Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne - Retro PC Time Capsule vs PS2 - Can Consoles Cope?
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- Опубліковано 17 вер 2024
- The Retro PC Time Capsule is back - this time taking us all the way back to 2003, the year of the Radeon 9800 Pro... and Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne! In this video, Alex plays the Remedy classic on period appropriate PC hardware, while John attempts to keep up on the PlayStation 2 rendition of the game. The PC's inordinately more powerful, so can the console keep up?
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RIP Mr. James McCaffrey, I didn’t know he passed away! Such an iconic voice. 🙏🏻
i been mad no ones was talking about it.
Holy crap really?!?
When?
@@paulino58 Late in 2023 just after Alan Wake 2 was released.
Sad times man...
Dude voiced some of my fave characters. Honestly when I heard his voice in Control I knew IMMEDIATELY who it was.
I was like "FACKING YES, McCaffrey!"
He worked on some fan Max Payne stuff in the background over the years and it's just an iconic voice.
@@zedfragg4134 ): max payne is one of my fav games
I recently replayed this on PC. I was really impressed at how well it works on a modern system. RIP James McCaffrey, I've been hearing his voice since I was a kid. He'll be sorely missed.
Compared to first game that needs entire fixpack it works much better but you still need widescreen fix without it game is awful stretched in widescreen.
Same I'm playing through every single rockstar game right now and I'm on max payne 3 and I can't lie I like 1,2 a little bit better
I heard there are Max Payne remakes coming. Is it true?
Yes@@LostUkraineGirl
And why is Alex playing it on Win XP if it run so well on modern PCs? Microsoft is not quote renowned for caring about game conservation. Even now some Win10 games don't run on Win11. And with drm dependencies like ms "gaming services" it gets just worse and worse.
Thanks for the acknowledgment of James. I recently came across recordings I made of my pal and I playing MP1 from 2001. Such great memories.
It is hard to think about Remedy will move forward without James, he had such an iconic voice and he was such a talented person.
@@CVoYagerespecially since they're still working on the Max Payne remakes, I hope they got all of the voice work done before he passed
Upload that!
@@thequinlanshow3326I hope they're still making it since Rockstar is currently suing them for having the letter R in their logo.
Upload em! ❤
On Steam Deck compatibility, I fully completed this for the first time a month ago and can confirm it runs like a dream.
did you play with sticks or with touchpads?
What controller profile did you use?
@@znubionek I’ve played it on deck too, sticks were used with stock controller profile, you just need to turn sensitivity all the way down in the game settings or it’s too sensitive to movement.
Game runs excellent on my oled deck, runs 90fps max settings even with 8x AA and at 4w even so battery life is through the roof.
You need to apply the wide-screen fix though. I replayed it too. Great gameplay and graphics but story wise the game is significantly weaker than the first one
@@znubionekI’m team trackpad all the way, have a custom trackpad+gyro setup I use for nearly all PC shooters. It’s immaculate for aiming, and feels super smooth in MP 1+2 at 90 FPS on Deck.
Top 5 best games i've ever played. This is my childhood right here. James passing was such a shock. It hit me like a train. RIP legend. I dont know how the remakes will feel now without him. Max Payne's iconic quotes will stay with me until i draw my last breath.
Same here
Great game, RIP James! Fantastic atmosphere and voice acting.
Rest in Peace Max Payne
I love the fact that the game has bullets with geometry. Also the guns have slides moving with each shot
Most devs back then actually cared about the little details in games.
Don't forget about bullet casings permanently sticking around too. I remember Mafia 1 had the same feature. Not something you see nowadays. It think that's a shame because it made every firefight feel more impactful, even when it was over.
I remember that beginning rain scene, I also had a 9800 Pro and an Audigy 2, EAX enabled and a 5.1 surround system. The rain sounded amazing.
Audio quality (sound mixing) has really gone down the tube. Most audio in games from the Max Payne 1 & 2 era up until about 2010 was extremely crisp and a lot of painstaking effort went into it, like a fine art. Not so much anymore.
