Max Payne 1 And 2 Remakes From Remedy And Rockstar Are Coming For PC, Xbox And PS5

It's been a decade since the last Max Payne game came out (Max Payne 3), but the franchise that put bullet-time gameplay on the map hasn't been forgotten. No, there's not a Max Payne 4 in the works (that we're aware of). However, Remedy Entertainment approached Rockstar Games about doing a remake of the first two games, and found it to once again be a willing publishing partner.

Here's a quick history lesson: Remedy developed the first two titles in the iconic franchise, Max Payne (2001) and Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne (2003), and Rockstar published them. Then nine years after the release of the second game, Rockstar Studios developed a third title, Max Payne 3. There was also a Max Payne movie in 2008 starring Mark Wahlburg and Mila Kunas.

Point being, Remedy and Rockstar have history together, and it sounds like they're both excited give the classic shooters a fresh coat of paint.

"We were thrilled when our long-time friends at Remedy approached us about remaking the original Max Payne games," said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. "We are massive fans of the work the Remedy team has created over the years, and we can’t wait to play these new versions."

Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne (2008)

Right now things are in the concept development stage, so it could be some time before these are released. However, terms of the agreement have been hammered out and signed by both parties. Under terms of the deal, Rockstar will finance the remakes with a budget "in line with a typical AAA-game production."

We're cautiously optimistic about this, given the apparent big budget Remedy has been given to work with, and the fact that Remedy approached Rockstar instead of the other way around. That suggests this isn't a cash grab.

The only other detail available at this time is that the remakes will be offered as a single game for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, developed with Remedy's proprietary Northlight engine. That's the same engine that was used to create Control, a ray-traced gem of a game. Our guess is that the Max Payne remakes will incorporate ray tracing as well, though we don't know for sure. It will also be interesting to see if any new gameplay elements arrive with the remakes.