Max can carry a maximum of two weapons but that design choice has allowed for Rockstar to accurately animate his movements accordingly. In addition to its refreshingly mature storyline told in an interesting locale, the game has a great soundtrack and the character animation is superb.

Max Payne 3 attains a level of intensity and viciousness to its environment that is uncommon for video games. It wasn’t gratuitously portrayed, but a sequence involving the ‘necklacing’ of one of the main characters, where they are trapped inside a ring of tyres and then set alight, was particularly disturbing to me. There we see prostitution, substance abuse, organ harvesting and torture. The game frequently delves into uncomfortably violent and difficult subject matter, particularly in the scenes set in the slums.

Rockstar have never been one to shy away from mature content in their games and so it is with Max Payne 3.

Sao Paolo is a unique cityscape for the story to unfold and the juxtaposition of wealthy businessmen partying in towering penthouse highrises peering directly over poverty stricken shanty towns creates an interesting backdrop for this story. Rockstar producer Sam Houser chose Sao Paulo for his setting and it’s an inspired idea. Video games have rarely been as gritty and sordid as the content in Max Payne 3. Not only does Max Payne 3 borrow the same storyline, it also recreates the same visual style, using text on the screen to highlight key phrases and adding a liberal coating of washed out orange and blue hues in post production. The game cribs the same story of a burnt out American bodyguard in a fish-out-of-water tale where he searches for redemption in a foreign city by rescuing the victim of a kidnapping. Instead they unofficially made a video game adaptation of the film Man On Fire. From what I can tell, new developers Rockstar weren’t too fussed about carrying over the noirish elements from the earlier installments in the series anyway. Although I’m familiar with the first two games in the Max Payne series, I’ve never actually played them. Max Payne 3 is a game that borrows heavily from the late great film director Tony Scott.

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