Difficulty:

Hard

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Guilty pleasure"

Max Payne is one of those characters that go up there with Nathan Drake, Agent 47, Sam Fisher and the like. The series has always been an intense, saddening story coupled with pretty kick ass action. It's a simple concept, but Remedy pulled it off when the first game released in 2001. Produced by Rockstar, the game was a hit and was followed by an even better sequel. Its now 11 years later and Rockstar is here to try their hand at crafting another work of art.

So we start the game in a strange locale for Max, who is now in Brazil. He and his assumed police academy buddy Passos are protecting the Brancos, a wealthy family who aren't liked very much. The party is interrupted when a gang called Comando Sombra invade the party, almost kidnapping the eldest brother, Rodrigo, before he is saved by Max Payne. Rodrigo's wife Fabiana is soon captured at a night club and thus starts another Max Payne videogame. From here Max and Passos are ordered to get back Fabiana, this is followed by many more twists, turns, and despair until Max finally loses control over the situation, finding out how many people are actually involved in this conspiracy. Max Payne's narration of his situation is also back, proving that this quest is more hell for him than the last two. The game also ditched the dark and dusty color palette the last two sported for a more bright and colorful one, which is bold step taken by Rockstar. But believe it or not, it works. The first Castlevania did this with an emphasis of orange and a very light blue, and it worked there too. The cutscenes are also in full motion, replacing the old, comic panels the first two had. If I had one complaint about the story is that it's too short, only about 5-6 hours long.

Gameplay still maintains the guns, blood, and of course, bullettime. God bless Remedy for coming up with an ingenious concept. But Rockstar has now added a cover system. It soon became relevant why, because rushing even two enemies on the easiest difficulty in the game will prove to be more tragic and sad than playing Drake of 99 Dragons. And remember in Max Payne 1 where you could go an entire level only using one or two painkillers if you were good enough at it? Well think again junior, in this entry, I was robbing every medicine cabinet I could find. The enemies are extremely intelligent, and will kill you, over and over until you cry for your mother. I now see why I'm cowering behind these corners instead of being a badass like I used to be. But it makes sense, Rockstar went for a more realistic approach this time. It's like Medal of Honor reboot, a couple seconds in the open and you are dead. You can now also combine different guns together, which is always a hoot and a holler.

And now lets move on to multiplayer mode. I guess the one thing I can say about this is as follows: It is an unneeded waste of time. This isn't calling it bad, it's actually pretty decent. My main problem is that why Rockstar didn't consider putting in a cooperative mode. Passos is in the game 90% of the time, it could've easily been done. My other complaint is just how many weapons Rockstar put into the game that encourage staying in cover. There are three different sniper rifles, and two explosive weapons. Even though I can ruin your week with the overpowered shotguns it's a step in the right direction. I also hate how many levels there are that have open spaces just perfect for sniping. You could call me out, but how many times have you actually enjoyed sitting in cover during the singleplayer mode? Max Payne is most fun when you can shoot someone with a rusty revolver while diving off a balcony and surviving the three story jump. It's for this reason I refuse to play multiplayer until some cooperative gamemode is put on.

Even with a less than fabulous multiplayer mode, Max Payne 3 is a great game that should be played by all shooter fanatics to see how a third person shooter should be made.