OpenWorldGames Server ONE

Just heard of...
Nothing confirmed yet, but I would like to see him back....
Played MP1 many times and loved it. It's a 3rd person, corridor game, but the bullet time effect is something amazing.
Jump into a firefight and dodge bullets like you are in a matrix movie... sweet.
Wait and see...

I've heard of Max Payne 3 too. Have been tracking it through gamespot.com
Max Payne (I) was one of my favorite games of all times. I lost count how many times I had played it. I installed the Kung Fu Mod and the Katana Mod as well. Found the maneuvers better than the original game. Max Payne 2 wasn't up to the mark. I hated the way the character ran. Hopefully, Max Payne 3 would have some new stuff to experiment and better run/walk animation.

Well, well well... now its official  :)

Max Payne 3 is due in Q4/2009 (hopefully)
Now developed by Rockstar, same as GTA series, it seems to take place in São paulo, Brazil (my hometown  8)) and, considering what Rockstar usually do, it might be open world (I'm guessing here, nothing official)

here is what I got at gamespot.com

=======================================



Rockstar's Vancouver studio takes over from Remedy for third outing of ex-NYPD vigilante.

For fans of Max Payne, it has been a long wait since 2003 when the last game in the franchise was released to critical acclaim. Talk of a sequel came in 2004, when Take-Two hinted that a follow-up would eventually arrive. Fast-forward to 2008, and Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick once again mentioned the franchise, teasing that another installment may be in the works but again providing no firm details.

Today, Take-Two and its Rockstar Games subsidiary have announced that Max Payne 3 is indeed in development and is penned for a winter 2009 release on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. The game is being developed by Rockstar Vancouver, the same outfit behind the controversial sandbox action adventure Bully. Finnish outfit Remedy, which developed the first two Max Payne titles, is currently developing Alan Wake, which will be published by Microsoft.

Rockstar Vancouver will apparently not be straying far from Remedy's original formula, however, as Max Payne 3 again sees the titular retired NYPD veteran battling internal demons as well as those that plague the city's streets.

"We're starting a new chapter of Max's life with this game," commented Rockstar cofounder Sam Houser in a statement. "This is Max as we've never seen him before, a few years older, more world-weary and cynical than ever. We experience the downward spiral of his life after the events of Max Payne 2 and witness his last chance for salvation."

Rockstar did not delve into specific gameplay details, and did not mention the series' genre-defining "bullet time" slow-motion technique. The publisher merely noted that "the latest installment delivers more of the classic elements and hyperintense action that fans have come to love."

When Max Payne 3 rolls around this winter, it may find itself on shakier legs than when it left off six years ago. In October, the franchise saw its first transition to the silver screen. And while the Mark Wahlberg-led action flick pulled in healthy opening-week revenues, critics were all too eager to redub the film "Maximum Payneful" (an actual quote).

========================================

Wait and see... fingers crossed  ;)

I liked the film personally, great to here that #3 is coming.

..... note to self .... finish MP2 ..... doh!  :-[

Since it seems like the season for "Upcoming Games on my list" is open... I don't want to let this topic burried  ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aU5BkJoUUos&feature=related

 :) I don't know, but it reminded me of the Favelas of Rio de Janeiro, can you confirm that, JRD?

Yeap... in the beginning Max is living in Brazil and soon his rage is directed to local criminals... more details sometime this year  ;)

 :) :-X

Rockstar gives release date: march 2012, for all PS3, XBOX and PC!!
They also promised to make a multiplayer, with different playmodi and will support clans. Don't know what that means, but it might be like starting a clan, and gain power as a clan. Imagine a OWG clan taking over >:D

Get your PCs and consoles ready, folks... this is going to be amazing!

Max Payne 3: Design & Tech Trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L75M2I7Ucu0#ws)

Whoaaah!!!!

That's gonna be amazing!!! :-X :o :) :-X

I like the part, in the end, where it says: this video was made with ingame footage! which means: what you see is what you get!  >:D

I am SO glad Rockstar ensures the jobs of Germany's game-censoring office. Again a product I can't buy in my own country if I want to really enjoy it.

Very impressive, but I hate to think what the system requirements will be if you want it to look the way it does in that clip ??? I'd probably get a frame rate of about one every two seconds on my current rig :-()

Very impressive - as always, graphics is probably the most important game characteristics for me.

I think, by making the game corridor and in small portions, these shown graphics are possible for most pc gamers. Not sure but usually when the environment stays small it's easier to get great graphics like shown.  ????

Sorry for my German friends about the endless censorship. It's time for a w@&k-around or something. Maybe steam is the ticket, or maybe there should be a big phat hack on that censorsystem there! >:(

For me, the graphics are definitely important too. Especially when you make moves like this 'slow-motion-shooting'.

This special feature seems to be the big hit in Max Payne again, which is logical because that was the main thing in the game. What I miss a little though, is the comic-like graphics. I remember they made a great cross-over between 3D graphics and comics. Anyway, it looks great, that's for sure :-()

As I remember from the first game, Max's backstory was told as a comic book between levels. You could read what happened when you are not playing or skip and go straight to the action! The graphics back then were pretty much real not actually comic book style though.

As for the corridor nature of the game I didn't read anything regarding MP3 being open world. Both previous games were classic corridor style third person shooters but I really would like something more open this time around!

For some reason Kane&Lynch springs to mind. Excellent game back then, yet linear. That's the reason why I never re-played it. Like basically all linear games they lack replay value. You've done it once? Enough :) No surprises. The only thing in a linear game I replayed were certain parts/missions, given the game allowed suitable saves.

I'm longing for a replay of Bulletstorm. Miss the game sort of, especially now that I'm playing the skill based game Batman.  :-()

I read great info about the MP in MP3. lol :-D

It's going to be just like regular MP's, and a bunch of guys who got a testing version speak of an amazingly solid and enjoyable MP set-up. What is revolutionary, is the way they introduced 'bullet time' and 'shoot dodge' in the MP. They will be available as so called 'bursts'. To be able to use bursts you have to lvl up a bit first, in order to unlock a burst type, and then you need adrenaline to perform one. Adrenaline is gained by killing or hurting enemies.
The comments of the group of guys who had the honour to test the MP, were that these bursts are very well thought out, and quite clever. Rockstar figured out a way to have 'bullet time' function good in a MP setting by defining that all the players 'in direct sight' of the user of bullet time, will suffer a time jam for max 6 seconds. But not only the players in sight of the user of the burst, but the players in direct sight of his victims as well.  :-X Otherwise there would be an unfair advantage for them, since they could slaughter the entire enemy team if the original user looks in the right direction. Pretty smart  :-()

There will be plenty of other bursts available as well; things like 'unlimited ammo' during 20 seconds, 'armour piercing bullets' for the a short period or extra health for you and nearby teammates.

