About
Enter the Matrix is the first video game based on The Matrix film series, with a story that runs concurrent with The Matrix Reloaded and over an hour of original live-action footage written and directed by the Wachowskis using the films' cast. Players take the role of Ghost or Niobe across third-person shooting, martial-arts combat, and driving sequences. Famous as one of the most expensive licensed games of its era, it sold around five million copies despite mixed reviews that criticized it as rushed and unfinished.
Identity
Launch
- Binary
- MatrixOptions.exe
- Options
- %command%
- Needs files
- none beyond the binary
Proton
- Version
- GE-Proton
- Winetricks
- —
⚙ Setup notes
Game: 2003 Shiny Entertainment / Atari action game tied to The Matrix Reloaded. Never sold on Steam (retail only); film/Atari license expired — bring your own disc copy.
Proton: No Steam page exists, so there is no ProtonDB rating. Run it via a non-Steam shortcut with GE-Proton, or through Lutris/Wine — community reports come from those routes, not ProtonDB.
Install: Launch through MatrixOptions.exe (sets resolution/options), not the game exe. Apply an official patch (1.52 is the latest; a separate 1.2 patch also exists). Match the ThirteenAG Widescreen Fix variant to whichever patch level you install — the fix ships builds for both 1.2 and 1.52.
DRM: The retail disc uses SafeDisc copy protection. There is no GFWL on this 2003 title (Games for Windows – Live did not launch until 2007). Under Proton/Wine SafeDisc's kernel driver isn't loaded, so the disc check is generally not an obstacle; use a legitimate disc image of your own copy if the game asks for the CD.
Controller: A connected gamepad while the Widescreen Fix is active is reported to cause on-screen distortion/disorientation, so the safe path on Deck is keyboard/mouse driven by a Steam Input layout rather than relying on the game's own controller handling.
The one thing to know
Supply your own copy: Never on Steam (retail-only 2003 title); film/Atari license expired; configuration only, no links.
No ProtonDB rating: Not a Steam title, so protondb_tier is left empty; run as a non-Steam shortcut under GE-Proton or via Lutris/Wine.
Patch + widescreen fix: Install an official patch (1.52 latest, or 1.2) and pick the matching ThirteenAG Widescreen Fix build.
DRM: Retail disc uses SafeDisc; its driver isn't loaded under Proton/Wine, so the disc check is usually a non-issue with your own disc image.
Controller: A gamepad active alongside the Widescreen Fix can cause screen distortion — use a Steam Input keyboard/mouse layout instead.
Launch: Via MatrixOptions.exe.
Community guides
Write-ups and threads from people who got this (or a similar) game running. deckport links to them — it doesn't reproduce them.
Get the artwork
deckport never hosts game images. Open this game on SteamGridDB, pick
the cover / hero / logo / icon you like, and drop them into the
game folder under .deckport-art/ before you push it to the
Deck. The importer files them under the right names automatically.
Run it on your Deck
Two files: the one-time importer (deckport.py) in your
Deck's home folder, and this game's install helper. Copy the game
into ~/Games and run the helper with Steam closed — it
writes the recipe (binary, launch options, Proton version)
and registers the shortcut with artwork.