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Good mindless entertainment.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 6 / 9
Date: August 09, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I couldn't in good conscience give Max Payne anything above 3 stars. While very fun in its own right, it doesn't even come close to validating the ... price tag (which can be painful for those of us on a tight budget). While the playtime is increased somewhat if the auto-aim feature is disabled, the game is still much too short unfortunately. However, the game still does provide at least 10-15 hours of great mindless entertainment (depending on how much of a perfectionist you are with the autosaving) and shows great promise for future expansions, hopefully priced much, much lower.

The potential for the Max Payne franchise is sizable to say the least, and I only hope that G.O.D. Games can combine the pure fun and excitement of the many firefights with some strategy (beyond just ducking behind boxes). For example, it would be nice if it were possible to have multiple possible routes through an area instead of the often times linear feel of the game. All in all, Max Payne is enjoyable, yes, but not worth the ... price tag unless you've got money to burn. Wait for the demo if you're in doubt, or play it at a friend's house. You'll probly be able to beat it while you're there.

BEST ACTION GAME EVER!!!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 7
Date: August 11, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This game is definetely today's leader in graphics and system requirements, and the developers finally put a decent story in an intense action game, but its gameplay is same old third person variant of the FPS only it is with one powerful addition: Bullet Time or slow motion, which adds more to it. Gamers may trigger it whenever they feel like it and it has its one sense of style and adds eye candy to already jaw-dropping graphics as well as it gives you advantage over your foes (which are just plain nasty to deal with because: 1.extremely beefy 2.might shoot through their allies to kill Max 3.very alert). Max can also shootdodge, that is leap sideways in slo-mo and shoot while keeping himself less likely to get hit by enemy bullets, in addition that he can just dodge bullets by jumping sideways. Yes, it took very long to finish this game and it is quite short, but in fact, most people (me too) get so addicted to games like Max Payne that they'll beat it in record time and start whining about its length right after they beat the last level. When it comes to multiplayer, to enlighten people who are guessing why Remedy did not include it, consider the "slo-mo", because this is what this game is all about. If there was multiplayer, then imagine how you'd play with other human opponents, if one goes into slow motion, then all of them would, resulting horrible experience when some would go into slow motion without triggering it. That means that it could only be limited to 2 human players at once. When it comes to performance, the only necessary requirements for this game to run at optimum are 256 MB RAM and a 64 MB video card (I would recommend NVIDIA's Geforce cards). The game's textures take up lots of memory especially when running at 32-bit texture color depth and at high level of texture quality and sharpness. 1 ghz CPU will be more than enough for this game.

Easily One of the Greatest Games Ever Made

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: October 09, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Imagine a John Woo Hong Kong gansta movie, with Chow Yung Fat diving into a room in slow motion with his twin berettas firing, and you will understand this game perfectly. You ARE Chow Yung Fat in this game. Anytime in the game, a press of a button will throw the action into bullet time, a la The Matrix, where bullets glide by you in super slow motion, and you can react to enemies faster than humanly possible. Not only does this look darn cool, but finally you can enter a room full of 10 bad guys with your guns blazing, instead of taking glazing shots from the corners and playing hide and seek. Shoot-em ups are finally FUN!

The settings are all classic action movie settings, like the run-down hotel, New York streets, and boat dock, slick office buildings, and even a chase through a parking garage. The fire-fights are amazing, with or without bullet time, and the weapons are all unique and fun to use.

The plot - so important for a game like this - is only marginal. All the twists are told through graphic novel-style comic book panels. While they look perfect and capture a wonderful mood, the story itself is cliched and the plot often jumps all over the place. The voice acting is great, but lonely college kids pose as models in the panels, and look ridiculous. Oh, well.

The game is rather short, 15-20 hours, but the developers thoughtfully included all kinds of modification tools with the game, and already you can download all kinds of tweaks to the game, like Kung-Fu Payne and Terminator Payne.

Buy this game NOW.

THE Best Third-Person Action Game EVER

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: September 22, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I have been drooling over this game ever since I first heard of it (around April or May 2001.) Seriously. Yes, even before it came out. You want to know why? Read on.

Everybody who is even slightly in touch with the game world probably has heard of MAX PAYNE. For those of you who aren't, the plot is this - you play NYPD operative Max Payne, loving husband and father of a baby girl. One day, after work, you walk into the house and discover that evil things are afoot. Naturally, you draw your trusty Beretta and dispatch the evil ones - but the feeling remains. Your wife and child are dead.

Later, you find out that the killers were junkies, high on a drug called Valkyr (taken from Norse mythology). So, naturally, you switch to the DEA for some payback. However, no sooner do you meet your contact in the bowels of New York that his brains are splattered all over the subway floor by some unseen sniper. Guess who's been framed? The following story revolves around Max's quest for revenge.

