By Sam Coles:
There are games that are often overlooked in the industry
whether it is the time of year they are released or due to poor marketing, this
was somewhat the case with Max Payne 3 there was lots of hype and marketing but
when it came out it was a resounding whimper. Max Payne 3 at the time of
writing is 7 years old, and I don’t hear people often talking about it these
days, Rockstar Games often release games and they sell really well, or do they?
You see outside of the Grand Theft Auto series a lot of Rockstar titles don’t
sell that well, games like L.A Noire and even the original Red Dead Redemption
didn’t sell that well. Max Payne 3 fell victim to this unfortunately; I want to
talk about why you should play this game.
Max Payne 3 had a rocky development cycle to put it lightly;
the game was originally announced all the way back in 2007, where it was slated
for a 2009 release which it obviously missed. I was 14 at the time when the
game was announced and I thought That game looks cool, but everything
went dark and it was re-announced back in late 2011. The reception of Max Payne
3 when it was first announced was met with hostility, due to its new São Paulo setting. A lot of people thought it didn’t fit Max Payne, but to be honest I
think another game set in New York would be a bit a stale by this point.
Another issue was that Rockstar Vancouver said that they were not recasting James
McCaffrey, which angered a lot because he is Max Payne.
When it was re-announced in late 2011 Max Payne 3 was no
longer a Rockstar Vancouver production, but instead it was one big collaborative
effort as a Rockstar Studio production. What also brought joy to the community
was the fact that James McCaffrey was back, not only voicing Max but providing
his likeness and motion capture. Enough of the history lesson, let’s talk
about the game.
Max Payne 3 takes place 9 years after the original game,
where we see Max at his lowest as he is in a sea of alcoholism and drug use
with his addiction to painkillers. He finds himself in Brazil working private security
for a wealthy family, what transpires is several betrayals and political
conspiracies to harvest organs. This is probably one of the darkest stories
Rockstar have produced, with deep subject matters about organ harvesting and
political corruption. What I like about the story is that we see Max go through
a character arc from depressed on the brink of ending it all, to redeeming himself
where kicks the booze to live a normal life.
The gameplay is where we get into the meat of Max Payne 3;
the shooting is incredible in this game the guns have weight and a satisfying
punch to them. Even Max feels weighted as he collides with a filing cabinet in
slow motion, guns leave detailed bullet holes where you can’t help but smile in
glee with how cathartic it is. Max can no longer carry a small army’s worth of
fire power, as this game goes for a more realistic approach where he can carry
two small arms and one large weapon such as a shotgun or assault rifle. I like
this idea as it adds tension; because if you want to go full John Woo and duel
wield pistols you have to discard your larger weapon.
It was the realistic approach mixed with the over the top
nature that made it work, what was also great was the fact both you and the
enemy had the same damage output. What do I mean? Well if you headshot someone
they would die instantly (obviously), however the enemy could do the same so if
they were to hit you in the cranium you would die instantly. This added an
extra layer of difficulty and it is a challenging game even on normal, I
somehow finished the game on the hardest difficulty back in 2012 which for the
life of me cannot tell you how.
What can I say about the visuals, to this day this is a
visually impressive game considering it is 7 years old and it came out on
outdated hardware even for 2012. The character models are still very impressive
showing a good amount of expression via the motion capture, Max himself looks
old and tired and it’s fantastic. The environments are beautiful, from the damp
swamps of a boat graveyard to the neon lit nightclubs of high society.
Damage modelling is horrendous in a good way, you see every exit
wound as you brutally gun down everyone in your path. You see enemies clutch at
wounds, limp when they have been shot in the leg and just react in a dynamic manner
when they have been shot. It’s this attention to detail that Rockstar are
superb at, making the scenario believable.
Max Payne 3 is a game that I feel everyone should play; it
has an engaging story, great gameplay and visuals that still stand the test of
time. If you have a PS3, 360 or PC you owe it to yourself to play this game, it
is one of Rockstar’s hidden gems.
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