Fans of film noir story-telling and hard-boiled, bullet-dodging detectives rejoice! Rockstar Games officially announced today that Max Payne 3 is on the way:

New York, NY – March 23, 2009 – Rockstar Games, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), is proud to announce that Max Payne 3 is currently in development and scheduled for a winter 2009 release on the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system and PC. Developed by Rockstar Vancouver, Max Payne 3 tells the story of a retired police detective embroiled in a world of corruption, turmoil and intense violence.

The award-winning Max Payne franchise put players in the role of Max Payne, a hard-boiled New York City detective with a penchant for violence, out to avenge the death of his family. The latest installment delivers more of the classic elements and hyper-intense action that fans have come to love, while moving the story of Max in a new direction.

“We’re starting a new chapter of Max’s life with this game,” said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. “This is Max as we’ve never seen him before, a few years older, more world-weary and cynical than ever. We experience the downward spiral of his life after the events of Max Payne 2 and witness his last chance for salvation.”

Since leaving the NYPD and New York itself behind, Max has drifted from bad to worse. Double-crossed and a long way from home, Max is now trapped in a city full of violence and bloodshed, using his weapons and instincts in a desperate search for the truth and a way out.

Max Payne 3 will be available in winter 2009 for Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3 and PC.

For more information, log onto www.rockstargames.com/maxpayne3.

Source

The Max Payne movie may have been a PG-13 rated cinematic abomination, but despite the film’s trifecta of over-stylized directing and atrocious acting it managed to gross over $85 million at the box office, well above the $35 million production budget. Unsurprisingly, $55 million is a pretty good incentive to keep this video game franchise alive. The movie may have soiled the series’s good name, but I’m sure most fans are willing to overlook the indiscretion for its role in spawning a third installment for both consoles and the PC.

Max Payne 3 will be the first game in the series since 2003, when Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne was released. Despite winning several industry awards and Editor’s Choice selections from gaming rags, Max Payne 2 sold poorly and was cited as one of the reasons for Rockstar Games’s poor economic forecast of 2004.

Oh, and he’s got a beard now. That guarantees at least 60% more bad-assery.

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