While the basic premise is one that has been seen many, many times before, MAX PAYNE offers some good twists and turns. First is the presentation - instead of furthering the plot via in-game cutscenes, MAX uses "graphic novels" - think digital comic books, complete with voice acting and sound effects. You can also glean information during a level, whether it's from overhearing a couple of baddies around the corner discussing the bank robbery they're about to pull off to kicking the vending machine because it's eating their money. Lead writer Sam Lake obviously had a real fun time writing the in-game dialogue; it's fresh, funny, and very unique, whether it's from thugs talking about how heroes always seem to have time slow down for them to badmouthing a slot machine because it never shows the right combination for them.

The graphic novels are also very well done, using superb voice acting and unbelievable writing for all they're worth. Colorful metaphors like "colder than the devil's heart" abound and are implemented very well into the script. Again, kudos to Sam Lake.

Then comes the actual gameplay. Ah, yes. While the script and dialogue are all quite excellent, the one thing that makes MAX PAYNE stand out is it's superb features in gameplay. Max has access to the largest complement of moves I've seen in an action game, from rolling to shoot-dodging, and it all fits in extremely well. Then there's the feature that will really start you drooling - bullet-time.

Bullet-time is, at its core, very simple; whenever you activate it, time and everything else slows down except for your aiming reticule. However, it's much, much more than that. Bullet-time is the one of the best ways to show off MAX PAYNE's graphics (which, I forget to say, are the arguably the best ever put in a game), showing bullets cutting subsonic trails through the air and shotgun blasts rendered down to every single piece of buckshot. It's also very useful, and offers some interesting tactics for you to use. Trapped with a shotgun-toting enemy that could kill you in one shot but low on ammo to take him out? Activate bullet-time and take advantage of the slow-mo to hit him square in the head. Need to get from one side of a hall to the other but you'll be nailed by three enemies carrying Desert Eagles? Shoot-dodge over there - and get some shots in on them at the same time.

It's things like this that really enhance the gameplay. However, such features would mean squat if the game was too hard or the enemies too stupid. Thankfully, neither problems apply here. Your enemies are a crafty bunch; they seek cover, move around a lot, and stop firing if they know they can't get you from their current position. They're every bit as mobile as you are, rolling into the action to pop in a few shots and rolling out again when they get the chance.

The difficulty is also not a problem. A first in gaming, the gameplay measures how well you're doing and adjusts itself automatically. If you're racking up too many one-shot kills, the enemies suddenly become much more difficult to destroy. On the other hand, if you can't survive for five seconds, the enemies become easy as pie to kill.

Of course, MAX PAYNE is by no means perfect. I experienced a few glitches on my Pentium IV processor, ranging from the game crashing every so often to the graphic novels not displaying any pictures. Then there's the issue of length - it isn't very long. Honestly, though, this isn't much of a problem - the game offers lots of replay via harder difficulty settings and also includes the editing tool used by the actual design team.

Despite its small shortcomings, MAX PAYNE is a winner, and it will be remembered for years to come as the best third-person action game ever. Superb job, Remedy.

(Cheat codes in this review)

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: November 08, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Max Payne plays out as a modern Raymond Chandler/ Dashiell Hammet detective novel, complete with the classic moment about midway through where the hero fights off hallucinations while trying to overcome a drug overdose. In the game this happens to our hero twice, but it works quite well as a change of pace from what is otherwise a bloodbath. The dialogue and storyline in Max Payne is a bit overdone, even by pulp fiction standards. Perhaps the development team spent a little too much time watching professional wrestling when they weren't working on the game. Nonetheless, with some effort, it is still possible to suspend disbelief and get caught up in the Max Payne story. The game's greatest feature is Bullet Time. Click the right mouse button and you are Neo in The Matrix. Time comes to a roaring halt and, yes, you can dodge bullets. You can even watch them as they fly by. Bullet Time is very fun and it's the first genuinely new innovation in the first person shooter genre in awhile. Frankly, I hope other games copy it. The graphics in Max Payne are well done, although somewhat blocky due to the limitations of the game engine. Audio and music are professional and most importantly, not annoying. Control is solid and customizable. The only real weakness is the lack of multiplayer. If you are in the mood for a good single player adventure, Max Payne is for you.

P.S.: If you really want to have fun with the game, in WindowsXP (variations will work on any OS), from the C:\> Command Prompt, type: "C:\Program Files\Max Payne\maxpayne.exe -developer". Once you have started a new game or loaded a saved one, hit the F12 key and type any of the following cheats: "God", "GetAllWeapons", "GetInfiniteAmmo", "GetHealth" and best of all, "GetbulletTime" - hit F12 again twice to return to the game.

