The Xbox Has You
By Carlson
So, now that you’ve seen both of the movies, and you are all jazzed up to rush out and go toe-to-toe with an Agent or two, it’s time for a little more Enter The Matrix™ action. Before you decide to rush out and take on good old Smith all by yourself, here are a few pieces of advice that you might find useful. Just remember: Regardless of who you choose, Ghost or Niobe, you aren’t Neo … so don’t be afraid to turn tail and make a run for the border. Now, everyone is going to have their own opinion about the best way to make it through the various levels ofEnter The Matrix in one piece. What I’m going to give you is some general strategies that may prove useful on your trip down the Rabbit Hole. And, remember: You are an outsider inside a computer system, so the rules don’t necessarily apply to you.
You aren’t Neo, so put on you running shoes.
One of the most important things to remember about the Matrix is that you have an advantage over every one of the people that is still “plugged in.” You know that the rules can be broken. Because of that knowledge, you can move faster than everyone, except for some of the computer systems. Use that speed to your advantage. Whatever else you do, regardless of what tactics you decide suit you best, always try to keep moving. The faster you can make it through, the less chance there is of something going wrong. Since you can react faster than the normal police and people, don’t be afraid to move around a corner. If you come head to head with an enemy, you can use your speed to take the initiative and leave them in a heap behind you. During those times when you know that there is an ambush coming, you might consider hitting them before they have a chance to do much harm to you.
A lack of respect for the laws of gravity.
A lot of your speed and power comes from you ability to use your mind’s Focus to do things outside the rules of the “real world” of the Matrix. There is a limit to how much Focus is available to you, so keep an eye on it. It recovers over time, and when you fight without using it, you don’t have to worry about using it up and not being able to get more. You already know some of what it will let you do. Things like jumping over huge distances, dodging bullets, and making you an even more deadly shot are all part of your abilities. If you use it correctly, it’s quite possible to make it through almost any encounter. The enemy, at least the human ones, won’t ever expect you to run up a wall or to be able to dive between their bullets. They don’t know that you can throw them across the room without breaking a sweat or that you can block any punch that they throw.
It’s time for a bit of the nuts and bolts of how this all works. I’m sure you already know what the basic controls are, but there are some tips that you may not have encountered yet. The X button, for example, is one of your best friends. If you are fighting an enemy hand-to-hand, then X blocks as well as counters an attack if timed correctly. IF the opponent is armed, the X button will counter attack them, to disarm them, or if done correctly, it will allow you to take their weapon and use it on them. And, let’s face it: A SWAT officer with a gun is 10 times more dangerous than one without one. So, take his away as soon as possible.
Gun control for bad guys.
You also have a ton of weapons available to you, aside from just your hands and feet. You can use them to your heart’s content, and your enemies will go down in short order. Just remember that you are just as dangerous without any of them as you are with them. If you run out of ammo, that’s not a problem. Personally, I’m quite happy to avoid using weapons at all and to stick with just my fists. Things are just so much more up close and personal that way.