One game mode sounds new to me, called 'Payne killer'. Two people will become Max and Passos, his campaign helper, and these 2 will have better bullets and armour. The rest tries to kill these two. When Max or Passos is killed, a new player will be assigned to that person. The biggest killer ´during being Max or Passos´ will win. Sounds cool, 2 against the world :-X 8)

Here´s where I found the info (Dutch site, sorry)
http://tweakers.net/reviews/2542/1/hands-on-max-payne-3-multiplayer-solist-zoekt-collegas.html (http://tweakers.net/reviews/2542/1/hands-on-max-payne-3-multiplayer-solist-zoekt-collegas.html)

Rockstar promised there will be more, according to game modes. So that all sounds pretty cool to me 8) ;)

30 minute gameplay footage

http://www.giantbomb.com/quick-look-max-payne-3/17-5971/ (http://www.giantbomb.com/quick-look-max-payne-3/17-5971/)

After downloading 35 GB worth of data I was really looking forward to try this game out with my new GPU.

I spent the whole day at w@&k just hoping this monday would end so I could come home and play a DX11 game.

So I fired STEAM and selected Max Payne 3 and..... it froze in the very first intro screen  :D  the one that says "Max Payne 3 and Rockstar logo are trademarks blah blah blah......  >:((

Now instead of having a first impression what I have is a Check Game Cache Integrity running while checking the official website and STEAM support... all for a game I didn't even see yet!

What a freaking first impression Rockstar is giving me!  :angry-new:

But looking on the bright side... I can check how good is their support!  ::)

I dont use Steam due to issues I had with Dead Island there, Steam cost me 90+ hours of gameplay when it buggered up my save file.

I played MP3 on release and didnt get very far with it personally.

The game is very story driven, which is a good thimg, but I felt it kept pulling me out of the experience with the camera w@&k, also when you hit enemies the camera kept shifting to kill cam or following the bullet as it travelled towards the target.

I just could not settle into the game, but from what I can gather from friends, it is VERY good, so I think you will enjoy it alot. Hopefully you played the prequels, if not, they are well worth playing, but avoid the movie at all costs :)

That's the first time I encounter an issue with STEAM. I must say their service is pretty good imo. Besides, I don't have much choice but buy games legally at STEAM. A game purchased in a retail store would cost me 2.5 to 3 times more than at STEAM due to ridiculous taxes in Brazil. Actually, buying a game - provided it's not on release - can cost me quite the same as a pirate game. I bought several titles for excellent prices during fire sales in STEAM and I never regreted!  :-X

As for MP3 well, shooters are not your cup of tea Fiach so I understand you not going very far.  :)

I know it's story driven and very linear as the other games on the series. I played the original Max Payne but somehow skipped Max Payne 2. MP2 was pretty much a sequel with basically the same engine, graphics and game dynamics. This thrid installment is meant to change Max and present him several years after the last game and in a whole new set... it takes place in São Paulo, my home town!  >:D

I've sent some config report files to Rockstar support so they can troubleshoot my problem with Max Payne 3... in the meantime I deleted all local content and am downloading all 35 GB of game data again. Maybe something got corrupted during the installation!

After 48 hours I received an email from Rockstar support (a guy named Steve!  ???? ) with some instructions to set game launch option to DX9, which I'd find quite annoying as my GPU can handle DX11 and that's one reason why I bought Max Payne 3 in the first place.

Before that I deleted all local content and re downloaded the game again... same issue!

Anyway, it didn't w@&k either  :D ... actually it went as far as the second screen, where it froze again! :D  :angry-new:

I managed to exchange a few emails in a row with Steve but all seemed a bit standard procedure to find a workaround to my issue.

For the second time I was asked to send a configuration file describing my PC info, which I did... only to receive a third request to send, again, the same files... which I also did, for the thrid time!

Since last night no reply from Steve  :angry-new:

 :(

It's probably not his real name either  >:( >:D :angel:

I had similar issues with Dead Island on Steam, jumped through similar hoops as yourself, in the end I downloaded a pir(cough)....different version and it works perfectly, so its definately a Steam problem in my case, hence I dont use Steam anymore.

Sorry its being such a trial with you, I would hate to buy a really good game and through no fault of my own, not be able to play it, whats worse is Steam wont refund you unlike a high street shop which would.


* ....Fiach wanders off looking for a cat called Steam, so he can kick it....*

>:D

Quote from: Fiach on August 16, 2012, 09:19:02 AM
whats worse is Steam wont refund you unlike a high street shop which would.

I'm willing to take another game if I can choose one, there are plenty of games I'd like to have available there. I just want them to really try to solve the issue first and then, if nothing works, give me the choice... I just don't want to lose my cash!  :angry-new:

I tried to get a refund for E.Y.E under the complaint that the game was so buggy (probably did a rant here at the time about it) it was "not fit for purpose" a legitimate cause for return of goods here in Ireland, they wouldnt entertain it.

From what I could gather, the only refunds they will allow (unless under extreme circumstances.... dunno what that means as I didnt pursue it on the grounds that I cba...) is a refund of a deposit for a pre ordered game.

Hopefully they will look after you better than they did for me. :(

It's finally running!  8)

Not without a fight though! I've deleted all content and downloaded the game again. As my GPU is brand new I was sure my driver was up to date. Turns out it wasn't and that seems to be what was causing my problems. I was a bit uncertain if I should download and install the new driver because it created some problems last time I did it... brand new drivers, five years old hardware! Even the driver gave me some problems... after downloading it I just couldn''t run it... a stupid error trying to unzip the file but it wasn't a zipped file, just a simple .exe!  :D

Redownload and try again... second time around it worked!  :)

So let's go to my very first impressions!