To the MAX!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: April 02, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I have had this game for a while, but declined to play it because it did not have any on-line gaming available and with the release of games such as RTCW, MOHAA, and C&C:Renegade, i had played those first and done the on-line thing. So I finally loaded this one up and WOW! The beginning cutscene was amazing. Alot of the game storytelling is done in comic book format and you have the ability to either watch it again or fast forward through it.
The graphics are amazing (they recommend 256 meg of ram and a 64m video card, which I had, which means you may not get the full effect with anything less), the sound eefects and music were awesome, and the controls were just like any other FPS game (I shouldn't call this an FPS since it is played in 3rd person, but hey). Also, there are harder levels of play available after you beat one.
I read one review that said the game looked cool and all, but there was know strategy. Strategy??? You mean there is another strategy besides shooting everything in site? This game definitley had strategy to it. One example was if you just went into a room with guns blazing against 3 or 4 guys, you either suffered significant damage or died (which is what happens most of the time). You have to decide what weapon to use, how you want to go in the room, and which guy to take out first becasue some of the bad guys had weapons that do serious damage. Usually when entering a room where I knew bad guys were, I used the "Dodge and Shoot" alot. With the click of button when you are moving, everything slows down and give you the advantage while you are airborn. Very cool to use abd saves you alot of damage. Then there is the "bullet Time" method which lasts about 5 to 8 seconds (as long as your meter is full). As soon as you press the button, you move in slow motion and it give you the advantage of targeting them and avoiding their fired shots. It's very cool seeing buckshot fly past you in slow notion. A definte advantage you need on certain levels, otherwise you spend alot of time reloading because you will be dead. Another cool feature is if you shoot someone in the head or in a certain area (say, near a ledge) and you see the guy go flying in slow motion. Very cool. Also, some of the levels you had to figure out how to get to the next area and it takes a little thinking, but the way is always in front of you. There was also a level where you had to get Max through his dream and that was pretty cool.
The outside scenery (this takes place during the worst storm NY has ever seen) is awesome. The snow falling all around, sirens in the background, wind whipping all around when you step outside, very nicely done. There were only 2 things I didn't like: They cut to a story board a little too often, & 2, the game was a little short. Other than that, this was clearly one of the most awesome games I have ever played. It had me hooked from the moment I started playing it. Too bad it didn't have on-line play available, but heres too hoping that they make a Max Payne 2 with that capability.
Max Payne is nearly the ultimate game, but hey, no game is perfect. If you want a challenge, then this is the game for because this game is hard.

dude . . .

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: July 16, 2002
Author: Amazon User

This is a great "no think" game. Ilove this game it's just the way I like it, short and sweet.Yes, it's true, only 3 chapters(21 levels).But come on, it's better than those stupid rpg's that drag on and on and on and on and on and on about stupid stuff no one cares about.I think that the story is great in this, a classic including the "dream levels." Slow mo is sweet, giving you a big advantage,you can AIM in real time but your enemies AIM in slow mo.You SHOOT in slo mo as do your enemies. I also love all the great classic comedy, something ghost recon and some those other games cant give you. I've played through this once on easy, and I'll say, sometimes it seems to easy, and others, it is SOOOOOOOOO chalenging(in a good way, such as when you are off to kill the noturios ganster,Jack Lipino,who is also a gothic typeof guy,you must kill so many men to get to him, with them throwing molotov cocktails at you while your fighting off 2 guyes with your 2 ingrams,SWEET).So the bottom line is max payne is a great game with tons of replayablity for anyone.

Max Payne is a first-person shooter classic...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: September 10, 2005
Author: Amazon User

If you've never played Max Payne before and you love first-person shooters then you owe it to yourself to buy this game. It's cheap now, so there's no reason not to own it before it's out of print.

Max Payne is a gritty story about a cop just doing his job. His wife an baby are murdered and it throws his world into turmil. As you can imagine, he wants revenge and he gets revenge many times over.

What makes Max Payne unique is that it uses John Woo style moves and action. This was the first game to feature "bullet time", which allows the player to slow down the action and perform fancy dive and jump moves while blasting their weapon at a target in slo-mo. Couple this with a good story and vengeance and you have a winning game. You get sucked into the world of Max Payne and you can't help but love it.

Max Payne is a huge game. By the end you'll have killed hundreds of people in your quest for the truth. It's plenty of action. Even though by today's standards the graphics look a little dated, it was top of the line for its time, with reflective floor surfaces and flying wall debris.

Another cool thing about this game is you can use cheat codes and slow the action down to a stop, then move it forward one frame at a time. You see, with Max Payne the bullets are actually flying out of the gun at the target, so when you do super slow-mo you get to see the bullets in mid-air heading for their target. Using the time cheat you can watch bullets hit targets and debris flying all over the place in realistic fashion.

