Max Payne (video game)
A neo-noir shooter that popularized bullet time in video games.
Max Payne is a 2001 third-person shooter game developed by Remedy Entertainment and originally released for Windows by Gathering of Developers in July 2001. The game follows former NYPD detective Max Payne as he investigates the murder of his family and a new designer drug called Valkyr, becoming entangled in a conspiracy involving a pharmaceutical company, organized crime, a secret society, and the U.S. Armed Forces. It is noted for its gritty neo-noir style, graphic novel storytelling, and bullet time gameplay inspired by Hong Kong action cinema.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Max Payne
- Publisher
- Gathering of Developers (Windows) · Rockstar GamesMac OS X version published by MacSoft in North America and Feral Interactive in Europe
- Director
- Petri Järvilehto
- Producer
- George Broussard · Scott Miller
- Programmer
- Markus Stein
- Writer
- Sam Lake
- Composer
- Kärtsy Hatakka · Kimmo Kajasto
- Platforms
- Windows · PlayStation 2 · Xbox · Mac OS X · Game Boy Advance · iOS · Android
- Genre
- Third-person shooter
- Modes
- Single-player
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Max Payne was developed by Remedy Entertainment and released in July 2001 for Windows. The game's story is told through graphic novel panels with voice-overs, drawing from hard-boiled detective novels and Norse mythology. Its gameplay features bullet time, an ability that slows time when triggered, and an AI system that adjusts difficulty based on player performance. The game was ported to multiple platforms, including PlayStation 2, Xbox, Mac OS X, Game Boy Advance, and mobile devices, with a planned Dreamcast version canceled due to the console's discontinuation.
Reader's Guide
Max Payne is widely regarded as one of the greatest games ever made, praised for its exciting gunplay and noir storytelling, though criticized for linear level design and short length. It sold 4 million units and won numerous awards, including a BAFTA for Best PC Game of 2001. The game launched a franchise with sequels Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne (2003) and Max Payne 3 (2012), as well as a loose film adaptation in 2008. In 2022, Remedy announced remakes of the first two games for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S, published by Rockstar.
Did You Know?
- The game's bullet time effect was popularized by the 1999 film The Matrix.
- A Dreamcast version was planned but canceled due to the console's discontinuation in 2001.
- The Game Boy Advance version features an isometric perspective but retains most original gameplay elements.
- The game includes a difficulty mode called 'Dead on Arrival' that limits the player to a total of seven saves for the entire game, not per chapter.
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