Playing Max Payne 3 right now, wow it still amazes me... the gunplay is so cool
max payne 3 is really bad
Max Payne 3 is a great game
@@phalxoryour crazy as hell
Max Payne 3 is the best 3rd person shooter ever made
@@averageyoutuber1058 Both Max Payne 1 and 2 are much better and more enjoyable in my opinion. I can replay those games any time, while I still dread to finish Max Payne 3, cause it's so boring.
R.I.P. Ms James, one of the very best (if not THE best) game voices of all time!
Thanks for all the incredible memories of my youth and life in general!
Thanks for revisiting this absolute masterpiece guys!
I remember how mind blowing the physics and graphics looked when you shoot that first enemy into the shelf at 4:50. I was floored by the physics at the time.
I played the hell out of this game and remember being doubly amazed by the fact that no 2 gunfight scenarios are ever the same. The physics engine allow each scenario to play out differently with each encounter.
Max Payne 2 is my favorite third person shooter of all time. I still remember stumbling upon it as a kid in an internet cafe back in 2006 and it was Max Payne's shadows that really shocked me. To me it look eerily real and looking at it now, they are actually simulating soft shadows that is far beyond the standard stencil shadows being used back then. When I was finally able to install the game at home, the physics just hooked me and it was the most addictive thing to tinker with. I would quicksave a lot and replay every combat encounter that has lots of objects around to see how cool I could get away with knocking their lifeless bodies. The cherry on top is the story and theme with just oozes and style. It also made Max Payne as my favorite game protagonist of all time.
and the reflection in the mirrors is real. impressive for 2003.
funny just yesterday I installed the pc version on the phone. both mp1+2
runs in real 4k resolution everything maxed settings. lol
Thanks for sharing! I used to reload the encounters too. It was so awesome watching everything fly around when hit. Both MP2 and FEAR had the coolest background interactions.
@@nBasterdhow the heck did you do that
@@reloadedspade176 i know it might be hard to believe, but yes. Emulating pc games on mobile devices running ARM chips is now a thing. just look up mobox or winlator emulator. i promise you its working 100%. im using a 2023 samsung tablet. I have 1 video on my channel emulating unreal tournament 2004. and yes I mean full 4K 2160p 60hz from phone/tablet to display. Max payne 1 gets well over 100fps atk 4k. max payne2 is around 60fps.
@@nBasterd Winlator? MP2 could not start for me. PS2 ver. runs great on Android tho.
We need a full on DF Retro Max Payne episode!!
My favorite game when I was a kid, it's oozing with atmosphere.
LOLI think this was the first game I got called out on at the Fred Meyer... I had to double back and get my sister to buy it for me.
What a perfect timing! I was playing this and MP1 just few days ago. Amazing classics that still hold up to this day, with incredible attention for details.
R.I.P James McCaffrey, you will be missed as you will forever be Max Payne/Alex Casey/Thomas Zane/Zachariah Trench.
Trivia about Warehouse guy who tricks Max. If Max shoots him earlier, he had a dialogue that actually describes how he deduced that something wasn't right about him. 😅
I unrionically still think Max Payne 2 looks good. It's got that photo realistic vibe to it, kinda in the same vein as GTA V
In some ways I agree. Not uncommon for 6th gen games to hold up in some manner
Where tf gta5 realistic, its cartoony compared to 4
Gta V is a Looney Tunes cartoon compared to IV or MaxPayne 2.
@@DIMON13585 or you using an alt account why tf are you saying the same stupid thing?
@@mazziecat are u drunk?
This is honestly the game I’ve been waiting DF to cover since the day I learned what DF was.
we get too few DF Retro videos
With the passing of James McCaffrey, I'm wondering which VOs are being used for the the Remakes. RIP, Legend.
The dirt bag route would be using an AI voice over or Remedy gets someone who sounds similar if they aren't going to recast Max's voice.
it's possible they might end up using the same audio and lines from the originals. that's been a persistent rumor
They will use the same audio from before.
