Max Payne (PC)
Developed by: Remedy
Published by: 3D Realms

Like most games, I first heard about Max Payne through my good friend Chian. I got a vague impression of the game from him that included little tidbits of information such as the fact that it utilizes “bullet time” and the fact that it is very reminiscent of a John Woo film. (Well he didn’t exactly say it like that.) To be sure, it sounded interesting, but I did not think this game would really be my kind of thing. Most of the first person shooter games coming out nowadays are so generic and ridiculously violent that I simply can’t understand the attraction.

But this game… well it’s a little different. For starters, it’s actually a third person shooter, so you aren’t as likely to get dizzy from playing long hours on this one. And although it’s violent, there’s no doubt about that, it’s not mindless or emotionally devoid. It’s actually rather gripping. In fact, you can’t help but be emotionally involved after sitting through the introductory scene, where you return home from work only to find your wife and child murdered. The story is nothing particularly original, but it is the way in which the story is delivered that sets this game apart from anything I’ve played before. The developers of this game worked hard to give it atmosphere, and it paid off big time.

The story is told as a flashback. As the game’s intro starts, police sirens are heard swirling in the background, police helicopters are shown sweeping a city in the dead of night. They converge on a tall skyscraper, and the camera pans up. This is when the narration takes over, and we step into the role of the game’s central character, undercover cop Max Payne. (Stupid name, I know, but just go with it, okay?)

In between scenes, there are panels of comic book style artwork with voice over narration that add to the mood and propel the story ahead. During gameplay, there are also some brief cut scenes, but they are quick enough to add emotional impact without detracting from the gameplay. Whereas a game like Metal Gear Solid may have overdone the cut scenes a little bit, Max Payne uses them to perfection.

A large part of the game’s atmosphere comes from the music and sound department.You know that a lot of thought has been put into this game when you switch to the in-game options menu and hear faint echos of sombre piano music rather than loud jarring techno or some other trendy noise.

The graphics in Max Payne are polished and crisp. Although I don’t really concern myself with graphical details much as of late (I stopped being impressed by high resolution games that look pretty but play like crap) this game is definitely a visual treat. The levels in Max Payne have are amazingly detailed, and the use of shadows and lighting is an important element of the game’s dark tone. The scenes are extremely immersive and heighten suspense because of their realism. As soon as you step into the subway in scene 1, you feel like you’re right there inside the game.

The controls are, for the most part, very intuitive and seamless. I have yet to experience any moments of frustration while playing Max Payne… well, none that involve the controls anyway. The 3-d camera movement is smooth and intelligent, and there aren’t two billion different key combinations to remember, which makes me a happy man.

The big “gimmick” for Max Payne, is the use of bullet time slow-motion during gunfights. Bullet time is a phrase that was coined by the makers of The Matrix, and it refers to the arbitrary shifting of time in order to create a dramatic effect during an action sequence. Basically, you right-click with your mouse and Max Payne will move and lunge in slow motion, giving you time to take aim at the bad guys, while also looking cool in the process. Of course, there is a bullet time counter that limits the amount of time you can move in slow motion. While ultimately it is just a gimmick, it’s a very cool one that enhances both the visual style and cinematic appeal of the game. It takes a little while to get the hang of it, but once you’ve got it down, you won’t ever want to fire a gun in real time again.

So what’s missing? Well, there’s no multiplayer mode, which seems odd for an action game like this, but when you stop to think about it, how the hell could you ever make bullet time work over a network? It just doesn’t seem feasible. Bullet time is a concept that involves altering one individual’s perception of the action; from their point of view, everything appears to be in slow motion. The question is, how can you possibly slow down the action on one person’s computer, but leave everything at regular speed on the others? I certainly don’t have the answer, and apparently they didn’t either.

They did, however, put together a Max Payne editing system, so while you can’t “frag” your friends in bullet time, at least you can trade mods and custom levels with them. This was a smart move on the part of Remedy, as it is sure to add some replay value to the game.

Although I am not a hardcore fan of action games, I am hard pressed to find fault with this one. At times, the overwhelming grit and the dark, brooding atmosphere are admittedly a little hard to take seriously. (The dialogue and narration in particular deserve a bit of a snicker every now and then.) But anyone who has enjoyed a John Woo film knows that the cornball dialogue and melodrama are all part of the fun.

To summarize: in the grand scheme of things, it’s just a shoot em up action game — but it’s a damn good one. So good, in fact, that you will probably see it released on all of the next-generation game systems this coming year. Max Payne is a unique and unforgettable gaming experience… one that will probably cloned to death by every other game company very shortly. But I guess that’s the price you pay for being on the cutting edge of video game innovation.– Sean