have a choice whether to live in the Matrix or to unplug. So it would make sense that there would be a lot more awakened people going around.