Installation gave no options of language so it is portuguese. Period... I hate that, I like to choose the original language. Same for subtitles, they are always there, didn't find a way to disable it yet... annoying but no game breaker!

Graphics are set to max, DX11 on and it runs smoothly...  8)

The game looks very nice with very detailed textures, light and shadows. Movement is very fluid and the elements of the last game such as bullet time are still there!  :-X

Yes, that's Max Payne all right! Sour, bitter, tormented... same voice acting (or someone with the same voice), same atmosphere, same feeling!



You start out as the "old" Max from other games... same appearance I mean, unshaved, hangover face, grey suit, but I know from videos he won't stay like that for too long, which is nice because it means you are going to see the character's change for a new game!  :-X

Max is now living in São Paulo (where I was born and lived for 20 years  >:D ) working as a body guard for a big shot named Rodrigo Branco and his wife Fabiana. The game starts at a party in a penthouse overlooking the city.



Things doesn't take long to go bad... some masked guys break into the party and kidnap Fabiana. You then start a tutorial part once you start chasing the bad guys. Basic movements like shooting, dodging and hiding behind cover. This is where MP3 shines... if you right click you go into Bullet Time meaning everything go into slow motion but you can still aim and shoot freely giving you time to land precise heeadshots in a great cinematic effect. Your crosshair is just a tiny white dot in the center of the screen so it never ruins the immersion and is very easy to aim in bullet time. Still in slo-mo, if you move forward and jump, Max will perform a dive forward to dodge bullets and still shoot foes making it a perfect set for a shooter!  >:D >:D

Pess Q and Max will hide behing cover from where he can aim and shoot... just like in GTA IV (both Rockstar games  ;) )

Mouse wheel cicles through your available weapons. You can have three weapons at a time but there are four slots in the weapons circle. You can have two different pistols and a heavy weapon like a shotgun or a rifle. You can fire one pistol at a time or choose dual weild. Once you shoot the last guy a shoot camera shows you the trajectory of the bullet till it hits the target also in slo mo... which can be quite annoying after a while... didn't find where to disable it so far.


As in other Max Payne games, the story is very linear and there is no open world, which is a shame given how well Rockstar can do open world but as a fan of Max Payne I wouldn't let something like this interfere  8)

Barely played 15 minutes. I just wanted to make sure it is running now. Will have some time gaming this weekend and post more impressions!

Glad you got it sorted. the lack of language choice would certainly give me a wtf moment though :)

Here's a game you should check out, I always associated the MP3 dev cycle as it unfolded to remind me of Boiling Point :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_Point:_Road_to_Hell (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_Point:_Road_to_Hell)

I think the lack of language options is a steam issue. They seem to choose for you what you want  :angry-new:

Funny it was the driver in the end. I remember I always found out that the driver given with the vid-card I purchased was heavily outdated. Glad you found the issue. I first thought it might be DX11; "Ohh no"I thought, "yet another game that can't bring up a proper DX11 config that works".

I;m seriously considering buying the game, but maybe a little later. Atm I want to save time for BL2.  ;)

Great review JRD!  :-X

steam always offers me English language versions because my windows is set up in English.

I seem to recall reading that Steam offers only the language of your area, as Binn says - so that'd be correct Art; if your machine is set to English, it will detect that and you're off and playing in that language.

I'm not sure the MP is my kind of game but I enjoyed reading the review - thanks JRD. How was the representation of São Paulo? I love it when games 'visit' places you know.

Thanks for your impressions of the game thus far, JRD :-X Glad you got it up and running!

Great looking game, going by those screenies. Max looks good. Boy, that's a lived-in face :-D

Quote from: Jim di Griz on August 19, 2012, 03:12:59 AM
I seem to recall reading that Steam offers only the language of your area, as Binn says - so that'd be correct Art; if your machine is set to English, it will detect that and you're off and playing in that language.

I don't think this is correct... my machine is set in Portuguese and I have STEAM games set in English like GTA IV which is also a Rockstar game! Batman Arkham City is set in Portuguese... again, I had no choice whatsoever ????

Maybe some STEAM games (or games that require an internet activation prior to install), and I can't see any pattern here, will choose your language (provided it was developed with multi languages) depending on your IP, and not on your operational system language, whereas others will install in English regardless of your location!

Quote from: Jim di Griz on August 19, 2012, 03:12:59 AM
How was the representation of São Paulo? I love it when games 'visit' places you know.

You play indoors most of the time so there's not much sightseeing!  ;D

In one level you get to land on a helipad on the top of a building and this is what you see

Which I can say is pretty much what São Paulo looks like at night and from above. A huge concrete jungle on a relatively flat plain. Couldn't see any landmark yet. In one level you get to meet officers from the local police force and their uniform is just like the ones you see in the streets. Signs are written in Portugues just like it should be and the local characters speak in a perfect (so far) Portuguese with São Paulo accent, including cursing and swearing  ;D (voice acting is quite poor though  :-( )

Let's see what the game will show in the next chapters

@fragger... the graphics are very good indeed. Light and textures are excellent just like I was expecting to see. Movement is fluid and natural but some textures are not good. Women''s hair looks like stiff plastic even in cutscenes.

JRD, I'm not sure whether or not there are many games with Portuguese voice acting and/or translation of any written content. I reckon that if you get a game that is available in Portuguese, you will get that one, in case there isn't any translated version, you'll probably get the English one. For some reason, all the games I've ever played were available in German yet I do get every steam version in English.

So it may be due to OS language setting after all... all my games, except Flight Simulator X, are STEAM games and some install in Portuguese.  ????

I just whish I could choose though!  :-(

Voice acting in Max Payne features Portuguese simply because it takes place in Brazil and only a few characters speak Portuguese, namely the bad guys and some side characters. Even the main Brazilian characters (the ones Max is protecting) speak English with very good accent but I still can tell they are voiced by Brazilians when they mention some places or Portuguese words.

