It struck me recently that the Halo games and the Matrix movies have something in common. Aside from both being dystopian war-torn futures with a mythical hero who doesn’t talk much, but is guided around by a powerful female character and an older bad-ass black military hero, and picking fights with an artificial intelligence that went insane a long time ago. You know, aside from that.

What they have in common is that the first part of each series knocked everyone flat. In both cases, the original featured great action and special effects, as you would expect, but also managed to surprise us with a subtle storyline hinting at hidden depths of religion and philosophy. In both cases, the original managed to renew a flagging interest in science fiction in their respective genres.

Unfortunately, what they also have in common is disappointing sequels. Where the Matrix sequels feel ham-handed and grossly uninspired, the Halo sequel feels incomplete, and almost like a step backwards. Improvements in graphics and special effects cannot keep us from noticing what’s missing.

My belief is that part of the reason that both originals were so impressive is because they came out of nowhere. Bungie, the creators of Halo, had some successes with their Marathon series on the mac, and with Myth on Oni – but nothing that would lead PC or console gamers to expect that they had the potential to produce a game like Halo.

Likewise, the Wachowski brothers had only directed one film (Bound) prior to the first Matrix film, which was well-received, but never escaped cult status. In fact, they only filmed that movie to prove to the studios that they could handle their script for the Matrix.

For whatever reason, the Matrix sequels were not as tightly produced as the original. In their effort to continue breaking new ground in special effects, they completely failed to produce anything as nice as bullet-time. Their biggest claim to fame in the sequels was the ability to put a computer-generated Neo or Agent Smith over a motion-capture stick-figure. This resulted in accurate motion, but since the fabric that the characters were supposed to be wearing wasn’t filmed, there’s always something a little odd about the way Neo’s coat moves. And let’s not discuss the overuse and abuse of slow-motion.

However, my largest problem is that the philosophy and religious overtones which seemed so subtle in the first movie were a complete disappointment in the sequels. Feeling like they had a free hand due to the excellent reception of the first movie, the brothers beat us over the head with their philosophy, and it turned out to be shockingly simplistic. As a friend of mine put it, “that was philosophy 101 stuff.”

With Halo 2, Bungie is suffering from the same problems. Riding on the success of the first Halo, Bungie focussed almost exclusively on technological improvements. They delivered a game that is graphically impressive – but not as impressive as the first one was. I never experienced a moment in Halo 2 that approached the level of coolness that I felt the first time I saw sunlight filter through a tree in Halo 1.

Another major focus was a complete overhaul of the weapons and armor in the game. Where the weapons in Halo 1 felt varied and interesting, Halo 2 gave us the same weapons, but less powerful, and a few unimpressive new ones (does anyone use the Brute Shot?). Granted, dual-wielding is great, but it doesn’t make up for how much weaker the weapons are. In the first game, headshots from the (admittedly overpowered) pistol, or dropping a full clip of needles into someone was deeply satisfying, and required some preparation to do properly. With dual-wielding, though, all gunfights have been reduced to spray-and-pray.

However, the biggest crime is loss of Halo 1′s open-ended gameplay. After beating the original game, my friends and I continued to play Halo for years because we were constantly discovering new things to do. Our time in the game was evenly divided between standard multiplayer gaming, and just goofing around, trying to get vehicles into unusual places. We spend an entire afternoon just trying to get all the vehicles in blood gulch on top of the base.

With Halo 2′s destructible vehicles, though, this aspect of the game has been largely removed. Goofing around in Halo 2 just isn’t as much fun, because there isn’t as much crazy stuff to do.

Finally, there’s the story. Even if you ignore the fact that the game feels like it was cut off several chapters before the conclusion, the story still isn’t as good as the first one. Just like the Matrix, the first Halo’s story was subtle, and left many clues and story threads for the audience to pick up on. However, the sequel feels like it was rushed, and has less depth than the first. Some new elements were introduced, but we spent most of the game stomping around familiar environments, including another Halo, and meeting familiar characters, including another monitor robot.

This isn’t to say that Halo 2 is bad. Not by a long stretch. It’s still better than most games out there, and it’s definitely a staple of our LAN parties. But in no way does it live up to its potential.

The reason I compare Halo to the Matix is because according to all reports, Halo is going to be a trilogy as well – and it’s not too late for Bungie to get back on track. The first Halo showed us that you could still tell a great story using a first-person shooter, and the second game showed us that you could still get great graphics out of the xbox. Hopefully the third will show us that Bungie can still exceed our expectations.

It’s too late for the Matix – let’s hope it’s not too late for Halo.