MAX PAYNE IS BACK Were used to having franchises that people expect a lot from and have a lot of pressure attached to them, Nelson says. Weve learned to go with our gut and trust our instincts.we wanted to challenge ourselves. At Rockstars headquarters in New York, located in the hip SoHo district, we witnessed a world-exclusive first look at the game in action. If you expected a by-the-numbers sequel, prepare to be surprised. The third chapter of the Max Payne saga takes our hero places that hes never gone before, while at the same time keeping an eye towards maintaining and improving the stylish gunplay that made his reputation. Like most Rockstar games, its clearly a labor of love (and just a little bit of mania). More than any other publisher, Rockstars games depend on a real sense of place and culture. Whether its Liberty Citys dense metropolis, Bullys bucolic school campus, or the arid desert of the upcoming Red Dead Redemption, the main characters in Rockstar games are often reflective of the setting itself. The company is known for creating worlds so immersive and complex they seem as real as our own hometowns and a good deal more exciting. The dark, damp New York setting and atmosphere of classic film noir marked the first two Max Payne titles, a cinematic style defined by films like The Maltese Falcon and A Touch of Evil. Their graphic novel style cutscenes and dark scripts created a sense of foreboding and drama rare for the day. However, the team at Rockstar ...