They will use the original lines and use AI to clean up the audio quality.
AI will probably help with that
A small correction: palettised textures are not monochrome, they store palette indices instead of direct color values.
from a data perspective it's pretty much just a monochrome texture.
@@pfannkuchengesicht42 exactly
@@pfannkuchengesicht42 from a data perspective there are no colors. Why do mental hoops?
@@pfannkuchengesicht42 No, it's a single channel texture. It's not the same thing. (And even then you'd mean grayscale, which is just one type of monochrome.)
More of these types of video! Exploring the different technological approaches to different games throughout history. Its pretty interesting!
I really love this kinds of videos my dudes, always give me a good laugh. Thanks a bunch ❤
"Can Consoles cope"? The Xbox could. Ran it pretty well, in fact. The PS2 version wasn't even using the Max Payne 2 engine. It was basically remade in the Max Payne 1 engine... And had awful loading times.
Xbox version in 03 on a CRT over s-video was pretty great. Wasn't a bad port at all.
What can u expect from these ppl, they´re PS fanboys and it has been demonstrated many times before, any retro, current of whatever video is all about "glorious" PS version of anything vs PC, like xbox versions never existed
works perfect on steam deck by the way. 90fps at 4w (5w for no dips) max settings (8x AA included). looks great.
Hearing John bring up the ford taurus SHO gave me a new found respect I didn’t know I needed always the best from DF
There needs to be a DF Lets Play Rule: Anytime you play an old 90's 2000's era game, assume that it doesn't have autosaves! Someone please sticky note that to the DF Crew's Monitors!
Just binged every PC Time capsule video based on how entertaining this was, no regrets! keep them coming!
The 9800 Pro is a hall of fame video card. One of the absolute greats. I’d love to see the DF crew do a hall of fame video cards video.
9700 Pro.
26:52 I always found it hilarious how one of the cops is clearly shooting the wall in front of him in that cutscene 😂
The fact that they inadvertently(?) fixed it on PS2 by removing said cop is pretty funny too.
I remember eagerly awaiting HL2 and getting to experience Havok in it and this comes out and I just no idea it had Havok physics. I was so enamored by all the objects flying around everywhere
I cannot wait to watch this, I love DF retro so much and the effort that goes into these videos is much appreciated
It's a shame James left us before the Remakes , I really wanted to see him play the games. Rest in peace 🙏
first, RIP James McCaffrey; amazing actor and a VA with a strikingly distinct and memorable voice.
I lost it at the double doors "I'mma big boi"
Great content as usual. The Max Payne series has been in my all time faves bucket since experiencing MP1 on the OG Xbox. Edit: this has some of my favorite commentary, lol.
Finally!!! THIS is exactly what I have been wanting ever since the very first episode of the "Console vs PC Time Capsule" series. Thank you so much guys!!!
The PS2 version I first played back in mid 2004 and I thought it was pretty bad. Played through it again on Xbox a in 2005, and finally once again on PC in 2011.
I decided to play it again on PS2 back in 2018, and it's actually not THAT bad of a port considering the hardware limitations.
In fact, the PS2 port has actually become my preferred version to play due to the sheer fact the PS2 was able to pull it off as well as it did.
THIS is what i love waking up to on a rainy saturday morning. Thank you, you amazing geniuses
Heck yes, these are one of my favorite DF vid series. Alex n John getting down w/ the hardware and games of my youth.
I played these first two games on the PS2 as a kid so seeing the PC version now for the first time has blown me away. It's a warm feeling seeing you two play this title again. In terms of details, something as small and silly as turning on a tap just makes the world feel real and not just a collection of 3d models. The physics as well, just what a joy to see in action and something I miss in newer games (see GTA IV compared to GTA V).
The sun went down with practiced bravado. Twilight crawled across the sky, laden with foreboding.
"The way I see it there's two types of people, those who spend their lives trying to build a future and those who spend their lives trying to rebuild the past."