I bought hitman:bloodmoney in Spain knowing it was a Spanish dubbed version without any connection to steam. The voice acting was cool (I have a few more games with Spanish voice acting, they're cool, too). Most of the games I have either already were set to English or had an option to choose English. The (very) few that I played with German dubbing were so abysmal that I try to avoid German voice acting at all costs. By the way, same goes for 99% of German actors and films. I can almost see them read their texts to the audience rather than make believe they were actually living the story. I reckon Germany produces the utmost WORST voice actors (and actors) on this planet. The very few who actually are rather good usually make it to Hollywood and of course speak English there. I reckon Portuguese (voice) actors are worthwhile so you don't have to worry as much as I have to when getting a game set in our respective native language  ^-^

Oh, I dunno Art, I seem to remember that Rutger Hauer made a good Guinness advert once :)

Guinness Ad featuring Rutger Hauer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Yb77_PK89Q#)

Well, he isn't speaking German there, is he  :-()

I meant, watch a German film in German and you will want to have a barf bag at hand  :-()

Generally I don't like TPS but I might get this game. Gunplay looks exciting. I like the animations, they're not canned and very realistic.  :-X

Ok, a few more screenies

That games takes place in Brazil all right  ;D


Malaria pills Max?  ????


Nice facial details. If you've played the previous games you remember and youger Max who looks much deteriorated now after years of alcohol and prescribed drugs abuse!  >:D


When you shoot the last enemy of a wave you get the camera view which is a cinematic view of the bullets hitting the target. When you fire a sniper rifle it goes to the bullet itself in a nice looking sl-mo action scene. There's a chapter you play in a football stadium and you end up on aa higher ground having to protect your buddy on the pother side of the stadium from inbound enemies!  8)

funny, you left this topic at a point of the game which I have just reached. I too saw that bullet from my sniper rifle :)

OK, so Binnatics and I acquired the game during the current steam summer sale (thanks again for your help there, Binnatics :) ) and I got a head start.

I decided to start the game right away on the highest available difficulty (after a playthrough on hard you'll unlock two more difficulty levels) and that means it reduces the bullet cam time a lot and, frankly, your life span, too. The game seems to be mostly an action film full of at times rather lengthy cutscenes which will seamlessly put the player back into the game.
  I sometimes didn't realise the transition and the cutscene ended with my death.  ??? After a while you'll get used to dying after cutscenes, though. :D :-D Which means, you either keep tapping your keys to find out whether you're back in or you just sit back and wait for your death so you can restart from that "checkpoint."
  The game tells you that on hard difficulty precise aiming is essential and perfect timing for the bullet cam time vital. In other words, you'll get to see yourself killed a lot, almost as if it was more times than you get to see others getting killed by you. So I spent quite a bit of time getting my keys mapped and mouse buttons assigned properly so I'd survive a tad longer.

There are golden weapon parts to be collected and clues to be found and occasionally some life-extending pills to be collected but.. you're in a rush most of the times. No leisurely loitering and casually exploring your environment, linear as it is, it is basically one massive extended timed event. At least the game remembers that you found something even after a checkpoint restart which means you don't have to try find stuff again once you've got it. Which speeds things up a bit after yet another death.

The AI is aiming freaking precisely on hard difficulty and you'll get to see your last moment in a pic with a bullet in your face or forehead.. they even know what to aim for in order to get proper results. Or they randomly hit your nut because it was the only thing sticking out behind cover. You'll never know.

The story sometimes reminded me a little of FC3. For example, there too are rich kids that go out clubbing (only they're having someone fly them to the club with a helicopter) and they get abducted by rather bad guys. Particularly the scene in the club and all that pretty much reminded me of FC3. But FC3 at least had open world between missions while in MP3 you don't have anything between missions which renders it a very linear timed event type of game. A shame, really. With more freedom and less "you need to get to the next checkpoint NOW" it might have been a really nice game.

It is my first Max Payne game so I can't compare it with previous Max Payne titles but the bullet time or bullet cam is nothing new to me, many games feature it and I suspect it's all copycat but Sniper Elite V2 probably does it even better than any other game before it. The need to take power-ups (pills for health) is a bit quaint, too. Nowadays you just heal after some moments without getting shot at.

The graphics are.. not as good as I expected. And I have a high-end card that allows me to play with everything payned out. Excuse me, everything maxed out. :-D It looks a bit.. like a comic. Almost as if stuff had either an outline or the shadows were too hard, can't exactly tell, but it's not natural. Okay, it's got plenty of nicely designed rooms you walk around in but overall, a bit clumsy. Same for facial expressions and body motion, I've seen games which were a lot better at that.

[smg id=6120 type=preview align=center caption="here we go"]

However. The story is interesting so far, the cutscenes are keeping me from getting too frustrated over dying every other minute and my favourite is "shootdodge" -- a slow motion cam you get to see when you start to move and press another key for that jump shoot cam. Basically like bullet time, you float in mid-jump and take your aim and kill the punks in your sight with relative ease. Moving around works well, I didn't curse any wobbly or clumsy programming which I am glad I don't have to, that would be the sudden demise of this game. As long as I think I am at least in control of the movement and aiming I think of the game as a challenge on hard difficulty and so far I am not completely disappointed  :-D Just wish I had more time walking around, bloody hell, why do they make me rush all the time.

On a second note, the game itself is OK, don't get me wrong, the graphics are OK, too (I am just a bit spoiled by L.A. Noire by the same publisher) but I'll show you what really gets on my nerves:
[smg id=6121 type=preview align=center caption="modern art elements"]

That is the final stage of different scenes that come whirling around randomly, just another random cutscene in the middle of the action on your screen and sort themselves out in various arrangements. This time three scenes stacked and there are different combinations and positions of those scenes on your screen. During those scenes you get to see in written some random parts of Max's spoken thoughts plastered on your screen, every word slapped there one after another or one letter after another.

Also, note the "quality" of that image. It looks like an old-fashioned TV image when you're almost touching it with your nose. Here the same style, part of a cutscene -- note the guy in the lower right scene. His index finger isn't even touching the trigger and his victim's hair looks like some slabs made of banana peels. (so much for not so good graphics)
[smg id=6122 type=preview align=center caption="modern art elements 2"]

Here, this isn't crappy graphics, they wanted it to be that way. It tunes in and out.. makes you want to slap the monitor to reset the screen >:D Please click on the pic to get it zoomed and check the outlines of those two guys -- fine purple and blue outlines, almost as if looking at a 3D-image without a matching set of 3D-glasses.  .. gah ???
[smg id=6123 type=preview align=center caption="modern art elements 3"]

And you do get cutscenes that show some ghost images, randomly flickering around. Probably thought to be some sort of modern art, maybe pop art of sorts, but really.. it is always ripping me out of my immersion when I just got it.
[smg id=6124 type=preview align=center caption="modern art elements 4"]

If you consider the giant download size, 30GB, it's most likely rendered cutscenes that use up most of that disk space. When Rockstar produced L.A. Noire they made another film-like game but man, by orders of magnitude better than this one especially regarding game play and motion capturing including outstanding moving facial expressions. Oh well. :)

Now the graphics start to get better, occasionally. A few of the views were quite impressive.

