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Max Payne 3 is a bad game [very long rant]
- Thread starter Messofanego
- Start date
That was my biggest issue, the franchise was over with 2, storywise.
But gameplay wise i think 3 is fantastic.
"How do i disable autoaim?"
I played it both ways, btw, first time in free aim, and second one with softlock, had fun both times for different reasons, but i suggest anyone should play with free aim.
Why would one torture themselves with hard or soft lock.
To be fair, you could turn that off.
I thought that the game was just okay. I don't think it's rediculous at all to say that the gunplay is better in Alan wake than max payne 3. I sure enjoyed playing through Alan Wake more than Max Payne 3. Not suprising though since remedy is really good at doing gunplay while that's never been rockstars strong suit.
I'm surprised that rockstar still seems to get so much recognition even though they haven't made a great game all generation. I guess that's not all that suprising after making some of the greatet games in the previous generation. O well.
I'm surprised that rockstar still seems to get so much recognition even though they haven't made a great game all generation. I guess that's not all that suprising after making some of the greatet games in the previous generation. O well.
Didn't like Red Dead?
NullPointer
Member
Playing without free aim does this game a huge disservice.
BadAss2961
Member
The kickass gunplay of MP3 overshadows where they went with Max.
As a whole though, it wasn't bad. It was good to see how things ended with him. Probably the last we've seen of Max, so this was the perfect song for him to go out to.
Ciastek3214
Junior Member
The alcohol does mess with your brain and in many cases makes you do things you wouldn't ever thought of doing while you're sober. Yes, drunk people can't criticize things properly. How many drunk people died just because they did something really fucking stupid just to show off? What about alcoholics that make their familys life a living hell? Do you think they love them? No, they don't, simply because alcohol blocks these feelings. Many alcoholics drink alcohol because they want to block out feelings such as regret, hopelessness and other feelings that make you feel worse, except the proper way to deal with them is overcoming and working on yourself, not drinking yourself out of that and destroying other people's lives in the process.
Yup, story was very throw away but credit to Rockstar for the gameplay because the shooting felt very much like Max Payne but better. You just have to use your environment well and not just dive around all over the place thinking you are some sort of expert.
There is room for improvement of course, being able to slide on tables Stranglehold style would be great.
Although sliding down stairs is quite fun
endresults
Member
A lot of the hate stems from the fact that R* had the audacity to get the Max Payne series and immediately take Max and stick him in fucking South America. New York is as big a part of the Max Payne series as Max Payne the character.
Then they completely ripped out the gritty noir and replaced it with... I don't even know. People are saying that the visual effects and words popping up everywhere is from a movie, but I've never seen it, nor would I want to.
Basically, R* thought they could do whatever they wanted with the series and make it their own, but a lot people were repulsed by it.
Then they completely ripped out the gritty noir and replaced it with... I don't even know. People are saying that the visual effects and words popping up everywhere is from a movie, but I've never seen it, nor would I want to.
Basically, R* thought they could do whatever they wanted with the series and make it their own, but a lot people were repulsed by it.
I'm a huge Max Payne fan (prefer 2 the most), and I thought Rockstar did a great job with this game.
Yes, it's different, but it was still plenty of fun for me. The differences that I noticed:
Yes, it's different, but it was still plenty of fun for me. The differences that I noticed:
- more reliance on cutscenes - obviously, this game has way more cutscenes than MP1 and 2 did. MP did still have a lot of breaks in the action, though, which people may be forgetting. I didn't mind this much as they were mostly skippable, and generally entertaining.
- presentation - heavy use of color strobe / flashing effects and text. I thought it was pretty cool, honestly. Some of the camera shifts felt somewhat similar to comic-book story telling.
- themes / tone - this game was much more serious than the other MP games. There was less light-hearted humor and noticeable "winking" from the narrative. I really missed the fake TV episodes, and the few they had were no substitute. I was expecting better, because I thought the TV episodes in GTA were pretty funny. There was also a lack of the psychological elements that interjected the prior games.