I still have the 2003 PC box copy of this legendary game.
Despite visual fidelity being a major downgrade on ps2, I am genuinely impressed by the fact how much of the original game is left intact. Especially so, in comparison with the first game's port which just turned the game into a collection of loading screens.
The first game eliminated many redundant spaces from the PC version.
I honestly think the PS2 version looks better in some ways. The darker lighting and more monochromatic colors fit the noir tone and make it look a lot closer to the comics in the cutscenes.
Since Alan Wake 2 I have been diving deep into the Remedy extended universe. So perfect timing for this video. Sam Lake is a true genius. And James will be greatly missed in future Remedy games
Classic. This was my jam back in the day. RIP James. We all owe it to him by replaying Max PAyne 3 .
What a game! RIP James - you will be missed 😥
Just played this for the first time in December on PC! What a treat! Interesting comparison.
@21:19 "Oh my Gosh, that poor woman! Those textures!" 😂
We really need a df retro devoted to the 6th gen consoles and their wildly varying architectures. I find it so fascinating hearing about techniques devs used to overcome certain deficiencies
Maxpayne has such a special place in my heart. I remember trying to for YEARS to play it. I had a pc, but it couldnt run it for shit. i think even on its lowest settings, the game ran at like 5 fps. lol then over time i was able to get better hardware as soon as i had a pac strong enough to play max payne 1, max payne 2 came out and completely obliterated my pc. same deal. Took me years to finally play max payne 2 the right way. and its a masterpiece. The tone and forboding this game gives, the excellent noir presentation. The amazing gameplay, top 5 storytelling a in a video game, and of course most importantly, the voice actor for max, James Mccaffery. It hurt me a great deal to learn he passed before the max payne remasters could release. i really hoped for a max payne 4 with james. This is now impossible. ;(
When i hear James McCaffrey, i always get goosebumps. Iconict voice for sure, but for me, as a kid always be Max Payne.. Rest in peace.
These retro revisits are fucking awesome! Thanks Alex & John for these. Looking forward to more of this type of content :D
Damn, RIP James. So many iconic voices: Max Payne, Tom Zane, Director Trench, Alex Casey...
Speaking of late-PS2 era third-person shooters, The Punisher (2005) would make an interesting episode.
I desperately miss PC ports like this man. Completely transformed visuals and a massive difference that you don't need pixel peeping to see, 90% of PC ports today amount to literally nothing except for (maybe) improved RT, DLSS, and unlocked resolution/framerate.
The thing is that this isn't a port.
Max Payne was MADE for PC.
Please do a DF Retro on DOOM 3 for OG Xbox. It's probably the most technically stunning port ever released and deserves its own video.
they did
I didn't have the language for it as a kid, but Max Payne 2 on PS2 was when I first took notice of just how much unstable frame rates could impact gameplay.
Diving into destructible props never got old.
i'm not sure how exactly max payne 2 did its shadows, but i remember how some other old games did:
they make stand-alone flat models, (or just use flattened character models)
attached to the characters' feet,
meshed by a point of reference to change direction/shape, (to match the light source)
shaded with different degree of 'black', (to create the 'fade out' effect)
then rendered with transparent pass, (to blend with background)
this method could be really fast, (like having a lot of shadows all responding to different light sources, which shadow map can't easily do)
and could look quite good by simply tweaking colors of different part, (coloring 'feet part' darker and 'head part' lighter to do 'fade out')
and could also do penumbra effect easily (sorta like cartoon-shading)
down-side of this method is, the shadows don't really project onto anything, (they are actually models floating very slightly above ground),
so they could look wrong on complex environment, (or just not-flat ground, like on stairs)
or slide under some geometry and become invisible, or overlap each other then create a 'darker shadow'.
also the 'light sources' can't get lower than the characters' head level, or the shadows would just break. (as the 'stretching range' becomes infinite)
I just started Playing the Old Max payne’s for the first time, and now you make This video. What a coincidence
Max Payne 2 is one of my favourite game of all time. I had so much fun watching you guys play it. Definitely do xbox version too.
