Matrix, Sopranos actor to appear in Majestic

Electronic Arts has announced that film and television actor Joe Pantoliano will make an appearance in the upcoming fourth episode of Majestic, its online conspiracy adventure game. Pantoliano has appeared in HBO's popular Mafia series The Sopranos as Ralph Cifaretto, and he played Cypher in the 1999 blockbuster sci-fi action film The Matrix. In Majestic, Pantoliano will play the role of Tim Pritchard, an investigative reporter who founds a Web site for people to post stories that wouldn't get covered by traditional media. The next episode of the game is scheduled to go live in November.

Majestic uses an innovative system that contacts players through e-mail, telephone calls, faxes, and other forms of communication. The game was launched online at EA.com in early August. EA will also release a boxed retail version of the game in November. The boxed version will let players access the first five episodes of the game with no monthly fee. For more information, read our review of the game.