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The Matrix Awakens is an impressive, free, interactive tech demo for PS5, Xbox Series X

Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss bring you into the fun, playable demo, which dropped during Thursday's Game Awards 2021.

Sean Keane Former Senior Writer
Sean knows far too much about Marvel, DC and Star Wars, and poured this knowledge into recaps and explainers on CNET. He also worked on breaking news, with a passion for tech, video game and culture.
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Sean Keane
The Matrix Awakens screenshot

You can wander around a massive city in The Matrix Awakens.

Unreal Engine

Your next-gen games console can enter The Matrix. Epic Games released The Matrix Awakens: An Unreal Engine 5 Experience on PlayStation 5 (via PS Store) and Xbox Series X|S (via Microsoft Store) for free during Thursday's Game Awards 2021. It's a fancy interactive tech demo that includes digitally de-aged re-creations of Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss, who play Neo and Trinity in the Matrix movies.

The experience is quite meta, with Reeves and Moss playing hybrids of their real-life selves and their movie characters, but it all looks amazing. The first part is all video, but the chase sequence turns interactive and you're ultimately set free to wander around the impressive city. 

The latest movie in the franchise, The Matrix Resurrections, meanwhile got a new trailer Monday before it hits theaters and HBO Max on Dec. 22. Members of the movie team, including director Lana Wachowski, worked with Epic Games and its partners to create The Matrix Awakens.

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