- cover / gunplay - This I generally enjoyed. I never really though cover was a problem in the other MP games, because I just used shoot-dodge all the time. Cover + slowmo provides a strong alternative to shoot-dodge (which is less effective in this game, one of my main disappointments).
- shoot-dodge - This is probably the most disappointing change to me. They nerfed shoot-dodge to make it far less relevant. Shoot-dodge, more than just bullet-time, is a signature MP move in my opinion, and I found that I would only use it if I wanted to be particularly stylish. There's too much risk (hitting a wall disrupts the move entirely, getting up takes longer and staying on the ground is rarely a tactical advantage, and most critically, shoot-dodge actually drains bullet-time!), which meant that it was almost always smarter to stay in cover, and pop out with bullet-time while strafing. I had to go back and replay MP2 to make sure I wasn't crazy; shoot-dodge is definitely weaker in MP3.
He is shitty hypocritical character that doesnt gel with his own game and thus any pathos or sympathy is thrown out the window. He is Niko Bellic 2.0.
Ciastek3214
Junior Member
I like your avatar.
I did. But the gameplay and missions weren't all that great. Honestly I'm just sick of third person cover shooters. It's just a boring genre and only good for multiplayer and not single player campaigns. Gears 1 is the reason why we have all these damn third person cover shooters and developers are just to brain dead to realize it was the multiplayer component that made gears as huge as it was and not it's campaign.
addyb
Member
Well I really enjoyed MP3. I feel for the OP having to spend all that time creating a bizarre rant with far too many references to man on fire. Maybe I'm not as passionate about my games but I don't think I'd have the time or inclination to create an OP like that on a game I hated. But each to there own.
I hated Alan Wake, and i was certainly not impressed by its gunplay, funny.
Also GTA 4 was a false start, sure, but it had a lot of interesting elements to it, which they refined in the expansions, Gay Tony being a really good game, imo.
RDR was also a fantastic game, if you dig what they were going for (a strong sense of immersion first and foremost).
I would argue, despite their popularity, their games are not for everyone, but they are unique and you won't find that level of polish and attention to detail in any other open world game.
Reason why I keep coming back.
What i DON'T understand, is the people who hated GTA4, RDR, Gay Tony, Max Payne 3, LA Noire etc etc.. and are here waiting for GTAV, ready to be disappointed yet again.
But hey..
Yeah let's not forget that Max Payne 3 had a kick ass soundtrack (my favorite of the year, and one of my favorites from this gen).
Probably 'cause they also realize that that's just, like, your opinion, man.
Stopped playing about 2/3rds through the game after some pretty gruesome deaths happened...just got disgusted. I've seen much MUCH worse, but I just couldn't really care to keep going. Still I liked the "heavy" feel of the game. The controls and everything were weighty. I like that. Just wish the story was less constricting and less grotesque.
The motivations for his anger, which is what you quoted, are how little control he feels he has over his circumstances. He begins to want to live again over the course of the game and finds himself arguing with friends and allies purely out of insecurity- he hates finding out he's been stupid enough to fall for the manipulations he's fallen for.
The story, about halfway through, becomes a matter of Max's self respect becoming a motivator alongside his desire to do his job and protect innocent people. That's how I saw it, anyway.
I can't imagine playing with hard or soft lock.
reptilescorpio
Member
I agree with you on basically everything OP. Most disappointing game of the year for me. I kinda enjoyed it but nowhere near as much as I should have, just felt like a game at odds with itself.
I really hope someone else gets a shot at the IP again.
I really hope someone else gets a shot at the IP again.
Ciastek3214
Junior Member
But was it really needed? Did they really need to do this? Retcon the ending of MP2 just so it can be again about Max overcoming and serving justice and vengeance, which is what happened in 1 & 2 minus Max being an idiot, and it was less heavy-handed there.
