Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Immersive"

8 years after the events that unfolded in Max Payne 2, Max returns and his life never seems to get any easier.



Max Payne is suffering. Suffering from the loss of his wife and daughter, murdered by emotionless drug addicts under the influence of the new designer drug Valkyr or "V". Max goes undercover, trying to crack down on the distribution of this drug only to have his only NYPD contact & best friend murdered also... Max is trapped in this underworld, now shooting his way out for answers & revenge. Max after dealing with his own personal issues returns to the NYPD in the second game, tracking down criminals performing illegal operations dressed as cleaners, whilst also being caught in the tangle of falling for the Femme Fatale Mona Sax, who's hiding vital answers to Max's case.



8 years on from the aftermath of the final game (I wont spoil it if previous games haven't been played. Max has quit the force, undertaken a drinking problem and become addicted to prescription pills. He is approached by a friend he worked with in the force with an opportunity to leave his blood soaked life behind and become a body gaurd for a rich family in Sao Paulo, Brazil.



What Max doesn't realize is that everything is about to go wrong.
There's corruption in the family, voilence & politics, running through the high class streets down to the maze like Favelas'. His bosses wife Fabiana Bronco has been kidnapped and Max is left little option but to do what he does best, get her back by whatever means necessary.



The story of the game proves to be reasonably simple, much like the plot of most action moves except with more grit and an overwhelming sense of style that works. Max Payne 3 is like a kick in teeth, but the kind of kick in the teeth which we like to watch as oppose to flinch at.
Rockstar have taken over from Take-Two/Remedy (even though they were publishers for the previous games) and put there own take on the franchise, really bringing it into the next generation of 3rd person shooters whilst maintaining its roots.



The start of the game thrusts you right into the action, you instantly notice the games life like detail on the characters and environment, again this is Rockstar and they like giving you everything to try and create as close to a real experience as you can get. The characters are believable, Max comes out with his rhetorical questions and moody quips which either make you laugh or give you this smug sensation of being a real badass.

The gameplay mechanics are simple, the controls are easy to pick up and the switching between real-time and slo-mo is seamless and fantastic.
This allows you to perform some of the most amazing kills sometimes followed by a brutal kill cam, which allows you to slow down time further, exposing all the bloody and gory details. Switching guns is determined by a gun wheel, which allows you to carry a two handed weapon as well as two one handed weapons. The two one handed weapons can be used in dual wield, so you could have a revolver in one hand and a Mac submachine gun in the other, the choice is yours. Other than this the controls are fluid and functional, Max has a real sense of weight and cover is essential in a fire fight. Shoot-diving and slo-mo is ideal when moving to more cover or if you just fancy a more stylish kill.



The graphics & sound are far from disappointing. Guns sound realistic and loud, the impacts from the bullets look brutal and punishing to anyone who stands in the way (especially shotguns) and the cut scenes are done in such a way that you feel as though your watching a movie. The whole Max Payne 3 experience is exciting from start to finish, the campaign is of a reasonable length and doesn't get boring, the story keeps you immersed and interested and the gun-play is always fresh and fierce. It offers great extras, such as arcade style game play where your play each level again for points for the chance to rank top on the leader boards. There is also the chance to unlock cheats for the game once you have collected numerous golden gun parts on each level, alongside evidence which you can collect if your into the full 100% completion of the title.

The multiplayer is interesting, but i found i became highly irritated with it as it is not as fluid or enjoyable as the campaign. Its very fast paced and frantic if you enjoy these kind of multiplayer games, though i prefer more of a team experience.

The multiplayer is the only down side to this game, and the fact that the 360 version of the game requires 2 discs to play it which is very old school but still this game is fantastic. Rockstar do not disappoint when it comes to creating this fresh new take on Max Payne. Any lovers of the previous titles need to play this sequel and anyone new to the series will enjoy this game, it deserves to be in any gamers collection.