When he's not fighting to save his own identity against angry spandex wearing wrestlers with claims of stolen personas, you can usually find Max Payne in and around the criminal underbelly of New York, unleashing his own brand of slow motion, bullet time style justice.

The original Max Payne ended with an uncertain future for our anti-hero, renegade cop. After becoming a fugitive for murdering his partner, a crime he of course didn't commit, Max was left to pick off just about every major player in the crime syndicate surrounding the powerfully deadly Valkyrie drug that lead to the death of his family years earlier and was also the reason his partner was killed. A man with nothing to lose, Max left much of the New York underworld in tatters, not to mention much of his own personal life. The game ended with Max being arrested, his only hope of salvation being a shadowy figure from a secret organization known as The Inner Circle.

Set a year after the original, Max Payne 2 picks up with our old boy Max back in his old job as an NYPD officer, after resigning from his job in the DEA. But it doesn't start well for Max (does it ever?). Waking up in hospital he finds his current partner also dead, only this time he was the one behind the trigger. This isn't the beginning of the story though, just the beginning of the game. Told in flashback, Max finds himself back on the force a day before his temporary coma and working a case of what appears to be a gang war between the Mob and Russian Mafia (headed by Vladimir, the helpful arms dealer in the original game), only it soon gets complicated when a third party dressed as cleaners join the party and start to cause more trouble. It's not long before Payne finds himself back in the deep end, dodging bullets and taking on armies of bad guys for yet another bullet strewn, body laden adventure. But far from sticking with yet another action/thriller storyline, this time there's an actual love story that unfolds through the game between Max Payne and Mona Sax, the woman from the original game who apparently got shot in the head before mysteriously disappearing.

Fret not however, this new love story angle doesn't make the game any softer, in fact it's far darker than your usual sickly sweet romantic sub plots. Mona, far from being your usual damsel in distress, is as much a femme fatale as Max is a renegade loose cannon; appearing as abruptly in Max's life as when she left it, Mona throws the detective's life into turmoil. Besotted with emotions he never acts on and torn between following his instinct or the badge (with Mona being a prime suspect in a murder case) Max again finds himself in a bit of a wreck. While some may still be dismissive of the story's romantic spin and unoriginality, it's certainly a plot that gives much more integrity and purpose to the proceedings. This time you're not just fighting for pure revenge, but also love. A bit of a cliché but I always like a story that grabs your attention from the outset and with its multiple twists and turns, interesting characters and occasionally dark humour, that's certainly what this game does.

Story aside, Max Payne 2 still displays the same amount of wanton destruction and carnage that made the first game so popular, though don't expect anything groundbreaking or altogether new; this is still very much the same game wrapped up in shinier gift paper. Still, if you liked the original you'll love this whereas if you where none to impresses with Mr. Payne's shenanigans the first time around then there is not much to tempt you back.

Anyone who's played the original Max Payne should have a fair idea how this sequel will pan out - it's action, action and more action as you fight through waves of bad guys with some fairly destructive weapons at your disposal. Still, it's action that Max Payne does so well and as the old saying goes if it ain't broke, don't fix it. That said it is nice to see Remedy (the game's developers) listen to the criticism cited around the first game and as such they've fixed and added a few things that where either missing or done badly in the original game. Graphically the game is largely unchanged. Environments still display the same kind of photo realistic textures that were present in the original but while back a year or two ago this looked quite nice, now the low res textures are starting to look a bit old. Not that this game doesn't look the part, it does, it's just not as graphically astute as other recent releases.

However, not all of the graphics are stuck in the past, most notably character models have received a very large boost in detail with some amazing animations and much better lip syncing, so it's here where you'll notice one of the biggest changes in the game. Every single character model in the game has a brand new face. Max no longer looks like a 20 year old rookie cop but more of an older Timothy Hutton, Mona looks much less like a teenager and more of a woman complete with a new Matrix style makeover while other characters such as Vladimir Lem, Vinnie Gogniti and Jim Bravura also get a face lift. While some may not like this change, the character models look infinitely better and actually fit the voices given them. Weapons models also come with an improvement in detail, an immense improvement in fact. Remedy sure do like their guns and the guns you get to play with in this game are possibly the most realistic I've ever encountered. Everything from their reflective surfaces to the detailed scratches and engraved lettering is solidly done, matched only by the amazing animation and muzzle flashes. Small potatoes you may think, but when guns are used as much as they are in Max Payne 2, you learn to appreciate these slight graphical improvements.

