Max Payne 3 Review (PS3)

Wherever Payne goes, a ridiculously tragic tale and fun massacre is sure to follow

Call me inhumane or pessimistic, but whenever a joy puncturing ‘Game Over’ screen appeared whilst slaying through the Max Payne series, I usually thought it was probably all for the best. Since conception of the misunderstood dead-beat has-been cop, life has been a gut wrenching, stomach churning, heart ploughing roller-coaster of turmoil. A family slaughtered and a inconceivable power to turn everything he touches to manure has left nothing but veins clogged in asprin and a pessimistic attitude that is only willing to see a glass half full if it’s filled with scotch. Everything in Max’s life burns down your own optimism just enough to write a self-help column telling the bloke to just give up, but despite Max Payne 3 knocking the grimness up a notch, some stellar writing and addictive gameplay persuades you to turn the firearms away from your head and towards those who truly deserve it. It’s been almost 10 years since we last saw Max, and time hasn’t been so kind. His tortured past is still lurking in his shadow, stalking down his psyche until temporarily drowned by alcohol and painkillers just begging for an endorsement by Payne himself. New Jersey holds nothing but bad memories and greasy gangsters, so the opportunity to act as personal protection of one of the richest families in Brazil is seen as early retirement rather than a job. Unfortunately, Max is a lucky horse shoe with the festering leg clinging on strong enough to stink out prosperity, and Max soon finds that the sizzling South American sun only makes that stench stronger. Kicking things off with the kid-napping of his bosses’ trophy wife, Max’s journey in an attempt to turn over a new leaf twists and turns as it digs deeper and deeper into both the sordid underworld he’s embroiled in, as well as his own mentality. The noir comics have been ditched, but their dark flair still haunt the game in a more dynamic way. Cut-scenes never let-up, becoming almost as flurried with activity as the main action, splitting up screens between multiple events whilst choice dialogue randomly invades vision. It’s taken on its own stylishness, a sleek direction that could rival many a film. Stumbling stock footage and distortion coating both FMV’s and gameplay feel rather sickeningly full-on at first, but highlight Max’s vices grasping hold and its violent direction beats your senses and holds it by the throat until you accept its ways…in the smoothest way possible. These cut-scenes conveniently mask the inner workings of the game, doing away with loading screens, but as soon as the slightest bit of gunfire should ring in your ears, you’re quickly and smoothly chucked straight out of the frying pan and into the sun. The sordid horror of Max’s torment may not make an entirely welcome return (for him at least), but the time-bending, brain-busting gameplay hits back bigger and better than ever. Technically, MP3 doesn’t feel much different to any other high-quality third person shooter available. However, it adds so many nice little touches, both fundamental and stylish that it’s an absolute blast to tear through. Bullet-time makes a dramatically slow return, allowing you to dive back and forth in treacle treated oxygen, and enforces itself whenever it can. Terminate the final enemy in a room, and you’re treated to a slow-mo examination of where the bullet entered and, if you’re brutally lucky, exited. It’s a gruesomely dashing way of rewarding you for clearing a room, but also a weight lifted from the stress of each predicament you’re thrown into.

Treating you to a modern reworking of a classic noir whilst constantly chucking you straight into the fray

All these elements strengthen the torment Payne is going through, piling on the stress in bucket-loads. Sending forth army after army on your sorry self isn’t exactly innovation by third-person shooter standards, but Max has been plagued by loneliness since the first game, and nothing quite backs the one-man army feel like the droves of killers relentlessly gunning for your head. Health that doesn’t defy science and replenish over time leaves you to rely on Max’s painkiller vice for survival, automatically replenishing you in your final moments should you get revenge on whoever killed you. Even on standard difficulties, the game is very tough, forcing you to calculate assaults and hoarding bullet time as a resource rather than a flouncy party trick, as well as giving every fight away from cover some very real consequences with checkpoints seemingly ages apart. Things never let-up for Max, and when you finally put your head in your hands and think to yourself that you just have to laugh at just how much muck has hit the fan, darkly humorous scenes will pluck out of nowhere and remind you that you do have a soul. Amongst the sheer insanity the game puts you up against, everything that highlights a weakness in your position makes Max seem more human, a caricature of tragedy that deserves some pity but most of all, your help. Resilient wounds and sparse checkpoints may make the entire game feel tougher than a bout with Clint Eastwood, RockStar are annoyingly crafty about keeping you on board. Die too many times in a section, and you’ll be passed an extra batch of painkillers to help you out. Yes, the game does act as an untrustworthy uncle dishing out the drugs and convincing you they’ll be of aid, but it bloody works. You’ll inevitably be able to get through the story thanks to the games loving generosity, but there’s always another dreaded difficulty just around the corner. Bundled alongside the main story is the even more addictive ‘Arcade’ mode, where mortality takes a back seat, and each kill is for points rather than survival. Racking up consecutive kills without missing and taking bigger risks to kill through previous levels racks up points that can be useful in proving your mastery of the main story. Conquer that and the legendary ‘New York Minute’ speed runs offer up an even tenser challenge where you have no option to tear through levels as a countdown monitors your skill. Every time the credits roll, Max Payne 3 steps it up another notch with more challenges to conquer, leaving behind a hefty itch for the stubborn to scratch. The diabolical tourist attractions Max must pass through from beginning to end vary dramatically from glossy nightclubs to sun beaten favelas, and each location varies so diversely from the last that your mind isn’t given time to root itself to anything familiar, all the best for keeping you on your toes. James McCaffery returns as the brooding Payne, shoving in his darkly humorous one liners when he can to lighten the mood in a bid to stay sane. It’s pretty much pitch perfect, and Max’s inner monologue is disturbingly likeable as you watch the bimbos he’s trying to protect play dumb and the vendettas he’s forging with scum, and you yourself soon become exceptionally paranoid and suspicious about everyone you meet. Max’s endeavours would have you think that with all the back stabbing and torment others offer that your
own company is enough, but at least Max Payne 3’s multi-player features grant you the comfort of seeing a friendly face before a shotgun tears it into yours. Akin to Uncharted 3’s online slaughter-fests, each match is guaranteed carnage. Standard vanilla modes ease you in, but the intriguing ‘Gang Wars’ attempts to add a little spice to online battles. Consisting of five rounds, player must fight through 4 different variants based on familiar online modes before entering a final team deathmatch, giving those who dominated previous games a point boost. It tries to add its own plot to things, but is no where near as ambitious as it could’ve been. Nevertheless, story isn’t important here, the multiple game modes on offer, with some nice variants thrown in all blend marvellously well with the simple gameplay that translates well from the single player. Stacks of load-outs to unlock ensure yet another reason to get hooked into online battles, and the gang system allows you to quickly and easily join and monitor groups of like-minded players across the world. These gangs are apparently going to play a part in Grand Theft Auto V so those who want to start up a legacy across the Rockstar social club can do whilst building a slow-motion super soldier in Brazil. Sleek, stylish and masterfully gritty, Max Payne 3 is a bold jump into a new foray for gaming’s sorriest sod, and is stapled together with familiar foibles that have plagued the series’ titular character for years. It delivers a mature yet totally off the wall piece of macabre tragedy, treating you to a modern reworking of a classic noir whilst constantly chucking you straight into the fray rather than forcing you to watch all the action whiz straight past. A hefty dose of high octane fun that never let-up even through its encouraged playthroughs, Max Payne 3 is a title for those who want a little more intelligence in their brain-dead killings sprees.