BadAss2961
Member
This might come as a surprise to some on GAF, but most people that played GTAIV (yes, GTAIV) would call it a great game. RDR is highly acclaimed and definitely has it's following, and so does MP3 to a smaller extent.
The placement of "Tears" in the airport is one of this gen's best moments.
bluedeviltron
Member
Nope.
Ciastek3214
Junior Member
That moment did nothing for me. It was pretty underwhelming even. I mean the airport scene is like another "Damn, another guys to shoot to get to my objective", and they decide to play this to make it awesome, why? It was just another "shoot enemies so you can get one step closer to your goal", it wasn't like you were achieving something big story or gameplay wise. Without the music that moment wouldn't have been remembered at all. "Tears" is a great track, don't get me wrong, it was just horribly misused.
Truth.
captainraincoat
Banned
i did enjoy max payne 3.....was a very different style of presentation that really bought across the life of an alcoholic.
Neuromancer
Member
Did it though? Most alcoholics can't shoot RPGs out of the air while hanging from a helicopter.
That sounds like something just a drunkard would attempt, to be fair.
The big problem for me was that the story didn't work as a continuation of Max Payne 2.
At the end of that game, he's got his vengeance on everyone who was ever involved with the murder of his wife and child, and he's at peace with their and Mona's death.
In 3, he's right back to feeling sorry for himself. I dunno, just didn't gel with me.
At the end of that game, he's got his vengeance on everyone who was ever involved with the murder of his wife and child, and he's at peace with their and Mona's death.
In 3, he's right back to feeling sorry for himself. I dunno, just didn't gel with me.
LiquidMetal14
hide your water-based mammals
Max Payne 3 is not a good Max Payne game. It's a merely decent game otherwise but nothing cut from the same cloth as the prior 2 games.
Glass Rebel
Member
Max Payne 3 is frustrating in many ways when you come from Max Payne 1 and 2. Judging it in the context of the franchise I can't help but feel it's the weakest entry because it does many things different from the first two, both in the writing as well as the gameplay, which I don't like, Last Stand and the constant interruptions with mostly poor cutscenes being my biggest gripes.
It also does the most important thing in a third person shooter right though, namely the shooting. I was struggling at first like OP but when you accept that you can't play it like Max Payne 1 + 2 it's fantastic and oh so satisfying. Mechanically speaking it's one of the best third person shooters ever.
So it's really hard to judge it for me unless I completely take the prequels out of the picture. I still would have loved another Max Payne made by Remedy but since they're on Alan Wake now, which is great as well, I was happy with Max Payne 3.
It also does the most important thing in a third person shooter right though, namely the shooting. I was struggling at first like OP but when you accept that you can't play it like Max Payne 1 + 2 it's fantastic and oh so satisfying. Mechanically speaking it's one of the best third person shooters ever.
So it's really hard to judge it for me unless I completely take the prequels out of the picture. I still would have loved another Max Payne made by Remedy but since they're on Alan Wake now, which is great as well, I was happy with Max Payne 3.
Danny Dudekisser
I paid good money for this Dynex!
This is one of the best OPs I've seen in a long time. Max Payne 3 is everything wrong with modern games.
BadAss2961
Member
I guess it meant nothing to you because you were never feeling the game.
For me it was a badass standout track that gave goosebumps and let me know that shit was going down. Everything about that scene just clicked and felt right. I then proceeded to put Max on his back on those moving walkways and gun down fools that would run in my sight.
Sentenza
Member
Yeah, well, I played it with a mouse, so I can't really say this was an issue for me.
Messypandas
Member
It was shockingly bad, the cutscenes were a bore to slog through. Rockstar I think have themselves held as some master story tellers and love love to reel off hours of dynamic character relation scenes when in reality its to inane, never-ending verbal diarrhea. I don't need five different cut-scenes showing Max drinking and wobbling around to realise hes fucking depressed.
