Max, dearest of all my friends. So good to have you back. You look a little tired, friend. Is it all that leaping and shooting, or is it something more? Sit down, sip a little vodka and look at what they're saying about you. Joystiq feels you make "people die real good." What about everyone else? Take a look...

• G4 (100/100): "The performances are top notch, the action plays out with unrivaled fluidity, and the multiplayer is deep and rewarding. Silly distractions aside, Max Payne 3 is an action lover's wet dream that also happens to employ some of the slickest direction and transitional trickery this side of a David Fincher box set. Lock and load. It's bullet time...time."
• Game Informer (93/100): "The same great gunplay from the campaign is replicated in the multiplayer modes, and immense depth is tied to the ranking system (with a level cap of 50) and slew of unlockable guns, skins, and items. Rockstar also provides a crew system that tracks world ranks, kill-to-death ratios, and first place finishes for ­each ­crew."
• Giant Bomb (4/5): "Rockstar has taken a lot of risks in the ways it has reshaped the series with Max Payne 3, and there's something to be said for opting out of the easy route. The aesthetic overhaul is certainly the most noticeable, though there's no understating the impact that certain gameplay modernizations have had on the experience. While fans might have a hard time processing the dramatic change in tone, it's approached with a seriousness and conviction that I respect, and frankly, have come to expect from Rockstar."
• Edge (70/100): "Max Payne 3 might solve the problem of how you manage to reload when carrying more than one gun, but detailing alone can't change the fact that this is a surprisingly conservative game from Rockstar. Its absorption of cover mechanics makes Payne feel more familiar than he should, but even then his signature tricks are over a decade old. This is a game about a world-weary killer doing the only thing he knows how to, and for all its spectacular action beats there's something apt about Max's fatigue."