Released from prison through his contacts in higher orbs, Max Payne is back on the NYPD as a hero; but he is living a life of misery, tormented by the memories of his murdered family. One day, investigating a routine case, Max runs into Mona Sax. The mysterious and seductive paid assassin who joined Max in his revenge against Nicole Horne tells him that both of them are in great danger. Now Max needs to run against the clock, to solve the case which seems to be all about his murder. His only ally is a woman who's wanted by his own police dept. Max Payne 2, the follow-up to the styled third-person action shooter, brings back the noir detective atmosphere, the stunning John-Woo-style action sequences, and the few survivors from the first game: Mona Sax, Vladimir Lev, Vinnie Gognitti, Jim Bravura, Alfred Woden, and the mysterious Inner Circle is working again. Someone wants Max dead. Who? Why? Max Payne 2 is built on the same engine as the first game, but it's been loaded up with all the special effects of next generation games. Dynamic shadows and lighting effects, cubic mapped reflections, and high resolution textures make the game look incredibly real. The "Havok" and "Ragdoll" physics engines take care of objects and characters respectively, creating an incredibly realistic and interactive game world. The story, sometimes told through in-game dialogue, is pushed forward with comic panels that play during cut scenes. Gameplay has been also enhanced, there are even more weapons, we can use two different weapons at the same time, there are NPCs who will join sides with us, and the much-acclaimed "Bullet Time" feature has been upgraded to version 2.0, in which Max's speed in "bullet time" increases as he gets more kills. The game also offers several unlockable difficulty and gameplay modes, once finished.

See also: #Bonus Chapters