Max Payne 3 Member Review for the Xbox360

“So I guess I'd become what they wanted me to be, a killer. Some rent-a-clown with a gun who puts holes in other bad guys. Well that's what they had paid for, so in the end that's what they got.” And that is how the story of Max Payne 3 begins. Max has become a sort of private security guard for some rich prick named Bronco. Everything starts of smoothly but Max Payne is surprised and unprepared when a gang of thugs attacks the crib of the Broncos. Of course like all other MP plots, Max takes his mission objective too far and pops a little too many painkillers and instead of just saving everyone he decides to kick a few extra butts. Of course he blames this all on his painkiller/alcohol addiction and cloudy judgment but the bad guys are unhappy and try to pursue Max. This is the point where Max Payne decides that he has failed as a private contract security guard and that basically life doesn’t matter to him anymore. He shaves his head, gives up his alcoholism, and risks his life in every possible way to cleanse the earth from all of his enemies. This is how the story heads to a 16 hour bullet-time-filled asskicking fest. I guess I would feel more compassion for Max and his alcoholism and painkiller addiction only if he didn’t manipulate time like he was in the Matrix and make Vin Diesel look like a bald-headed sissy.

Throughout the game you will also get a chance to play some historic scenes when Max remembers his past. Some of them are a little irrelevant to the main plot. There is also an interactive environment as you can go around and find objects in order to collect clues and to learn what Max thinks about everything that is happening in the story. By collecting clues, you will understand more than Max Payne understands of his own situation.

I have been playing and enjoying the Max Payne series since the first game. Of course every game in the series is a little different, and who is to judge whether for better or worse. But it is no lie to say that Max Payne 3 has become very commercial and mainstream; it almost reminds me of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 sometimes and the only small difference being that you have bullet-time and the game is in third-person. I’m not saying that this is a necessarily bad thing, and Max Payne 3 has had one hell of an advertising campaign. I guess my only concern is the series is turning into something too mainstream like COD, but I guess that is what developers need to turn to in order to sell many copies.

The game also has one of the nicest soundtracks. It has many songs that are a mixture of house, indie, and electronic, in order to achieve the best Max Payne experience. MP3 it definitely has the nicest soundtrack to keep your adrenaline pumping and your desire to tear hole into the bad guys going.

Check out the full soundtrack on Youtube (check out the songs Painkiller, Tears).

The multiplayer seems nice. There are a few nice modes but the leveling up takes a considerable amount of time. I haven’t played it for too long to write anything more about it.

What makes me happy in the end is knowing that the legend of Max Payne is alive. I thought the game was excellent and as Max Payne says: “I'll put a big sh*t-eating grin on my face while watching these bastards take turns trying to kill me..."