Take-Two Entertainment has had a crazy year after the release of Red Dead Redemption 2 and they’re now on their way of another big release, that of The Outer Worlds. Since the publisher now has no confirmed projects, fans speculate several different projects to be in development. Could Max Payne 4 be one of them though? If so, who will develop such a prestigious IP?
As far as we know, Rockstar doesn’t count much on single release games such as Max Payne. The company has stated many times that they’re focusing more on games-as-service titles such as Grand Theft Auto, which can bring a steady flow of revenue to the developers and publishers alike.
That doesn’t mean that there will be no games like L.A Noire or Bully won’t see the light of day. However, with Grand Theft Auto being heavily rumored to be in development, the chances are slim that Rockstar Games would take Max Payne 4 under consideration right now.
After the release of Max Payne 2 and its poor sales, it almost became certain that this might be the end of the franchise. When the sequel hit in 2012, it managed to bring the Max Payne series to their former glory, this time under development by Rockstar Games. With them now taking their focus to, most possibly GTA 6, we doubt that they could be the developers of the fourth installment to the series.
Who Can Develop Max Payne 4?
If and when that happens though, there’s still one question to be answered. Which of Rockstar’s studios will be able to handle the project? We already know that Remedy Entertainment, the original developers of the Max Payne series no longer has the rights to the franchise. As a result, we won’t be considering them for this project.
Take Two’s other studios, meaning 2K, Firaxis, Hangar 13, Cat Daddy Games and Visual Concepts, are still in action. The question lies as to if their expertise stretches to the extent of such a title. Back in 2012, when the last Max Payne title released, standards for gaming were critically lower than today and fans settled for less. Even though the story of the last title didn’t leave players pleased, the studio to develop it has to come up with a crazy plot and a huge leap in gameplay mechanics in order to make it “relevant”.
2K Marin, the developers of Bioshock 2 and XCOM are rumored to be developing a new addition to the Bioshock franchise, even though the series has been dormant for a long time.
Hangar 13 is an excellent candidate for Max Payne 4 since they have worked on Mafia 3, which resonates with the feeling of the aforementioned franchise. Having worked on the Borderlands: Ultra HD Collection, another shooter worth mentioning, they sure have the expertise of bringing such a genre to life. However, new trademarks show that they must be working on something related to Mafia, so there goes that.
Moving on to Visual Concepts, there’s close to none possibility that they could be the creators since they’re mostly (if not solely) focused on sports games like NFL, NBA 2K and WWE 2K. As for Cat Daddy Games, the studio is dedicated to mobile games. It’s practically out of the question to consider them for the Payne series.
Verdict
Even though there are a couple of studios that could be considered about the Max Payne 4 development, the real question is whether or not the industry needs such a title. Even if Rockstar isn’t working on GTA 6, which is highly possible after the latest Bully 2 news, we highly doubt that the developers would be working on a franchise that has long lost its touch. Yes, we did love Max Payne games back in the day. However, with hundreds of enticing shooters with incredible stories out there, we can sit this one out.
If and when Max Payne 4 is to happen it remains to be seen. Don’t get your hopes high though, as the existence of such a project is nothing more than rumors and hopes. For the time being. let’s settle for Bioshock 3 and Grand Theft Auto 6. They are much more likely as ideas to release in the next year.