Ah what a voice, glad we got a great performance one last time in Alan Wake 2
This game looked awesome on the pc back in the day.
Oh, the memories!
Pour one for James McCaffrey. He will live forever as Max Payne.
27:16 that NES Ghostbusters reference haha
Oh boi, this gem is blast from the past indeed. I loved this game. I do hope Remedy does right by it in their upcoming remake.
James McCaffrey will sorely be missed. The remake won't be the same without him.
Now we need a Max Payne 3 time capsule ✨ that game looks incredible still. Also Rip to the greatest voice actor of all time
This saga was my childhood and the game that got me hooked and made me want to learn english, mad respect for the team and brand❤
Also I remember I olayed it on Compaq presario down here in Chile, my first pc, too.
Can't wait for remakes. i hope Remedy makes them with same atmosphere!
I have only played max payne 3, but his voice was so iconic, rest in peace :(
Ayy! The Radeon 9800 Pro is the same card we had growing up! xD I just commented on PC Master Race's Instagram video that it was my first gpu as well. So interesting with the timing xD Wonderful video, gents! :3
Incredible what they achieved with renderware engine on the console. Truly an engine that powered a whole generation
I ordered a copy of the Xbox port complete for $8 bucks while watching. Max payne is one series I never played. Can’t wait to try it out.
I recently downloaded this and am literally playing along with you guys..great physics, gameplay and story
At the time I thought the ragdoll and items physics were revolutionary.
Max Payne 2 is top 3 greatest TPS of all time no contest.
MP2 was an immediate classic.
I have always been a fan of max payne,
The Fall of Max Payne was Definitely the Highest point in the series.
It was seriously GORGEOUS when it came out, and ran flawlessly. I upgraded my pc right before this game launched to have a perfect experience. I think i used a 9800 Pro if im remembering correctly.
I owned the Xbox and PC version back in the day. The Xbox version is basically the PC version at about medium settings.
There are actually 3 levels later on that were split in the console versions.
Recently replayed Max Payne and this with the recent release of Alan Wake 2 and passing of James McCaffrey (RIP). Such an underrated game and such an iconic voice. It's a shame the rights were sold to Take-Two, I'm also replaying Max Payne 3 and Rockstar had no idea what made Max Payne so interesting and unique.
Well Max Payne 1 when it came out was a huge hit, won tons of Game of the Year awards and became a massive phenomenon, basically created the story driven 3rd action games so popular nowadays. There is also a (horrible) Max Payne movie adaptation with Mark Wahlberg that was also quite successful at box office. Of course nowadays it isn't a popular name in gaming discussion, but it came out more than 20 years ago and the last game in the series is from 2012. I would say that Max Payne 2 is an underrated masterpiece, expecially if you loved Alan Wake 2. Totally agree with you on Max Payne 3.
I can’t wait for the remake! Rip James! Your voice will forever be be remembered
Still the best third person shooter ever made.
RIP James.
Just wanted to add that his jacket is real geometry on his back, not a bump map.
King Kong on PS2 have one of the most fine and beautiful textures that i have seen on it, very impressive for the time.
R.I.P JAMES. ironically, yesterday i went to my local retro game store and picked up the original max payne on x box. It's such a good franchise, I wish rockstar would continue it.
Remember auto saving is a huge process killer. It takes a lot of resource's from the pour CPU to save while playing. Obviously they could have give an option to save every here and then . Specially at the start of a level
Ah, Max Payne 2. The central game of my childhood. This game will always be one of my favorites.
They keep the ragnarok sign because it's a callback to Max Payne 1 and foreshadows the story of 2, it is a narrative choice.
I never played max Payne because it released years before I was born. I first heard James's voice in Alan Wake 2 and it's sad to see him pass. R.I.P James McCaffrey
Despite the low clock speed, the Vector Units in the PS2 are pretty potent (certainly not enough to get close to a 3 GHz P4, but you can have physics). I imagine the physics are probably leaning greatly on a VU.
