Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne Critic Reviews

It gives exactly what it promises: an engaging story with stylish, polished visuals wrapped tightly around fluid and virtually bug-free gameplay.

Frankly, Max Payne 2 makes me confident that the best is yet to come for gaming, that the awesome narrative and creative capability of this medium has yet to be explored to its fullest extent.

The gritty, film noir storytelling, intense bullet time action sequences and painstaking attention to detail in every area make Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne a must-have for every action fan.

A cinematic, action packed swarm of near perfection with a tragically twisting plot worthy of the big screen.

This series has been one of the most intense and best played games ever. I have never felt the same about a game since Half Life 1. This game sets the standard of what any shooter game should be – it's A+ quality, inside and outside.

Although it does not support multiplayer and is a bit short, this definitely one of the best action games this year.

A cinematic game that plays like an interactive movie, a stylish film noir experience that no gamer should miss.

The action in Max Payne 2 is as adrenaline-pumping as anything you'd see on the silver screen, and you're in control. Or dangerously close to spiraling out of control, as Max often is. Despite the length, this is top-quality entertainment.

Complete in just about every aspect. Apart from the irritating escort missions and the short first run through, Max Payne 2 is perfect.

The visuals are excellent, the voice work is superior to what we usually get dealt in the action genre, and I only wish the game was a bit longer. A lot longer actually, but it's more because this kind of game is such a rare find than because that find is relatively meager.

It feels like the development team took everything that wasn't completely awesome in the first game, shot it in the face, and smoothed over the holes with buttery goodness.

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.

While there's plenty to recommend in MP2's innovative gameplay, its brevity may leave some lingering "payne" in your wallet.

A brand new story that will keep you totally engrossed. Updated graphics and the same great gameplay with brand new Bullet Time effects.

There’s immense replay value here, there’s a mixture of modes and difficult levels, and there’s a damn fine game, even if it’s not quite the revolution that the first Max was.

The survive-as-long-as-you-can "Dead Man Walking" mode, however, can make a second or third go-round worthwhile.

In this sequel to the award-winning original, the kinks have been pistol-whipped until smooth, resulting in a tightly wrapped, short, sweet -- and familiar -- "ballet of death."

It's likely to be deemed too similar to the original to attract too many converts, but it's short, it's sweet, and it's been put together with so much style it frankly embarrasses the ham-fisted efforts of most other developers.

The classical soundtrack is as emotional and well placed as any game I’ve seen before it, and Max Payne 2 also features specific attention placed on sound and environmental effects.

A stunning shooter that's got a bit too much plot and is over too soon, though it's still incredibly intense and, by all means, worth experiencing.