Max Payne is a third-person shooter from the Finnish studio Remedy Entertainment, released for Windows on 25 July 2001 by Gathering of Developers. It was one of the first games built around bullet time, the slow-motion effect popularized by The Matrix, and its gunfights borrow heavily from Hong Kong action cinema, especially John Woo. The story is told in comic-book panels with voice-over, which Remedy chose because they were cheaper and easier to change than full cutscenes.
Ports followed quickly: PS2 and Xbox versions in December 2001, Mac OS X in 2002 and a very different isometric Game Boy Advance version in 2003. A Dreamcast port was cancelled. In Japan, P&A released the Windows version on 10 August 2001, and Electronic Arts later published the PS2 version with Japanese voices.
Remedy's MAX-FX engine went on to power Futuremark's 3DMark benchmarks. The game led to Max Payne 2, Max Payne 3, a 2008 film and remakes announced in 2022.12
Names and releases
| Region | Title on the box | Platform | Date | Publisher | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NA | Max PayneSame day in Europe | Windows | Jul 25, 2001 | Gathering of Developers | 1 |
| NA | Max PaynePort by Rockstar Canada; Europe 11 January 2002 | PlayStation 2 | Dec 11, 2001 | — | 1 |
| NA | Max PaynePort by Neo Software; Europe 14 March 2002 | Xbox | Dec 18, 2001 | — | 1 |
| NA | Max PayneDeveloped by Möbius Entertainment; Europe 19 March 2004 | Game Boy Advance | Dec 16, 2003 | Rockstar Games | 1 |
| JP | マックスペインMakkusu PeinFirst Japanese version | Windows | Aug 10, 2001 | P&A | 2 |
| WW | Max PayneMac OS X port by Westlake Interactive; Feral Interactive outside North America | Mac | Jul 16, 2002 | MacSoft | 1 |
| WW | Max PayneSteam release | Windows | Jan 6, 2011 | Rockstar Games | 3 |
| WW | Max Payne MobilePort by War Drum Studios; the infobox gives 12 April and the article text 13 April | iOS | April 2012 | Rockstar Games | 1 |
| WW | Max Payne MobilePort by War Drum Studios | Android | Jun 14, 2012 | Rockstar Games | 1 |
| WW | Max Payne | PlayStation 4 | 2016 | — | 1 |
Also known as: マックスペイン JP2Makkusu Pein JP2
Box art by region
NA Max Payne
Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: Wikipedia.
Version differences
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GameplayPS2
The PS2 version has less detail and occasional slowdown, and its levels were split into smaller chunks to fit the console's memory, which IGN said broke up the story.1
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ContentGame Boy Advance
The Game Boy Advance version is a different take altogether: isometric sprite graphics, some levels cut and new music by Tom Kingsley.1
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AudioPS2 (Japan)
The Japanese PS2 release, published by Electronic Arts, has a full Japanese voice dub.2
Translations
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Japanese Official
Electronic ArtsPlayStation 2 · PS2 versionReleased
The Japanese PS2 version, published by Electronic Arts, has a full Japanese voice cast.2
Where to play legally today
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Steam Purchase
Reception
Metacritic scores were 89 for PC and Xbox and 80 for PS2, and the game won the BAFTA for Best PC Game of 2001. It sold about 4 million copies, including roughly 430,000 PC and 1.6 million PS2 copies in the US by 2006.1
In lists
Sources
Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13
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