After some chase on water.
[smg id=6125 type=preview align=center caption="sunset"]

Heh, probably the first game I got to get a new hair cut.
[smg id=6126 type=preview align=center caption="decent haircut"]

Favela impressions
[smg id=6127 type=preview align=center caption="favela 1"]
[smg id=6128 type=preview align=center caption="favela 2"]
[smg id=6129 type=preview align=center caption="favela 3"]

Those last few remind me of Uncharted  :-X

Thanks for your impressions and pics Art :) Dunno if it's my kind of game, I hate to be rushed :-() Besides, I'd be waiting for about a month for a 30GB game to download :-\\ :D

I see what you mean about the odd outlines around those two guys, it does look a bit like a 3D image without the glasses.

I'm quite a bit into the game now.

Enemies keep spawning in the exact same locations when you start over from a checkpoint but after that they may go about at random, mainly trying to get you once they know you're there. So it is a very scripted and linear and corridor-like game and eventually you'll get into one of those situations that resemble those of FC3's Hoyt knife fight or getting out of a tiger's hug by pressing some keys popping up on your screen.

Most of the time it's just: get in, oh, there are enemies shooting at me, kill them, oh, there's more enemies because I reached a trigger position, kill them, all the time following a maze of corridors or rooms or whatever obstacles. Stupid: You don't always know what the next level entrance is. Usually behind a door of sorts. But there are other rooms, too.

Happened to me: There was a room to my left which I could definitely enter and a door in front of me that I was also able to use, and I did use it.. camera switches towards a cutscene position and on its way I see a collectible (golden weapon part) in the room I just described but also I see the door I used slam closed behind me.. cutscene, new checkpoint reached. No way of getting back. Have to get that collectible on a next playthrough.  :D (just edited: after the game you can get to any specific chapter AND any specific checkpoint within that chapter and then take a look so you may collect and find stuff you missed out on before)

BUT

the story is really intriguing and keeps me going. Also, the game takes me places. I went through an office building, another office building which later caught on fire (reminds me of FC3's burning hotel), fought off pursuing enemies from a speed boat which were either in boats themselves or in cars on roads by the water. I fought my way in, through, and out of a Brazilian favela (most of the time it is In, Through, and Out of something), a cemetery, rooftops, a bus station, a really massive 5-billion-dollar yacht with loads of rooms and decks, a police station, a hotel under construction, a football stadium.. Brazil, USA, Panamá, you name it, it's probably in the mix.

The story is what keeps me going, that story is really inspiring. :)

Here.. how much I'd have liked to walk around there, free roam.. but no, it's just another cutscene.
[smg id=6131 type=preview align=center caption="São Paulo street"]

Reading your game comments so far, Art, makes me curious of two things:
First; what the heck was that revolutionary thing Max Payne had in its first game, and the second? Was the bullet-time thing so new, and were the cartoonish cut-scenes so inspiring to most gamers? I have hardly played MP 1 and 2, but I remember those short bursts of cartoon-like 'breaks' to explain short details of the story, or maybe as flashbacks to lost memories of earlier troubles. I don't have the answer to this, since I've never digged into it and never played those first games. But I'm sure we have some friends around who know the answers ;) :-X 8)
Second: How did Rockstar want to extend that brilliant touch into this new MP 3 edition, in a time where corridor-like shooters are dominated by the power of CoD style wargames and lookalikes, where most games have brilliant graphics and even cartoonish game-graphics have become an Art (Borderlands)?

Some things spring to mind, but I have no clue yet. I'll have to start playing the game for myself first, of course :-D
First thing is Max Payne himself. He is like the Duke. Only different of course. I think he's a mixture of Johnny Cash and Bruce Springsteen that got caught in a situation where there's "nothing to loose" and "pills galore". Right now he has the visual appearance of Phil Anselmo, the lead singer of Pantera, a 90's trash-metal band that also was known for it's "good friends and a bottle of Pills" (8-X)
Then there's the cartoonish cutscenes. I think Rockstar couldn't choose between realism and cartoonesque craziness and decided to make a mix of both. Result: weird and too many cutscenes that interfere the immersion to the game.
Then there's the bullet-time phenomena; I could swear that I read somewhere they invented that thing in the first release. But I might as well be wrong. Anyway; I've read about their efforts to make it a part of a multiplayer setting. They somehow managed to make it available as a bonus in MP, so that you have an advantage on your enemies. They thought very clever about this whole theme in terms of to whom this 'delay' in the gameplay would benefit and when and how. They did, imho, a brilliant job on making such a delicate SP thing available in a MP setting. If you check the different game-modes that are available for MP, it's also sort of revolutionary. They really did a good job on inventing new abilities and cool features for MP. But still, haven't seen any serious reviews on teh MP variant yet, and haven't tested it for myself either.
So until now, there's many questions and not many answers to this new Max Payne. I stil think I'm going to enjoy it a lot, but unfortunately my real life events and my love for Sniper Elite have gotten me from trying MP3.

To be continued ;)

Oh, I almost forgot to mention; very sharp and good reviews there Art! You can see how it already gets me going, without even having tried the game, lol :angel:
I think that's worth a kudo! :-X

thanks, Binnatics :)

Not exactly top notch graphics. Looks like rubber and plastic
[smg id=6132 type=preview align=center caption="Max Payne + Deagle"]

Here I took advantage of bullet proof doors or whatever it was supposed to be. They saw me, shot at me, but didn't hurt me  :-D I waited until they came to the side to walk around it and shot one by one down.  >:D Oh, it is a golden weapon I'm using. Just bling, nothing else about it as far as I can tell.

