Set shortly after the original, we catch up with our hero as he lies near death in a shabby hospital bed. Thanks to the familiar graphic novel style cut scenes, the fact that some heavy crap is going down in Max's life is reinforced. Real heavy crap. Max Payne, a murderer? Cop killer? He's got to get out - severely wounded or not. This is where you take over.

Through a series of levels that include flashbacks, dream sequences and stuff out of the sickest imagination, you must guide Max and help him figure out what is going on.

Played from the third person perspective, the over-the-shoulder camera aspect of Max Payne 2 lets you see what is going on (it's controlled by the right analogue stick) whilst you can still see what Max himself is up to (controlled by the left analogue stick). This is crucial, as he is one of the most athletic and well animated game characters of all time. As you jump, dive, roll and blast at the bad guys, he'll grimace, twist and turn with a grace and style not seen elsewhere. A first person camera just wouldn't create the right atmosphere, not to mention how confusing it would be when you were diving this way and that, in slow motion (bullet time) or not.

One of the most dramatic features that the original game introduced - bullet time - is back, with a vengeance. With a simple press of the B button, you can slow down the action (just like in the Matrix movies), allowing you more time and more style with which to slay your enemies. This time around, bullet time has had something of an upgrade; as you shoot the enemies, time slows down even further - ultimately allowing you to dodge bullets as you see them streaking oh so slowly towards you. The net effect of this upgrade to what was already a stellar system is dazzling - this is not your everyday shooter.

In addition to being able to call on bullet time whenever you want to (as long as your hourglass, filled by killing bad guys or just the passage of time, contains sand), you can also do a slow motion dive (forwards, backwards - even sideways) to take out surprise enemies at the drop of a hat. Performed simply by pulling the left trigger and pressing the left thumbstick in the direction you want to dive, this technique doesn't just look awesome - it's also awesomely useful. As you dive, you can swivel around in mid air and launch a salvo at your foes in any direction; a concept which is difficult to describe but oh so glorious to have at your disposal.

The controls in Max Payne 2 could easily have let the game down when it made the transition to Xbox. The precise control afforded by the PC's keyboard and mouse combo was perfect for controlling the extremely agile Max. Fortunately, however, any concern about translating the moves and precision familiar to a fan of the series is immediately quashed upon picking up the Xbox controller. The array of moves is perfectly and predictably mapped onto it's smooth contours, with every button in a sensible and useful position. You'll be up and running in no time, with little to no need to refer to the instructions - even if you have never played a "Max" game before.

One of the highlights of the PC version of the game was the extremely detailed graphical environments that Max finds himself in. Considering the limitations of the Xbox (particularly RAM) when compared to a high end PC, these have been reproduced very well on the system. Many of the textures lack detail and the player models are definitely not sporting anywhere near as many polygons as on the PC version, but they are still more than up to the task. The environments are still gritty, littered with interactive objects (yes, the cool physics engine debuted in the PC version is still here) and impressive. The only area where you notice the occasional garish texture or oddly built shoulder of one of the characters is in an extreme close up. These aren't common, so it's not a big issue.

The sound in the game is more that up to the task. It slows down with bullet time, bullets can be heard whizzing all around you (thanks to ingame Dolby Digital) and the music that is there (cutscenes only) is intense and moody. The level of submersion that the audio aspect of the game cannot be understated - top notch effort here.