Rockstar has released the first ever footage of Max Payne 3. After a number of delays and quietness surrounding the title, it's amazing to finally see the game in action. Max Payne 3 is scheduled to be released March 2012 for the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Rockstar has announced that the first trailer for Max Payne 3 will be released next week, September 14th, at noon estern.

Rockstar has announced that Max Payne 3 will be coming March 2012 to the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Also confirmed is a multiplayer mode, something that is new to the series. Multiplayer will feature a "compelling experience that dynamically alters maps and mode progression for all players" and will include a "deep" reward and leveling system complete with persistent clan and load-out support. The full press release is below. We should also note we are seeing reports of a mobile version of the first Max Payne that was also announced but seems to be now pulled. This would confirm our report back in June of Max Payne appearing on Tegra mobile devices.
 

 Rockstar Games, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc, is proud to announce that Max Payne 3 is expected to launch on the Xbox 360(R) video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation(R)3 computer entertainment system and PC in March 2012 in North America and Europe.

 

"Max Payne 3 gave us an amazing creative opportunity to evolve one of our most iconic characters," said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. "We're excited to show fans a modern version of Max that pulls them back into his dark and twisted story."

 

Max Payne 3 continues the tale of former New York City detective, Max Payne. Still haunted by the memories of his traumatic past, Max begins a new life working private security protecting a wealthy industrialist and his family in Sao Paulo, Brazil. When gangs target the family under his protection, Max is forced to fight to save his clients and clear his name, in a bid to, once and for all, rid himself of the demons that have tortured him for far too long.

 

Picking up where the release of Max Payne 2 from series creator Remedy Entertainment left off, Max Payne 3 is a true cross-studio collaboration between Rockstar Games' global development teams. The game utilizes cutting edge technology for a seamless, cinematic action experience, incorporating the latest advances in Natural Motion physics and a brand new iteration of Rockstar's own Rockstar Advanced Game Engine. The result offers highly-refined gameplay, with an extensive range of realistic weaponry, an intelligent cover system and sophisticated Bullet-Time mechanics.

 

In addition to an expansive single-player campaign, Max Payne 3 will be the first title in the series to introduce an addictive multiplayer experience. Max Payne 3's multiplayer aims to deliver a compelling experience that dynamically alters maps and mode progression for all players in a match. Along with traditional multiplayer modes, Max Payne 3 will also include a deep reward and leveling system, persistent clans and multiple strategic load-out options.

Max Payne 3 promises to deliver a dark, gritty action experience that is sure to satisfy newcomers and fans to the historic franchise.

 

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

Rockstar has released two new screenshots of Max Payne 3.

Recently Amazon, along with GameStop and a number of other stores, have altered the release date listed for Max Payne 3 to December 1st of this year. While it's not unusual for a store to give it's own approximated release date for a game that has not had a release date announced, according to an email from Amazon this date was set by the publisher and not by them. If this true and with less than six months to go according to the release date, we should be seeing a storm of Max Payne 3 media and information soon.

Hello,

We have received new release date information related to your pre-ordered video game in the order you placed on November 11 2010 (Order# xxx-xxxxxxx-xxxxxxx). The release date for the video game listed below has been changed by the publisher, and we want to provide you with a new delivery estimate based on the new release date:

 Windows XP "Max Payne 3"
   Release date: December 01 2011
   Estimated arrival date: December 05 2011

Amazon is also running discounts on all three versions of Max Payne 3. Both the PC and PlayStation 3 versions currently have $3 knocked off (how fitting!) and the 360 version has 17 cents knocked off the original price. The original price for both the PlayStation 3 and 360 versions is $59.99 while the PC version is priced in-line with every other PC game (that isn't Activision and EA) at only $49.99.

Source: Amazon | GameStop

EDIT: We should also note that we've found entries for Max Payne 3 in newer Nvidia drivers, which adds some validity to this.

This month's issue of EDGE magazine has some new details and art of Max Payne 3. While we don't have a copy of the mag yet, a few sites have been so kind to post the more interesting stuff from this issue. We have summed up the points below. The emphasis is ours.

- Rockstar Vancouver “been involved with Max since the beginning”

- Rockstar London, Rockstar Toronto and Rockstar New England are helping Vancouver

- “We love Max and we want to continue to do right by him,” said Art Director Rob Nelson, “That’s the biggest challenge for us: the decisions we come to have to make sense for him.”

- James McCaffrey returns as Max for Max Payne 3.

- Max Payne 3 is set eight years after the events of Max Payne 2. Payne is done working with the NYPD and is now working for rich clients as a private security contractor in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

- Max Payne was forced out of New York and the game will explain why.

- Max is not "not the booze-soaked hulk we’d been led to expect".

- Edge was shown a demo where the wife of Payne client Rodrigo Branco’s wife is kidnapped by the Commando Sombre street gang. Max must deliver the ransom to get her back. Max has partnered up with a guy named Passos. In this mission, Max has a full head of hair.

Max meets the gang in a football stadium to exchange the ransom. Shots are suddenly fired and Max is struck, which is when his health icon in the bottom right goes red.