The VUs are also used to handle Transform and Lighting, so having them pull double duty explains why the devs opted not to use reflections.
This was a wonderful time capsule. Please, make a go with the xbox version to compare. This was such a timeless classic and is worth going into more detail. Keep up the good work you 2!!!
Rest in peace, thank you for being max.
Great video and a nice trip back in time, such an incredible era of games. I had a similar setup to your retro PC, Alex, but with a 9600 XT (which I actually bought for Max Payne 2!) and I remember being absolutely blown away with the visuals in this game.
The card came with a code for Half-Life 2, which didn't come out for nearly a year after I got the 9600. By that time I'd switched over to an Athlon 64 3500+, and stayed on an AMD/team Red combo until a series of absolutely craptacular, bugged-out drivers (I think I had a Radeon HD 2600 by that point... got it for Oblivion!) caused so many issues across a bunch of games that I gave up in disgust, and grabbed an 8800 GT. Now THAT was one hell of a card.
Oh no I didn’t know that James Mccaffrey passed away !?! That’s so sad to hear, Max Payne 1 & 2 are some of my All time a favourite childhood games, it’s the series that made me realise how cinematic and gritty Videogames could be ! RIP to a true legend
The texture on the white car to make it look shiny/glossy isn't a cubemap, it's a spheremap - and basically the same as a panoramic environment map but back then they just used whatever random texture that made a surface look shiny. These started being used in the late 90s to make stuff appear shiny when we had graphics cards that could sample two textures per pixel, and you could have one texture automatically generate its texture coordinates for a spherical environment map based on the vertex normals of the mesh's triangles, and blend it with the base texture with a number of different modes. This was used in Half-Life and Quake3 a bunch to make shiny looking surfaces but the way they were used was so that the reflection always followed the camera, instead of being relative to the scene/world, but it was always just to give the illusion of a shiny surface, not actually reflect anything. By the early-to-mid 2000s with games like Half-Life 2 they'd already moved on to proper cubemaps for environment mapping geometry that was supposed to look reflective.
That 1st die and load... But then that 2nd one omg 😂😢😂😢❤ i love Alex just laughing it off
I remember the PS2 version being so rough. I had a low-med spec PC for the time and it ran like a dream though!
John asked if it works well on the Steam Deck. I played through both Max Payne 1 and 2 on mine and it ran perfectly. I even set up some nice controls with a weapon wheel on the left touchpad and gyro aiming when you touch the right touchpad/joystick. Works with the default key bindings.
Played this on ps2, then got it on pc a few months later. This game is one of the reason I pretty much only play on pc nowadays. It just felt so much better to play and looked lightyears ahead of the console version.
Hold on there.Well, you should have got it on Xbox then ( like me ) which, for all intents and purposes, is the same as the PC version.
@@DavidSmith-bv8mvIt still plays a lot better with mouse and keyboard. Same with Max Payne 3. I honestly think the gameplay suffers in later remedy titles because it's developed more with a controller in mind.
@@DavidSmith-bv8mvI bet it is a mid point of the ps2 and PC at best. My PC at the time was multiple times better than the Xbox.
Max Payne 2 was the first PC game I got. I bought a controller but that didn't work so I played the entire game on a TouchPad. My hands still hurt thinking about that 20 years later. I replayed it years later on my desktop and outside of one or two drops, it still ran well.
RIP to James. I loved his work and I'm curious to see how Remedy is going to handle the remake now in terms of voice work.
RIP Director Trench, may the Oldest House in the ever after be everything you hoped it would be.
It still looks great. Sharp textures based on photos, nicely baked shadows, it kinda has a similar vibe to Half-Life 2. In the past I even thought it was made with the Source engine.
Well, the Source engine was based on Havok.
So MP2 is kind of a direct precursor of Half-Life 2 (when it comes to graphics & physics).