Max Payne 3

It's been a while since I've committed myself to a review, even though I've been playing through a few games. Max Payne 3 is a game a decade in the making, and a true AA(A) title. It has its flaws, and it has its strengths, and it is still one of the best action games to be purchased.

Currently on regular sale on steam for under a tenner, Max Payne 3 happily fills the linear action shooter niche, complete with laughable dialogue and well-paced action. The story is predictably hammy throughout, yet pleasingly self-referential. Cover-glitch issues and unskippable cut-scenes sadly pull this down into an 8/10, but there isn't any to match what Max can bring.

Taking the story into a variety of scenes, we join on Max on some ridiculous quest-or-another across favelas, nightclubs, and his familar New York past. Much love has gone into the design of the game and it sustains its set-piece-and-then-another without entropy.

One criticism many have of this game is the unskippable cut-scenes. For a first-time play through I liked them: they provided a breather between the set pieces. On a second play-through, they were tedious. While most of them were merely 30 seconds or so, there are some that do last for several minutes (it seems). Poor design in here. Of course, playing in window mode allows you to Alt-tab into something else while you wait for the action to start. Rockstar have said this practice is due to the need for loading times (which can't be right).

A righteous criticism of this game that I suffered a well-documented cover glitch. On my previous gaming computer Max would freeze behind cover and only move out when he was rolled. This meant that enemies would auto-hit him. A frustration that hasn't been sorted (yet acknowledged by Rockstar) this made the game near unplayable at times near the end (particularly in the airport scene where use of cover is essential). All I can suggest, if you suffer the same, is to reduce the quality of your graphics. On my new computer, the game breezed through without any issues, and I clocked many sections much easier.

One tip I would give, too, is to realise that if you begin to reload behind cover and then select bullet time, your adrenaline bar does not decrease. Near the end of the game this is a boon, as you have to headshot most enemies to progress. At this point, too, the rifles are too inaccurate, and dual wielding is far superior at medium to close range.

Ultimately Max Payne 3 is well worth a purchase. It won't be a full meal for a gamer, but it is a juicy steak sandwich with graphical sauce to delight. Even with some very naff DRM, lack of graphical optimisation (with the cover glitch), and cut-scene design, I have managed to put 24+ hours into it laughingly.