The mission features Max making his way through the stadium, through broadcast rooms and snipers. Max has been equipped with a “high -powered rifle”.

The action is “fast and brutal,” says Edge, filled with “glass smashes, blood spurts, furniture collapses”.

- According to Nelson, the game is “always playing with time in the story,” with it going ‘backwards and forwards” using “aggressive editing”.

- The comic book frames are back but in a different style. Rather than static frames, Rockstar is using in-game footage that shows an animated collage of action.

- Pain pills are back.

- Max’s “classic narration,” is back.

- According to Edge, MP3 doesn’t feel like a “standard corridor shooter.”

- Bullet-cam is in and provides a “bloody full-stop to every encounter”. Bullet-time is also back. He can dive in any direction and reacts to the environment, Max even “thrust[s] out a hand or shoulder to absorb the impact”.

- A cover system is in and the controls are similar to Grand Theft Auto IV and Red Dead Redemption.

- Rockstar has “put a lot of attention on AI reactions, making sure that the force of the bullet feels right”. Enemies will duck even for "near-misses".

- It's a wheel-based selection system for weapons.
 
- Max can carry three weapons at once. Max dual-wield two single hand guns and Edge notes an “almost sensual attention to detail” when he fires.

- Max will be using pistols, sub-machine guns, rifles, sniper rifles and more.

- There will be multiplayer.

- Environments are fully destructible

 

One extra thing to note, not related to Max Payne 3, is that Rockstar Leeds isn't listed among the develoeprs. This means that the new "next-gen" PC title they are working on is something completely different than MP3. We will keep searching for anymore details that the websites may have missed so keep checking back for updates.

Sources: Scrawlfx | Examiner | VG24/7

EDIT: Here are the screenshots in the issue.

Rockstar has released two screenshots of Max Payne 3 via their Twitter account. It's been almost two years since the last screens for the game and since then information has gone slient. That was until a couple of weeks ago when character information for the game was uncovered. Hopefully we'll see some more screenshots and videos of Max Payne 3 after the release of L.A. Noire.

He's coming. http://twitpic.com/4eyzbvhttp://twitpic.com/4eyzgp#MaxPayne3

While we usually don't report on rumors until we have enough proof to actually prove it's true, this rumor comes from Superannuation. You may remember him as the person who just a few weeks ago discovered the domains Rockstar had registered and is known for being right most of the time. This week, he has stumbled upon what seems to be the codename for Grand Theft Auto V, "RUSH". Here's the story on how he got it. He started doing searches for the talent company Rockstar mainly uses to find people to do acting, "Telsey & Company". When searching, he found a casting call for a game that was codenamed "Sao Paulo Knights" with a description that contained information similar to what we know about Max Payne 3. After a bit more searching, he found an actor by the name of Al Nazemian who has sort of a mini-blog on what casting calls he has done. He has a couple of entries pertaining to Sao Paulo Knights and in one of them be basically says Sao Paulo Knights is Max Payne 3. Just a warning, the last entry quoted and much of the rest of the article contains what could be considered spoilers to some. If you believe that character names and short briefs regarding their personality are spoilers, I'd advise you to skip the rest of the article.

May-June 2010
Did face scanning, motion capture & voiceover for video game "Max Payne 3": Sao Paulo Knights. Voiceover in English & Portuguese.

Feb 2010
Got cast as Dr. Arthur Fisher in "Max Payne 3" video game for Rockstar games.

Here are some character details for Sao Paulo Knights from the casting call:

Seeking: All characters are Brazilian. "Brazilian" means a wide range of ethnicities (Caucasian/Latin/African-American), but all actors should be able to speak Portuguese fluently, (with the exception of Fabiano and the stunt double...Fabiano can just do an accent...stunt double doesn't speak.)

[ COMANDO VERMELHO ] Prominent Sao Paulo gang. Not affiliated to any one favela, but networked throughout them all. More akin to a biker gang than a low-level street gang… well-established with a focus on big-ticket, organized crime (drug trafficking, high-profile kidnappings etc.) They have an urban feel to them, ranging in age from 20's to mid to late 30's.

[ CANGACO ] Paramilitary group, made up primarily of off-duty and former cops, soldiers and prison guards. Well-trained and equipped. Right-wing guns for hire, they also view themselves as a "community self-defense force"…vigilantes bringing their own ruthless brand of justice to areas of the city where the police have lost control. They have an older, more established feel to them. Age range would be between 30's to possibly early 50's.

[ STUNT/BODY DOUBLE ] No speaking 6'1"- 6'4" 190-215 pounds. We're looking for someone who has a lean athletic build as opposed to an overly muscular one. Age range: 35-50 (Must be in good physical condition and able to do stunt work.) Ethnicity: Caucasian/Hispanic/Multi-ethnic

[ FABIANO ] (NO MOTION CAPTURE, ONLY FACIAL AND AUDIO RECORDING)
He's a street-wise kid who is used to taking care of himself in the slum areas of Sao Paulo Brazil. He knows he has to do what it takes to survive, even if it means working with local gangs in order to make a little cash. (14 years old) Character speaks with Broken English, but Portuguese is a plus)

After he found that, he went back to his search and found another casting call for a game titled "RUSH". The call contained details of characters similar to Rockstar's style. Here are the characters included with the call:

Mitch Hayes – 38 yrs old – Annoying, wise cracking, highly successful FBI agent. In great shape. Does triathlons, drinks low cal beer, but still has a sense of humor.

