Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne

You know, by the end of this game, Max Payne's head must be seriously screwed up. This guy chugs whole bottles of painkillers for health, through the entire game. And you wonder why your local pharmacy was sold out.

So anyway,

The game control is good, and completly customizable. There is a good selection of targeting reticles, and everything works.

Howevery, the gameplay isn't as good. The slo-mo shoot-dodges don't work very well, as Max just lies on the floor afterwards. In a game about style, why he couldn't tuck into a roll is beyond me, but sure enough, he just lies there. Also, shoot-dodging cancels your bullet-time, which is really bad when you're swarmed with enemies.

The bullet time effects are pretty though, as well as the rest of the game. I don't have much to complain about in this aspect.

The weapon selection is good, with only one dud, that being the sawed off shotgun. Why, you ask? Because it only holds two shells. When the shotgun spreads more than a can of spray paint and holds very limited ammo, it sucks. Other than that, there's not much to complain about. You carry enough ammo (exept for the MAC-10, which NEVER has enough ammo) and the weapons behave well enough.

The story, however, is seriously trippin'. The beginning is really the end (or something like that) and it's all about Max chasing some bimbo. The story takes its cues from film noir, so the dialogue is as stilted as... well it's pretty bad. The bimbo isn't that hot, the story is confusing, and hearing Max Payne piss and moan about his dead family is annoying. You also can't turn off the voices, so when some of the more profane villians appear, you're stuck with it. May not be an issue for some of you, but I for one begin to get tired of hearing the f-word for the 200th time.

There is not much in terms of replay. Once you beat the game, you have "dead man walking" maps, in which tons of enemies spawn in and overwhelm you. A mindless diverson. There is also a time attack mode, where you try to beat chapters in the story as fast as you can. That's about it.
whee.

All in all, Max Payne is OK, but his whining wears thin, the profanity become grating, and the entire game loses its appeal after awhile. Even the game mechanics become repetive, and the platforming sections are stupid.

Three stars with you.

Max Payne must be having a grand time in rehab.

3 star(s) out of 5

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