[smg id=6133 type=preview align=center caption="bullet proof glas"]

Note the lower right corner. That's how steam manages to capture its own capture notifications..

I've finished the game. :)
[smg id=6134 type=preview align=center caption="the end"]
Now the fun begins, unexpectedly. You can select and play every chapter individually and even select from which checkpoint on (numbers to choose from)! Which means, you can jump to a very specific moment of the game. Nice. :)

And there is an options menu with cheats. You unlock those by completing challenges, collecting stuff and so on. One of which are those golden weapon parts. Now I know why I would want to do all that stuff.. for cheating  :-D
[smg id=6135 type=preview align=center caption="that's why"]

See, above there are two parts of that golden pistol missing, and now I've got them all, doing a slooooow second through on easy.  :-()
[smg id=6136 type=preview align=center caption="gotcha hehe"]

Nice! :-X That's a bit like the rewards you get in older GTA games for secret packages and stuff; they make the game easier for you by making extra weapons and ammo available. Cool!

it's fun to go to to very specific parts of a mission and of course to hunt for achievements and such :)

I like games where the end user has more options rather than the exceedingly narrow restrictions you have in some of the newer games.  For example the AC series where you have only 3 game save slots.

Today just started with the game. My first impressions were that the cutscenes were actually more like a movie, where shootouts were sort of breaks where the game gave you some liberty to act... show them what you're worth. It started to get even a bit annoying when I kept dying on certain points. But when I became more in control of the bullet - dodge and bullet time abilities it became rather fun!
I must say the graphics are amazingly good. The small areas where you're acting are very well worked out according to detail and people. The glance on someone's arms, wounds, look extremely real, the bullet-through-body-animations.... great!!! >:D

The story is indeed interesting. It sucks you into it, and I can't deny it makes me think back to CoD Black Ops. Sort of the same way to tell a story, same 'grown-up talk' to teach you the life of a real tough guy. Indeed it has some Duke-style in it.
The game also reminds me of GTA. Same engine, probably the cause of that. I keep looking at vending machines and cars for a clue, a sign of recognition. But so far, all the cars and other attributes are referring purely to the place we are; Sao Paolo.

More impressions and some screenies to come tomorrow. Bedtime now ;) Max already kind of kept me going too long :-D Nice how the game teases you to stay when you want to quit.

One more thing... I already like Max' quotes; "Like a drunk American has been in a Brazilian never was" :-X 8)

"It's been 4 days now since I arrived in Sao Paolo and the heat was already frying my brains. I'd gone through the entire playthrough once, and was working on my second, oldschool style this time. I couldn't remember the amount of pill boxes I'd popped, but it was sure enough to start a pharmacy with it. Was my first trip to Brazil merely a trip through a world full of s#!t that I didn't even understand half of, this second playthrough made me realise it wasn't only me being that dump... this land was crazy as hell, and I finally started to learn a bit about the mess I had become part of.
"I remember back in that police office, I got so surprised on those weird meat-coloured packets on plates all over the place and I decided that I should ask JRD about it, so I went back to the forum and wrote on the MP3 topic about it. Sure thing JRD would help me out on this riddle:

[smg id=6166]

"But now I was back in the Favela, with nothing but an AK and some pain killers to help me maintain a good sense of humour, so I decided to focus on the job again.

[smg id=6171]

I'd practiced a bit at the "New York Minute" arcade game, which was a perfect solution for those getting annoyed by the misery of my life shown in the endless amount of cutscenes, where the game brought you from one action-filled trip to the next, demanding you to shoot as fast as possible through the entire chapter. If not had I gotten so deep into this oldschool playthrough, I'd given it some more time, but I decided to just leave it here at the MP3 topic for the rest to check out. They could see for themselves how cool it could be to play as me 15 years ago, and see for themselves how time flies in a fast developing graphics world ::)"

[smg id=6170]

 :-D

Nice!  :-X

Good stuff Binn :-D :-X

After leaving the game on the shelve for a few months (I think what distracted me was Sniper Elite, Saints Row 3 and 4 and some more FC3) I picked it up where left it. I decided to give this "New York Minute Hardcore" a try. For once I was given a shot at becoming a real Max Payne :-D
I started with a minute on my watch, with the clock ticking. The only way to add time was to kill those bastards, so I started rushing through the different chapters with a big s#!t-eating grin on my face :-()
It was hard to miss these fucks since they were covering all the angles, but the game didn't allow me to die even once, and saving is for sissies so I couldn't do that either.
I kept practising all the chapters until I brought the chance of getting killed to a minimum. Yesterday I finally succeeded. It took me 95 minutes of gameplay, minus the 22 minutes (or so) I had left on the clock. You can count the kills >:D

Somehow Steam fucked up on me yesterday, so I couldn't rank my scores, but I got the achievement, a nice symbol of a crow :)
I can easily state that this is one of the achievements I'm most proud of ^-^

I'm running the game on the highest graphics settings now, made possible by my GTX780. I must say I've never experienced graphics so detailed and well worked out. I've played the game over 160 hours now and it still surprises me how beautiful everything is worked out.

Here's a few examples of the game in high detail. ?I must confess that moving images are much better showing the quality of the graphics, because you can see the clothes moving, the surface of all different textures glance in the available light while walking round, which is really astonishing. But this is at least a teaser ;)

[smg id=6595]
Caught in the cross fire

[smg id=6596]
Sunset in the jungle

[smg id=6597]
Another bullet-time detail shot. In the bullet you can see the reflection of the surroundings. It's not real reflection as I found out, but it sure as hell gives that impression ;D

nice  :) and congrats on completing the game in one go without dying +1 :-X :)

Quote from: Art Blade on March 01, 2014, 07:42:01 PM
nice  :) and congrats on completing the game in one go without dying +1 :-X :)

ditto  :-X

Thanx guys. I've tried to do it again to get the ranking. I believe I should have made a damn good score. But it's too hard. I keep dying somewhere halfway through or nearly at the end, which means you have to start over after an hour of gaming :D :D

Going to focus on the Blood Dragon now ;)

 :)

Simply amazing feat Bin  :-X :-X :-X  +1 :)
I can't remember how many times I die during my only playthrough on easy  ;D

yeah, same  :-D Binnatics is a machine.

