A Film Noir Love Story
With his life in ruins, Max Payne returns to the NYPD as a detective. On a routine murder investigation, he runs into Mona Sax, a Mafia assassin whom he saw take a bullet through the head. Mona holds the answers to many of Max's questions, but she happens to be the suspect of another case being investigated by Detective Winterson, one of Max's co-workers. Once again, we get to guide Max through a story of intrigue, betrayal, and this time, love.
Veterans of the original Max Payne will find very little in the way of surprises in Max Payne 2, but will be satisfied, as the game retains the exact same formula as the first, but features a few enhancements. The most notable enhancements are the new bullet time meter, and the implementation of the Havok physics engine. The new bullet time meter works in a way that speeds Max up as he kills more enemies while in bullet time - this is indicated by the little hour glass turning yellow. This will give Max a distinct advantage over his opponents. This isn't the only new bullet time feature, as Max will execute a new spin move while reloading his guns in bullet time, resulting in almost instant reloads. The Shoot-Dodge move doesn't consume any of your bullet time meter any more either, leaving you to jump around like a fool as much as you desire.
The Havok physics engine is the centerpiece of the upcoming Half Life 2, but makes an appearance in a slightly simpler form in Max Payne 2 - well, simple for the Havok engine anyway - the physics featured in Max Payne 2 are absolutely sensational. Every single object in the game has its own weight and movement characteristics. Pushing objects around will also affect other objects, and the game has a few demonstrations of this throughout the game, such as a section where you can launch small balls at a stack of tin cans.
Several changes have been made to Max's arsenal. The baseball bat has been done away with, and now a melee attack is bound to the Y button. Grenades and Molotov Cocktails have been added to this melee weapon category, meaning you can use them with the Y button as well. The grenade launcher has also been axed, but has been replaced with the MP5 rifle and the Striker assault shotgun, both of which will come in handy throughout the game.
AI in Max Payne 2 has been greatly enhanced. Enemies hang around in groups of about 3-4, and will attack from different directions, if you give them the opportunity. If you hide from a fire fight, the enemy will track you down. The level of intelligence and difficulty is actually controlled by how well you play the game in the Detective mode. Once you complete the detective mode, you're given access to the Hard Boiled difficulty, which is essentially the same game as Detective, but with the AI on its strongest setting. Three new game types are also unlocked - Dead on Arrival, New York Minute and Dead Man Walking. Dead on Arrival is the same as Hard Boiled, but the player only has access to a limited number of saves each level. New York Minute has the player's time in the game limited to a single minute, but each enemy they kill will add to the clock. Finally, Dead Man Walking is a deathmatch. At the start of the game, its only Max and another enemy. Enemies begin to spawn in every couple of seconds, and respawn a few seconds after dying, until the map is filled with enemies, and your inevitable death takes place. The main game in Max Payne 2 is very short - it should only take a capable player 6-8 hours to complete. The extra modes are interesting, and there are quite a few Easter eggs to discover, but these do little to extend your interest past the 12 hour mark.
Old Tawny Port
Max Payne 2 was originally released on the PC in early October, with the Xbox and Playstation 2 versions being ported from this. The Xbox port is no slouch - it only degrades the graphics to about a medium level (it wasn't too hard switching after playing it on a Athlon 2700 w/ Radeon 9800pro), downgrades the physics a notch (as far as I can tell), and removes one or two gags. Control is top notch, load times are negligible and quick saves and mid level saves are intact. It's easily as good a port as the same team did for the original Max Payne. The Playstation 2 version is a hacked up mess, and isn't really worth a look if you're after a Max Payne 2 experience that can be compared to the PC original.
Painkillers
Though slightly downgraded through the porting process, the graphics in Max Payne 2 look great. The levels look great thanks to high quality textures and excellent design. The character models look great, thanks to an intensive level of facial detail (again, slightly downgraded, but still good) and the implementation of rag doll physics, which results in realistic interaction with objects, especially when death has occurred. The framerate is a rock solid 60 frames per second throughout, with only minor drops in one or two spots during the game. One minor quibble with the game is that the noir look is only really featured in the comics, and some form of graphical filter could have done wonders for the in-game action. Max Payne 2 features widescreen and 60 Hz display modes.
Voice acting is the major highlight of the Max Payne 2 audio experience, with a high level of quality extending from both the script and the actors alike. That's not to suggest that the other areas of the game aren't up to scratch, as Max Payne 2 features a moody soundtrack and the quality and accuracy of the sound effects is top notch. The game also supports Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, if you have the necessary equipment.
Dodging Bullets
The Xbox version of Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne is both an excellent game and a shining example of how ports from PC to console should be done. The game is definitely worth playing, but a purchase is another matter entirely, as the game only provides enough content for the average player to get a good 10-12 hours of play. This shouldn't distract fans of the first game from getting it, but those new to the series should be satisfied by renting the game.
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