Max Payne 2 Reviews

Now that Max is out, some of the gaming news sites are posting their full reviews of the game. As with the previews, some of them are giving away major plot points, so if you don't want the game spoiled for you, it might be best to avoid them. However, we'll bring you some non spoiler excerpts from them here (with no pretentious intro, we'll just get right to the quotes)...

First up is IGN.com's review of Max Payne 2: (they rate it a 9.4 out of 10)

You'll notice some immediate improvements over the original. Close-ups of faces are remarkably realistic. A lot of animation has been motion-captured. You can knock things over like chairs, stools, boxes. Puddles of water give accurate reflections of their surroundings. People have funny conversations.

Their star-crossed love story plays a major part in the game, and pulls Max Payne 2 head and shoulders above the action game style.

The new Havok 2.0 physics engine, which was supposed to make its debut with Half-Life 2, is pretty darn cool. Instead of taking time to record death animation motion capture, you can just plug this thing in and watch the fur fly. Bodies go flying, tumble brutally down stairwells, and go flying off precipices with satisfying realism.

Max Payne 2 is thick with drama and action. And once you've played through the first time, you'll have higher difficulty levels, including all the modes from the previous installment.

Next up is a review from Gamespot.. (they rate it a 9.0 out of 10)

This new Max Payne, billed as "a film noir love story," was certainly worth the wait too.

On its own merits, it's a stunning shooter... ....it's still incredibly intense and, by all means, worth experiencing.

All of the game's between-level loading screens and graphic novel sequences are impressive-looking and often very cool.

As such, the fact that Max Payne 2 essentially provides more of what made the first game so outstanding--but with a fresh, new coat of paint and an intriguing, new storyline--makes it a must for anyone who liked the original.

Third is one from Telefragged. (they rate it 92%)

For those who loved the little details in the first game, MP2 delivers a ton of new stuff that the serious fans will eat up.

The graphic novel-style cutscenes are back, and I'm glad they are; the hand-drawn art adds a unique style that is missing from games nowadays.

Max Payne 2 is all about the action and story, and it delivers an experience that is even more intense and satisfying than the first game.

The new environments in MP2 are a hell of a lot of fun to play through.

Max Payne 2 retains or expands on almost everything great from MP1 while adding new features, an intense story, an insane amount of detail, and even more wonderful gameplay...if you loved the first game, you can't go wrong with this one.

Finally today is one from Games Domain. (they rate it a "Top Game")

It is a mature theme, and Remedy has not shied away from its realities. The game's dialogue is convincingly profane, and the blood is not spared. Max Payne 2 is a mature game in every sense of the word, and is all the better for it.

Kudos to Remedy, because it is an outstanding looking game.

Remedy has brought its already well-loved recipe from the original game to near-perfection.

In doing so, it achieved something that is very rare in gaming - well-developed and believable characters. That, in itself, is no mean feat, but mix it with the game's delightful combat, varied design, and admirable coherence of style and creative vision, and you have something very special. Max Payne 2 is a superb game.

Posted by Joe Siegler on October 17, 2003 at 2:10 PM | Permalink
News Categories: Max Payne