Max Payne 2's greatest achievement is it's ability to tell a original story without leaning too hard on Max's tragic backstory. Max evolves over the course of the story and changes the characters around him in interesting ways. It also tells a smart metanarrative that squeezes much needed bits of satire in between the angsty plot. The dream sequences are much better as well and I really appreciated the evolved gameplay that urges the player to replay the same scenarios but cooler.

Max Payne tells a serious story but manages to squeeze surprising amounts of fun and originality out of tired cliched source material. The result is a game that understands it's strengths and lends itself well to one single playthrough over a nice evening. But like most noir stories it's writing can be cheesy,over angst ridden and the gameplay is afraid to let you go too far without putting you in tight hallways that force trial and error.

It may be missing the magic of it's predecessors. But Max's arc concludes in a satisfying way that innovates his character. The mechanical music is it's greatest achievement as Max returns to doing what he does best.
The cutscenes were restrictive however and just like Max himself. The game is too late to get going and takes far too long to make any sense or feel cohesive.