Well done Binn +1 :-X :) I've never played any of the Max Payne games but what you did sounds like quite an accomplishment!

Thank you guys. It really was an achievement :)

This Max Payne guy is such a good character that you can easily place yourself in his shoes and experience this madness in São Paolo, over and over again. Every time I die somewhere along the story it feels bad, of course, but the game doesn't bore me at all. I think I"ve done at least 20 (not completed) playthroughs in the past few weeks and am still trying to get that score ranked that I got back then. It should be doable to performthe same thing twice, wouldn't it :angel:

Well, as long as I'm having fun it's okay to keep trying I guess ^-^

Although I'm a small guy who weigh just over 100 lbs, I don't think his shoes are big enough to house me  :-()

 :laugh:

 :-D

As I said before, I couldn't resist trying to get that New York Minute Hardcore ranked. Yesterday I was successful again. I kept trying every day only once, sometimes twice, and finally it resulted in a completion. I hoped that my score would be ranked this time, because I knew I had a pretty impressing score the first time I completed it. Back then I got 95 minutes total, which is more than the guy who's listed number 1 on the global rankings.
This second try I had both steam and Rockstar Social Club connected and well-functioning, but despite that the game refused to add my score to the ranking. Too bad, because as you can see I beat the best score again   ^-^

[smg id=6616]

I also discovered an Easter egg in the game. When you make your way through the jungle river in pursuit of the boat where Fabiana is been held in, you reach a moment where a cutscene shows you how a small boat full of Molotovs crashes against a pillar of a bridge. It blows up. During that cutscene you see Max look at the scene with the huge machine gun in his hand, and on his left elbow you see a leech. I only discovered it after my 10th playthrough or something ;)

[smg id=6617]

Wow I'm really proud of you Bin  :-X :)

nice one  :)

Shame it doesn't register  :(

Indeed too bad, but I reckon I might not be the only one that has that problem. Anyway, I'm glad this fight is over :angel:

All together I collected enough XP to reach rank 15 in MP ranking. That makes some nice guns available, and I have some dollars to spend on weaponry there. Time to check out MP3 MP :-D

excellent. Have fun  :-D

I'm having fun a LOT indeed, in the multiplayer environment. The maps are all extracted from the game, here and there a bit customized to multiplayer gameplay. They really created some cool maps to run around blasting the s#!t out of your fellow Payners :)

First I thought the game was full of cheaters. I met some guys who got easily up to 50 kills in a regular deathmatch without dying more than probably 4 or 5 times. The ease with which they seemed to kill me made me think they had to use some sort of cheat. Many others were bashing in the chatbox about cheat-this and cheater-that. But staying there for longer made me realise these guys are just incredibly good. They have played the game for over a year on probably a daily base. I think they instantly aim right for the head and thus kill you very fast.

There are 2 minor problems the MP has to deal with, and the first is the most irritating; the lagging. I must say though, it can be worse. Some games you lag, others you don't. Sometimes the lag is on your side, which is also fun ^-^
The other problem is the fact that the pistols are very overpowered. With just a few rounds you kill an enemy, and when using dual wield, you will almost instantly kill them when aiming right. The aiming is so-called "free aim", you can also choose "soft-lock" which I don't. I think that's for consoles.
Once you learn to adapt yourself to the best choice of weaponry though, you'll learn to love the dual wield pistols. I'm very stuck to my double PT92 setup. Fast and deadly >:D

What I really like about the multiplayer is the big variety of gametypes and the way it's mixed together. For example, there's a gametype called "Gang wars" that lets you and your team do 4 different battles against the opposing team in order to win the match, and there is even a tiny story involved. The variety in stories is big, and the variety in tasks to complete is also quite wide. For example you can steal drugs-packages and bring them to your drop-off site, or you can plant a bomb on a strategic point. Or the game asks you to kill the "captain" of the enemy team, who is randomly chosen. Of cours,e the other team has to defend or do the same in order to win. There's also a "king-of-the-Hill" type of game where you have to capture certain areas. And there's a task where you have to penetrate enemy territory by capturing 5 different spots, step by step. That always ends up somewhere along that line in a massive firefight; Great!!
The last and fifth round is always a total massacre. It's either "survivor", where you have to defeat the entire enemy team until the last man, or "showdown" where you have to gain the max amount of kills until the timer runs out.

Another fun and new type of MP is called Payne Killer. This game starts as a regular deathmatch. The first to kill an opponent will transform into Max Payne and gets extra life and heavy weaponry; dual SMG's and a full 'burst-meter'. That gives you a nice advantage to the rest of the players, who will all try to kill you. It's your task to do the same with them. The second to kill someone will turn into Passos, if the total group is at least 5 guys. Then you can team up as Max and Passos against the rest. Every time Passos or Max get killed, the killer will turn into them and so forth and so forth. At the end the one that collected the most credits and XP wins the match.

Bursts are what you have as bullet-time in Single player. But that's in MP just one of many different types of bursts. For example, you have life-expanding bursts, and explosive power bursts and you have a sneaky burst, where you look like friendly to enemies. There's many varieties and all have their special advantages that can come in quite handy. Makes the game even more interesting and won't have you loose interest quickly :)

You can also wear specific things with you that do special help, like locating enemies on the map, or a "hip Flask" that will stop the first bullet a sniper fires at you. There's even an achievement involved, if you kill that sniper in the same life, you get it. It's called: Drinker's Revenge ^-^ I just got it two days ago :-))

All in all this MP game is very entertaining. There's even a Co-op match, called Deathmatch made in Heaven. I'll post about that later. It looks a lot like "Zombies" in the CoD games. Endless waves of enemies in a map where you can open doors, unlock weapon crates and upgrades to these weapons etc. Once your partner is down you can revive, although it's called "captured" and "freed" but the principles are the same. Very entertaining and demanding.

I'll post some pics soon and will tell more about the co-op as well :)

sounds as if you were really enjoying the MP part of the game :) I'd try the coop variant only, I don't enjoy MP any more no matter what. Looking forward to some pics, then  :-D

It does sound like you're having lots of fun in MP, Binn.  I am as well in B4, which is just about the only game I'm playing right now.