IMACOMPUTA
Member
I agree with the OP and I thought I was the only one. My friend and I have gotten into multiple arguments about this game.
Among the straight up unenjoyable cutscenes and bummer story, this is what I wrote my friend within the first week of the game being out.
"1. why the fuck does it have to load for me to quit the game?
2. the cutscenes mask loading times.. but sometimes it says "still loading" for over 5 minutes. wtf?
3. god damn them for switching back to the pistol all the time.. that is so annoying
4. the fucking checkpoints suck a lot of the time. I just clelared so much shit and then died and really have to go back about 10 minutes
thats when i stop playing"
Among the straight up unenjoyable cutscenes and bummer story, this is what I wrote my friend within the first week of the game being out.
"1. why the fuck does it have to load for me to quit the game?
2. the cutscenes mask loading times.. but sometimes it says "still loading" for over 5 minutes. wtf?
3. god damn them for switching back to the pistol all the time.. that is so annoying
4. the fucking checkpoints suck a lot of the time. I just clelared so much shit and then died and really have to go back about 10 minutes
thats when i stop playing"
mattiewheels
And then the LORD David Bowie saith to his Son, Jonny Depp: 'Go, and spread my image amongst the cosmos. For every living thing is in anguish and only the LIGHT shall give them reprieve.'
It's a good shooter, but every Rockstar game I play makes me feel like every idea born at their dev office is responded to with: "But how do we make that more like the movie I'm obsessed with at the moment?"
And Houser is a hack. He's not an awful writer, just an unoriginal hack.
And Houser is a hack. He's not an awful writer, just an unoriginal hack.
Game was a bitch to install. A bitch to get it to work. And then a bitch to play. More often than not was a I forcing myself to continue the game.
It was technologic impressive on many levels. But it certainly wasn't an enjoyable experience to play for me. One of my 2012 disappointments. Got it at launch too.
It was technologic impressive on many levels. But it certainly wasn't an enjoyable experience to play for me. One of my 2012 disappointments. Got it at launch too.
No, my issue with Pax Mayne 3 is 1: it's offensive to my sensibilities in regards to the cutscenes (not skippable/FILTER USED EVERY FUCKING TEN SECONDS BECAUSE HEY GUYZ DID YOU KNOW MAX IS A PILL-BOOZE-HOLIC!?) 2: story is ass 3: Max as a character is ass.
2-3 and more important since Remedy/Sam Lake's writing is what made the previous two outings good. Max was likeable because he had nothing to lose after his wife and kids died. Rockstar basically went "fuck that, we're making him depressed just because!" after the fact he basically killed the people that pulled the strings that lead to his wife and baby daughters death.
The gameplay (which Rockstar didn't completely fuck up, because hey it's hard to fuck up MP's gameplay) is solid, outside of the shitty cover mechanics that sometimes work or don't work.
RelentlessRolento
Member
AuthenticM
Member
Can we now get banned for disagreeing with an OP ?
Killing the people responsible for their deaths doesn't mean he wouldn't be depressed. Having nothing to lose can be pretty depressing.
I liked it. It's just one of those games I can't really say why. If I sat and dissected it there would probably be a list as long as my arm of things I didn't like about it, but I liked it too much to bother doing that.
The shooting was fun, the graphics were pretty good, the soundtrack was fucking amazing, and I liked how hopelessly in the gutter Max was. It wasn't particularly oscar worthy script or anything but something about his situation and the way it was told amused me.
The game had enough about it for me to enjoy it, definitely, if only in the same way I might enjoy a stupid summer blockbuster or something.
The shooting was fun, the graphics were pretty good, the soundtrack was fucking amazing, and I liked how hopelessly in the gutter Max was. It wasn't particularly oscar worthy script or anything but something about his situation and the way it was told amused me.
The game had enough about it for me to enjoy it, definitely, if only in the same way I might enjoy a stupid summer blockbuster or something.