Long story short, it's a must-own game for FPS fans. There's no multi-player, but who needs it when you have all the action you could want.

Also check out Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne. It continues the story, has updated graphics and the characters' mouths move when they talk. It takes Max Payne up another level. However, the game is somewhat shorter than the first installment. Get both of them today!

I wasted my money on this!!!

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 5 / 8
Date: July 31, 2001
Author: Amazon User

First off before I get started, some people will see my two star rating and think I'm one of the those people that hate this game because it was so hyped up and everybody is going to like it. And A lot of people will probably be angry at my review. I was one of those hyped up people. I've been looking forward to this game for a year and a half. I've read nothing but good reviews and praise saying this game is the most original game and most even dare compare it to Half-Life which is just wrong. I played this game for an entire day. I kid you not. I played for hours. Why? Not because I liked it but because I was trying real hard to like. I just couldn't, it is very boring to me. Okay, first off the good stuff: The graphics are good, nothign spectacular in my opinion but they are very good. Max looks awesome except for that goofy look he always has on his face. The writing is flat out excellent. Max in a way is a poet with his words, although a very very dark poet. His words are very gloomy. He is also pretty clever at saying the right thing to somebody to smart off to them. The comic book looking cut scenes are pretty neat as well. The effects are awesome, watching bullets impact the head of a thug in slow motion "Bullet Time" is pretty neat. The sounds are very good. Once again in bullet time hearing a bullet shoot past your head and hitting the wall behind you, hearing pieces of the wall hit the ground is awesome. The story is very good as well. Once again very dark and gloomy. But you wouldn't want to play a happy game would ya? Now on to the bad stuff. First off the gameplay. BORING. I read this had some of the most original gameplay of any game. I must be playing the wrong game because all I did was run from point A to point B and kill all bad guys in between. That is it. I know the slow motion thing is new and it is pretty neat but after using it a few dozen times it get's old really fast. Some games can pull off the "run from point A to point B kill all" formula by putting interesting stuff in between A and B. This game has nothing interesting. It's supposed to be somewhat realistic. How about not realistic at all. Except YOU can die with one shot. Here is an example at how unrealistic this game is. I'm in a room, I'm next to a doorway, the door is closed. it opens, I'm on one side, a thug is on the other, I take my pump action shotgun , I figure this door is wood and is pretty old and barely on it's hinges, I'll shoot through the door and kill the thug. So I shoot, the shot gun blast's pieces from the door, but none of the bullets go through the door. Hmm, that is odd. Okay, I hit the slow motion button and jump in front of the thug, I shoot, I see each individual shotgun pellet, one hit's the thug right in the forehead, another hit's him in the chest, another in the stomach, and shoulder. Slow motion wear's off and I am moving like normal, I turn around, the thug is still alive and he shoots me once and kills me, even though I had a lot of energy left... The thug was not wearing any armor, just pants and a plain old shirt. He took bullets in his head, stomach, and chest and still lived. Another time I was shooting a bartender with his pants down to his ankels in every body part, head, crotch, butt, stomach, chest, arms, legs. Nothing killed him. It took me forever to kill this guy even though I shot him over and over again in the head.... I expected a lot more, something original and I didn't get it. For gamers who want to just blow stuff up and kill people, this game is for you, but I need just a little bit more. If I want mindless killing and that's all I do I'll play Unreal Tournament. Yeah, this game has a story but that still doesn't save it. This game does have it's high points, graphics, sound, "Bullet Time"(before it gets old), and good story. But the bad boring gameplay just destroys everything for me.

A truly excellent, innovative shooter

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 8
Date: August 11, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Max Payne is one of those rare games that comes along every once in a while that breathes new life into a genre that seems to be all boring clones. I have played many shooters, and yet Max Payne was a totally new experience. It is unlike any other shooter out there. I have played very few games with such a deep, involving story. From the first episode in the game, you are deeply involved in the character and the story. Max Payne is a complex character who is very realistic. The gameplay in this game is truly superb as well. The action is intense and smooth-moving. It is difficult but very fair. The feature that you surely have heard about the most is bullet-time. This is truly a unique feature that adds a lot to the game. You will surely end up using it a lot. It provides for a lot of very cool sequences. The game is a bit short, but the included mods (Hard-Boiled, New York Minute, and Dead On Arrival) should provide some additional longevity. I would not recommend this game for younger players, though. My brother is 15 and he found a couple parts a bit disturbing, though that could just be him. I personally am 18 and found nothing to be disturbing. There is mild swearing but nothing you don't hear everyday. Max Payne is truly an enjoyable game and a very worthwhile purchase. Even without multiplayer it is a rewarding experience to play through. It like nothing you've ever played, even if you think you've seen everything a shooter can do.

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