A refreshing, over the top action game that adds a surprisingly high level of detail.
Story-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Max Payne; a man whose wife and daughter were murdered in the original game, hasn't exactly moved on. The former NYPD police officer is now nothing more than a drunk addicted to pain killers, drowning in his own cynical hate for himself and everyone around him. The typical Rockstar character has many of these qualities; a bloody past and a newly acquired sense of motivation is what kicks off nearly all of their games.
However, something about Max's life feels truly tragic. We're typically told or shown the story of how the character gets to where they are, covered in blood stains and regret. But in this game, it's all just Max telling stories while vomiting and passing out. Of course, he won't hesitate for a second to kill anyone, a handful of situations in which he pulls the trigger paint him as a cold blooded murderer. But he really does give the impression of a wronged man just trying to do the right thing, but never managing to make it work. He's a man who's lost everything, a man who has no reason to even get out of bed in the morning. It's easy to have no sympathy for a gang member, or a criminal in the wild west, but Max, despite fitting the archetype all Rockstar heroes do, is indeed different in how he's presented.
The game is narrated by Max Payne. Every chapter barring the final one is simply a story being told rather than lived. It jumps between different time periods in Max's life, but still retains some fluidity in how it's done. Max, after moving to Hoboken New Jersey, and while drinking in a bar, meets a man who claims to have gone to the academy with him; Raul Passos. Max doesn't remember who he is, but decides to take him on his word, and Passos offers him the opportunity to get into private security. Reluctant at first, Max has little choice when after a confrontation with some arrogant armed kids, winds up shooting Anthony DeMarco Jr; the son of a mob boss. It's then that Max and Passos get out of the city and head to Brazil, and acquire private security jobs. If it weren't obvious enough, things don't go too smoothly. Max and Passos are soon in a dire situation to rescue the wife and her sister of the rich family they were paid to protect.
Overall, the characters are likeable, the story takes some twists and turns, and it is all legitimately interesting to watch unfold.
Presentation-------------------------------------------------------------------
Max Payne 3 pays attention to a staggering number of details. Glass breaks realistically, complete with a small shockwave when in slow motion. Tables and other weaker objects will break if you dive onto them, and walking over blood will create bloody footprints that remain permanently. Enemies also react realistically to gunshot wounds, clutching the injured area while still trying to shoot or find cover. This game also features both entry and exit wounds, which really add a lot to the visual severity of injury. Shoot someone in the head, and the skin on their face will actually pull and flower outwards in a disgustingly hilarious fashion. Max also sweats throughout levels, and you can see the effect on his clothes as you progress. There are many minor yet impressive details than you likely won't even see in a single playthrough. Yet every one of them assists in making the flashy action look that much better.
Graphics------------------------------------------------------------------------
Simply put, very few games look this good. Explosions, slow motion close ups of bullets, and the expressions on faces are all impressive. People move realistically, and the physics are top notch. Things can look a little clunky when Max dives into an awkward position, but overall there's very few instances in which the game doesn't look great.
Sound---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Guns sound distinct, voice acting is well done, and the music is fitting. Not much else you could ask for. An interesting decision was also to keep the Portuguese speech untranslated in the subtitles. Oddly enough, it's better that way, as it keeps the player's confusion neatly mirroring Max's when he's not sure if someone's about to shoot him or buy him a drink.
Gameplay----------------------------------------------------------------------
This game is absurdly flashy, and while certain cutscenes can fall into the cliche department, you'll never be bored while playing. There are many scripted slow motion scenes in which you get to shoot freely, ranging from diving onto a cart and rolling past windows to take out snipers, to shooting from a boat that's just flown into the air and through a house.
In every other moment, the game is as over the top as you want it to be. You could use cover and blindfire to make an enemy flinch or stumble and then pull off an accurate shot. Or, you could dive from the bleachers, shooting someone in the leg to make them fall painfully down the stairs, landing on your back, shooting another in the eyeball and watch the carnage unfold in slow motion. To finish off this impressive display of action porn, you can then stand up and notice that this game also includes grass stains, unbelievable.
The game is exciting from start to finish, and the gameplay and settings are consistently mixed up and remain fresh. You may be taking cover behind your deceased wife's gravestone one chapter, the next, trying to shoot people on a rooftop as the tremors of a soon to collapse building throw both you and the enemy around.
Max Payne 3 delivers in the spectacle, but also in the controls department. While the aiming system still isn't as fluid as some notable other shooters, it still gets the job done. Some actions are mapped a little bit awkwardly by default, but can be adjusted. There's really nothing major to fault in how the game plays, it's a wonderful mix of maintaining the tried and true elements while sprinkling in precise details that can make an action game truly enjoyable.
Multiplayer----------------------------------------------------------------------
Max Payne 3 focuses on what many shooters do now: Customization. You can pick from a myriad of weapons, armors, items, and special abilities. It's a lot of fun, and even the slow motion element is incorporated into the multiplayer; impressive, as the mechanics behind it work very well.
There's also quite a hefty amount of modes, most of which are played in stages over the course of several games between 2 teams. It's interesting, fun, and varied.
This does however have the same problem that Red Dead Redemption had. Those of a higher level have a massive advantage over those of a lower level. The best equipment is available later on, even the load one can carry, as well as the effectiveness of abilities increase with their level. There's also some balance issues, with dual pistols and the default long range rifle being the vast majority of what the community uses. Both being a hindrance to weapon variety, and to the general balance of the other weapon classes, shotguns in particular.
There's also a handful of glitches. These will either be hilariously enjoyable or controller throwing-ly frustrating depending on what side of the barrel you're on.
All in all, it's a pretty well done multiplayer that is quite distinct and doesn't fall into the area of "tacked on" that many shooters do nowadays.
Replayability-------------------------------------------------------------------
Whenever a shooter has multiplayer, it's somewhat worrying. Due to the popularity of multiplayer, many games take a very obvious dip in the quality of the single player experience. Luckily, the replayability is very much intact whether you want to play on your own, or with others.
Multiplayer, naturally, has a leveling system that takes ages to progress, and has a "prestige" option, similar to Call of Duty. There's also the inclusion of crews (clans), which are easy to join and aren't so serious that the average player can't have fun with it. When multiple players of the same crew end up against multiple players of another crew, during the game there will be a bit of a side-competition going on based on which clan is performing better. There's also stat tracking, medals, and DLC giving plenty of reasons to keep playing.
The single player also is rich in replayability. There's multiple difficulty modes that range from easy and fun to the appropriately named "hardcore", which will force you to restart the entire game should you die once. There's also the inclusion of Arcade; a score based playthrough of the game in which you can use different characters. New York Minute; a mode in which you must complete every level in one minute, getting bonus time for accuracy, kills, etc. The game also includes cheats that can be activated for doing certain things within the game. These add a lot of "screw around" replayability due to the inclusion of infinite bullet time, slow motion cinematic cameras on every kill, infinite ammo, etc. To top it all off, the single player story is quite long in its own right.
Conclusion---------------------------------------------------------------------
Max Payne 3 is a game that knows what it wants to be, but isn't satisfied with being JUST that. The intricate graphical details, surprisingly interesting story and characters, and solid gameplay make it something that action game fans shouldn't miss out on. It's a great example of how the ridiculous and the realistic can blend so well.