Alan Wake 2 studio Remedy Entertainment is working on PS5 remakes of the first two Max Payne games, but we’re still yet to see how they will take shape. The good news is that Rockstar Games is collaborating with Remedy once more on this project, providing the necessary resources to deliver a true blockbuster overhaul of these beloved classics. We just hope the spirit of the older games is retained, especially with elements like this great easter egg from Rockstar Games itself.
Before Rockstar Games would self-develop and publish the third Max Payne title, the much-celebrated GTA 6 studio assisted on Max Payne and Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne. Amid some of the best games ever made for the PlayStation 2, the relationship between Remedy and Rockstar is a match made in heaven. This reflects in this message from Rockstar co-founder Jamie King and the audio team, who helped craft the game’s soundscape.
Found in the mission ‘Backstabbing Bastard’ in Part 3: A Bit Closer To Heaven, players can find a secret room that contains a variant of the Rockstar Games logo, as well as a radio. If you are curious, interacting with the radio produces this message: “Hello to everyone at Remedy, this is Jamie […] and this is hopefully the last session we’ve done for you, or we’re going to do for you, it has been a pleasure working on this game.”
The message continues, adding that “we hope you like the audio, good luck bringing it home, and we’re with you on it all the way […] it was a pleasure meeting you guys at E3 […] we can’t wait to see it come out.” How wholesome. Well, once the message ends, there is another secret to find. Static sounds will continue to emit from the radio, but shooting it will reveal an impression of James Bond actor Sean Connery (presumably by King) before cutting off entirely.
Even after 20 years, Max Payne still contains a unique atmosphere and approaches to the third-person shooter genre that many modern day titles can’t capture. That’s largely down to Remedy’s abundant passion for ‘heroic bloodshed’ cinema movement, which directors like John Woo and Corey Yuen pioneered in the 1980s. Because Remedy’s resources were considerably limited in comparison last year’s superb Alan Wake 2, the style of Max Payne’s presentation was born out of creative thinking, and we hope the upcoming PS5 remakes can keep hold of that vision – and this lovely easter egg.
You won’t find the Max Payne remakes as two separate new PS5 games, though. Remedy and Rockstar will be packaging them together as one experience, similar to the recent Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol 1 from Konami. Although, we do wish Rockstar Games would provide an update on the release of Max Payne 3 vinyl soundtrack.