Miguel Gonzalez – 25 yrs old – Young Mexican American FBI agent, caught between a few mob bosses. Very clean cut

Clyde – 23 yrs old – Moronic, almost inbred and creepy white trash hillbilly. Very naïve but in a creepy ‘it’s only incest sort of way’

Brother Adam – 50 yrs old – Welsh monk, cult leader, yoga teacher, very lithe, very into exploring your personal tension through gripping massage. Needs Welsh accent.

Mrs Avery – 48 yrs old – Neurotic soccer mom, home maker, anxious and addled on pain killers. Very angry at neighbor MRS Bell.

Mrs Bell – 45 yrs old – Swinger, and mellow Californian divorcee. Ugly but comfortable with self.

Eddie – 47 yrs old – Weed evangelist, guy who started smoking at 30, and is now a leading proponent of marijuana’s fantastic properties. White, awkward.

Ira Bernstein – 56 yrs old – publicist for an actress known as America’s newest sweetheart who just so happens to love animals, orphans, drugs and sex. He’s always trying to hide her latest indiscretion.

Kevin De Silva – 18 yrs old – Albert’s fat, FPS playing gamer son. Smokes a lot of weed, has anxiety issues and a card for a bad back, very soft, very opinionated. Into making racist comments while playing online.

Harut Vartanyan – 42-52 yrs old – Armenian car dealer, moneylender, would be Fagin and would be bully. Heavily connected to the underworld, but irritates people so much no one likes him.

Nervous Jerry – 48 yrs old – paranoiac living in the sticks, near Simon, completely paranoid, and terrified of Simon.

Calvin North – 55 yrs old – clapped out FBI agent who now mostly works offering advice on TV shows – whose only claim to fame turns out to be entirely false – but a decent guy in other ways. Badly dressed. Divorced. Putting on weight.

Jerry Cole – 53 yrs old – disabled IT expert and criminal information vendor.

Rich Roberts – 35 yrs old – English hardman actor, who acts tough but who wants to do serious work – the only problem is he can’t quite read the words.

Alex – 52 yrs old – white, loosie goosie hippy rich guy who has lost his money and is getting desperate but trying not to.

Scarlet – 45-52 yrs old – unshaven female spiritualist and hippy with a love of exploring the wilderness. Very into journeys.

Chad – 29 yrs old – pretty boy misogynist Beverly Hills party boy. Made money, but not as cool as he thinks he is.

Tae Wong – 39 yrs old – somewhat incompetent Chinese mobster, loves doing ecstasy, going to raves.

Taes Translator – 45 yrs old – VERY STRAIGHT LACED Chinese translator, terrified of his boss’s dad. Male, awkward. Needs to speak Chinese.

I did some research and found that the casting calls for both RUSH and Max Payne 3 have the same payout rate of $801.30 per 8 hour day. Also, another thing I realized is one of the characters above lives in California and one of the domains Rockstar registered back in January was "CashForDeadDreams.com" which screams Los Angeles (San Andreas anyone?). These two add even more fuel to the idea that this is at the very least a Rockstar game.

Source: Superannuation
Source: Openbook Casting Live
Source: Managing Your Acting Career

Edit #1: An actor has listed RUSH as a project she have worked on.

RUSH   Inner city female street   Take 2 Games

Edit #2: Al Nazemian has removed the Max Payne 3 details from his site.

Take-Two has announced their results for the three and twelve months ended October 31, 2010. The main take away from the results is the fact that Take-Two was able to achieve profitability in a year without a major new Grand Theft Auto release. This is mainly thanks to new releases such as Red Dead Redemption, Mafia 2, Bioshock 2, Civilization V, Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete, New Carnival Games and their respective DLCs. One other thing the results include is the future lineup of games from Take-Two.

Notice that Max Payne 3 and Agent are missing? When questioned about it, Strauss Zelnick responded that they don't comment on unreleased titles. Could it be an error? Could it be Max Pane 3 and Agent have been delayed beyond 2012 or is it just they don't have a solid time-frame for release? Hopefully we'll hear something soon.

EDIT: Rockstar has given the following statement to Kotaku regarding Max Payne 3:

We're still working hard on Max, and we'll have more news in the coming months.

Take-Two has announced today the financial results of their second quarter. In the results there is some very sad news, Max Payne 3 has been pushed out of 2010 with no new ball-park release date mentioned. On to some good news, Red Dead Redemption has sold over 5 million since release day, compare that to GTAIV's now 17 million sales since April of 2008. Also, L.A. Noire is still on track to be released this year.

Source: Take-Two