The core of the game remains the same - John Woo inspired action at it's finest. Bullet time as ever remains a fundamental part of the action but much like the film it borrowed this effect from, a lot of games have come after using the exact same effect in a variety of ways. It no longer seems quite as special and new as it was way back when. Still, the bullet time effects in Max Payne 2 aren't just a rehash. One click of the right mouse button and Max's world slows down, goes all blurry and all sounds are muted except for a strong thundering heartbeat. However, you are able to play around with a new effect when in Bullet Time; rather than slow down to a snail pace, Max moves only slightly slower than normal but this time shooting bad guys not only replenishes the bullet time gauge but changes its colour from normal white to yellow. When this happens everyone except Max begins to slow down slower and slower while Max himself begins to move faster. This new feature proves a welcome addition, especially because the fights you get into this time are much bigger than those you encountered in the first game; don't think I was exaggerating before when I said you face armies of bad guys!

Besides bullet time, the ever useful shoot dodge mechanics still remain in place and are still as simple and effective to use. Much like bullet time it only needs one click of a button to activate, which sends you diving in slow motion in whichever direction you are facing. The ability to aim in real time while using shoot dodge means you can carefully pick off targets with ease while they desperately try to plug a few rounds into you. Going in slow motion also helps you spot any bullets that might be flying in your direction, making it easier to avoid any incoming fire. Little has been added to this effect, apart from the ability to stay prone on the ground while you pummel your opposition with your last round of ammunition, but nevertheless it's still the most useful feature of the game. There are times where you'll be pounced on by a number of foes and have very little time to react, one press of the shoot dodge button however and you easily dive to safety while taking out anyone who poses a significant threat, and you'll look as cool as Chow Yun Fat while doing it.

Speaking of Chow Yun Fat, it's hard not to mention director John Woo again, who obviously proved to be the pivotal source of influence for the game. While there have been recent action games that have tried to mimic Woo's films, they haven't really come as close as Max Payne 2; this is still the only action game that can fully recreate the insane, over the top action scenes you find in a John Woo flick. The game also boasts a level of destructive carnage not matched by any other game currently out there. You can put a bullet hole in anything; watch as the wood splinters, metal sparks and walls crumble as bullets that missed their target shatter into the scenery. And scenery this time is much more destructible; everything such as chairs, boxes and shelves can be moved in various ways, which does create a feeling of interaction with the game's surroundings. Another quite small but nice and slightly morbid feature is the new "rag doll physics", which have been crafted into each of the game character models. This basically means that when characters die, they flail and twist in a realistic manner. Shoot them in the arm and their arm will swings out showing the full force of the bullet that hit it. This allows for some much more adrenaline-fuelled shootouts; blasting a bad guy clear across the room and sending him flying into a shelf of boxes that proceeds to fall down on him is supremely satisfying.

The levels contained in Max Payne 2 are a varied, if not too dissimilar bunch. There's a couple of small skirmishes around a hospital and police station, a level set through a worn down apartment block, not to mention a very posh looking set of apartments in a high rise building. These are all familiar types of level that featured in the original Max Payne, although here at least they are designed with a bit more panache. Perhaps the most outstanding levels of the game are those that weren't exactly welcome in the original. Everyone remembers the "dream sequence" part, which put Max in his own nightmare world and while these levels did work well some annoying platform bits dragged them down. These dream sequences return for the second outing but this time they're actually quite good. No annoying little blood trail to follow here, in fact no platform bits whatsoever; instead you get experience the nightmare and torment that Max himself suffers from and with such an imaginative use of camera trickery and imagery that wouldn't look out of place in a Silent Hill game, these sequences add some depth to Max's character who obviously isn't a happy bunny.

While there is much to praise in Max Payne 2, there are also a few things that aren't quite as pleasing. Firstly it is repetitive, shooting is pretty much all you do throughout this game and while most will enjoy the constant and unrelenting carnage, some will be quickly turned off by it. If you like variety in your game, you'll be disappointed here. Perhaps the biggest problem of all however is the game's criminally short length. The original wasn't exactly noted for being one of the longest games around, coming in at 10 hours it was just too short lived and despite claims that this sequel has about the same length, I couldn't help but feel it was slightly shorter. Only 7 to 8 hours to complete, Max Payne 2 is a game that's just far too short and while it does have a couple of nice extras such as an alternative ending, unlocked through the New York Minute difficulty and a new game mode Dead Man Walking, these just aren't enough to prolong the life of a game that should have lasted longer. Action fans will go back for more however, just to play what has to be one of the finest, most stylish action games of recent times, but all the same this game really needed to be longer.

Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne is a worthy sequel to a groundbreaking original. With its classy new Noir story, updated graphics and action sequences that unfold as violently and as excitingly as a 100 John Woo films, it's certainly one game action fans and Max Payne fans will lap up. Sure, it's short, but a real blast in every respect while it lasts.

Reviewed by Kieron Giacopazzi for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).