Tag Archives: Max Payne

The Many Lives of Max Payne

I can’t help but wonder if I’m playing the same games as everyone else. I just put down the controller and looked up Max Payne 3′s Metacritic in a fit of irritation: “A technological tour de force,” sighs G4TV; GamesRadar … Continue reading →

Posted in Criticism | Tagged detective fiction , , , , , noir , , Remedy , , , , , | 2 Comments

Knowing is the Half the Battle: Max Payne 3 and the Fourth Wall

by Adam Boffa Max Payne 3 is a brutal game. But I do not think it is a stupid one. Since its release, many players have (rightfully) commented on its excessive use of violence and the miserable, almost pitiable nature … Continue reading →

Posted in Critical Conversation | Tagged , Fourth Wall , Ludonarrative Dissonance , , Metafiction , Remedy , , Tom Bissell | Leave a comment

EQUIP WOLF SHIRT >USE: WHISKEY// On the Limits of Comfort and Warmth

Imagine day in and day out enjoying something that in a very real way, engages you. You are not destroyed thereafter if you keep your wits about you. You’ll find yourself in common company, with those while not of a great kinship but still, of like mind. Some people find Jesus together, or Allah, or in their ethos, or of their ethics and love of philosophy. A recent BBC documentary called “Secrets of the Superbrands” made the rounds of the tech outlets, claiming that Apple products triggered what seemed to be religious reactions in the brain. These are the new confederacies. As the gulf between the rich and poor widens and we normalize and bat no eyelashes at grave injustices suffered at the hand of our fellow man day in and day out it seems so the capacity for empathy diminishes, even on a subconscious level. Continue reading →

Posted in Columns , EQUIP WOLF SHIRT>USE:WHISKEY , Features | Tagged Adult Pleasures , , God's Children , Guilt as Impetus to Action , , , Penny Arcade , smartphones as toilets , the Limits of Warmth and Comfort , The New Normal , the world is a river , triggers | Leave a comment