Your new avatar is reminiscent of the head shot icon in B4, AB  :-X

 :-D

Yesterday I reached the online Rank 40. Then you unlock a load of extra weapons, upon them the DE.50. It's a brilliant handgun. It has a much bigger range than the PT92 I've been using until now, but I have to level it up to rank 8 (weapon ranking) to be able to use it dual wield. That's what I'm doing now. I'm impressed by the difference in range which provides new tactics. The downside to this weapon is that it weighs a lot, and will probably cause my character to be slower when having dual wield equipped. It's a nice puzzle to figure out different loadout to be more effective in certain areas or to obtain certain goals ^-^

I have come up with a new strategy to try to get the "3 Blind Mice" achievement. In order to get that achievement you have to blind 3 enemy players simultaneously with the pepperspray. That seems next to impossible, but I thought about the 'sneaky' perk, or 'burst' as it's called in MP3. You will then be seen as friendly to all enemies and can thus walk along with them without them knowing you aren't part of their team. In the Gang Wars you have to capture areas and ususally all enemies rush in and do it together, because it works faster that way. I can try to sneak upon them and do my trick >:D
Won't be easy though, especially to find the right moment to try it :-D

I just happened to be in a boosting game and did the 3 blind mice there ^-^

...2 achievements left ;)

 :) hehe, I remember grinding for achievements, done that, too. Nice, good luck with the last two  :-X

I can relate - doing the same thing in B4

Funny how these achievements, digital pixel collections of 50x50, move is to do the weirdest things :-D

I've seen it the other way round. I did the weirdest things and even got achievements for it.  :-D

I just levelled up my DE .50 all the way to rank 10 and am able to use it in Dual wield. It has a golden paint job and an attachment that makes the weapon lighter. Together with the increased max weight of my equipment (that is an extra earned by ranking my character up to 44) I can use them in Dual Wield without the downside of becoming a heavier category. So I can still run around like a madman trying to catch these goons  ^-^

I'l post a pic soon ;)

 :-D Excellent  :-X

Nice :-X :)

Can we call you The Man With The Golden Gun then? :-()

 :-D

There's one little issue to that; usually I chose female avatars since that looks better in-game, so maybe Double Barrel Bunn With The Golden Gun would be more appropriate ^-^

Spoiler

Oh God, I'm digging my own grave here :angel:

 :)

Spoiler

not as much as fragger once did. :-()

 :angel: :-D

I finally got all achievements. Needed to set up a boosting match with 4 other players to get the last one, that took me the entire weekend. But finally I got it :)

Man, that's a pack off my back :-D

+1 :-X nice. :-D

Thank you matey :)

Funny detail; one of the guys that was helping me yesterday (I also helped him of course) gave me a steam present today! It's a beta-test for Dead Island: Epidemic! I am allowed with that to test a teamwork-multiplayer version of the game Dead Island, from a weird sort of top-down view. Am curious, and will try it out this week :-X :)

nice  :-()

Did another playthrough this week. Of all linear games I've played, this is sure the one with the highest playthrough count. If I add the times I completed the game in the One Hot Minute Hardcore version, it must be over 30.
Now I just felt like becoming Max again, out of nostalgia. It was great. I watched all the cutscenes and heavily enjoyed the story again. And of course all the funny line both Max and Pasos produce during the fights :-()

[smg id=7696]

And I remember what I wanted to ask JRD about the game. I've come across these weird cake-kinda thingies so many times and figured it is probably the Brazilian equivalent to the Donut as the favourite policemen's snack. But I am actually so curious... JRD do you know what these weird things are, shattered all across that police station?

 ???  :-X

Thats lots of plays through!

Binnatics, they're likely Coxinhas, a variety of Salgados (salty pastry)

QuoteSalgados are a wide group of snack foods that are mainly salty pastries, but can also include things like chips and pretzels. At nearly every cafe, deli, and juice bar in Rio (and in most parts of Brazil) salgados are freshly made and people eat them as snacks at any time of the day. Here are some of the most common ones you will find.

Coxinha (koh-sheen-ya): a tear-drop shaped fried pastry filled with chicken

http://www.riogringa.com/my_weblog/2007/10/part-i-brazilia.html (http://www.riogringa.com/my_weblog/2007/10/part-i-brazilia.html)

And wiki:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coxinha (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coxinha)

Quote from: Binnatics on January 24, 2015, 06:42:45 AM
Did another playthrough this week. Of all linear games I've played, this is sure the one with the highest playthrough count. If I add the times I completed the game in the One Hot Minute Hardcore version, it must be over 30.
Now I just felt like becoming Max again, out of nostalgia. It was great. I watched all the cutscenes and heavily enjoyed the story again. And of course all the funny line both Max and Pasos produce during the fights :-()

[smg id=7696]

And I remember what I wanted to ask JRD about the game. I've come across these weird cake-kinda thingies so many times and figured it is probably the Brazilian equivalent to the Donut as the favourite policemen's snack. But I am actually so curious... JRD do you know what these weird things are, shattered all across that police station?

Binn, Art is right, these are "coxinhas", a very popular snack in Brazil. They are deep fried batter with chicken stuffing. They are shaped to look like a drumstick.  Coxa, in Portuguese means thigh). You can find one at pretty much any corner of any city in Brazil, from north to south. These are popular not only amongst policemen but also to everybody. I remember eating those at the school's cafeteria when I was young. When you find one that has been properly done it is one delicious snack.

Here is a link to a coxinha recipe in case you are wondering how to make them.

http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/coxinha (http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/coxinha)

And here is a youtube video (portugese but you can enable english subs) showing how to fry them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfCwIjNRUKU (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfCwIjNRUKU)

I have a feeling that's the kind of thing PZ will want to try for one of his parties.  :)

Quote from: JRD on January 24, 2015, 02:32:57 PMI have a feeling that's the kind of thing PZ will want to try for one of his parties.  :)

Definitely  :laugh:

Thank you guys! :-X :)

A long lasting mystery has been solved ^-^

You are SOOOO right, JRD!  The initial recommendations you made for feijoada and the fixings were a big hit with all our friends.  In fact, that is what what we had for our annual New Year's Eve party

Thanks for posting +1  :-X

MP3 on steam sale for only €4,99!!!!!

If you like a special shooting experience, I highly recommend this tittle, for almost nothing!! :) :-X

 ??? :-X :)