Max Payne 3 has become quite the popular game with all the critical acclaim it has received. That means there are going to be a lot of people out, eager to jump into the online multiplayer mode and Shootdodge each other in the nether-regions. We’re here to help you get off the ground with full knowledge of how everything works, hopefully increasing your average lifespan from 20 seconds to, at the very least, 23.
Disclaimer: This guide was written within the first two weeks of Max Payne 3’s release. Certain facets of the multiplayer mode are bound to change over time through patches and added content.
Max Payne 3 doesn’t throw you into the main mix right away. For your first four ranks, you’ll only have access to preset loadouts, and until you get 100 kills, the standard play modes will be locked. This is all a good thing, as it offers fair starting competition and an introduction to some decent weapons/abilities, prepping you for when things start unlocking and decisions have to be made.
Note that once you reach rank 7, rookie playlists are no longer accessible, so make the most out of them while you can.
Xp and Rank
Earning standard xp levels up your character rank, in the process unlocking everything from weapons to avatar accessories. Completing objectives, getting kills, and winning matches all earn you xp. The max rank you can achieve is 50, at which time you’ll be given the chance to become a legend (much like prestiging in Call of Duty). Doing so resets your cash, rank, and weapons. In return you get a new icon and title - but most importantly, you’ll earn a cash multiplier of 20%. Every time you become a legend (you can do so up to 10 times) that multiplier increases by another 20%.
Cash
Even if you’ve been grinding away to achieve an astronomical rank, you’ll still need to buy the stuff you’ve unlocked. That’s where cash comes in. Cash is earned by looting corpses, winning games, accomplishing objectives, and completing grinds. All cash earned during a particular match is tallied and displayed on the post-match screens.
Grinds
You may recognize the concept of Grinds from the single player portion of Max Payne 3. In multiplayer, there are numerous grinds – some general, some specific to things such as weapons or game modes. The types of grinds are as follows: Training, action, item, weapon, burst, mode, kill, and hardcore. As you can see, there’s always something to aim for in every match.
Completion of any grind grants you xp and cash.
Vendettas
When a player kills you at least two times before you’ve killed them, the vendetta option appears on the kill screen. Once you place a vendetta on another player, that person is immediately notified. When the player in question next appears on your mini map, they will as a larger red dot with a black X through it. This icon will also appear above their heads when you get a line of sight on them.
Killing this enemy will grant you extra xp and adrenaline, while surviving the vendetta of another player will do the same (though to a slightly lesser degree). There’s no real downside to spamming vendettas unless the player who’s been killing you is notably more skilled, is likely to kill you again, or is winning the match. In those cases, there’s no reason to simply hand him/her over more xp and adrenaline.
Looting
Anytime a player dies (even if it was your teammate) you can loot their corpse by standing over it and holding the prompted button. Looting can get you extra adrenaline, cash, grenades, and even precious painkillers. Just be aware that you’ll be defenseless during the couple of seconds it takes to steal from the dead, so only loot when you’re fairly certain the coast is clear.
In the Payne Killer mode, looting Max or Passos’ body earns you at least $100. This is a great way to make some fast money!
You’ll likely understand the difference between these two terms if you’ve played the single player portion of Max Payne 3, but if not…
Soft Lock snaps your target reticule onto an enemy (usually their chest) when you press the left trigger and follows your opponent until you let go of left trigger or you lose line of sight. Free Aim offers no aim assist whatsoever. The playlists in each lobby are identical with the exception of the Hardcore Deathmatch, Hardcore Team Deathmatch, and Hardcore Gang Wars, which are only available in Free Aim mode. (Note that Hardcore matches offer more xp.)
If you’re a newcomer to multiplayer, or just prefer a more casual approach, Soft Lock is definitely the way to go. Max Payne 3 doesn’t quite feature a targeting system with the mechanical stability of seasoned shooting games like Call of Duty or Uncharted, so becoming decent in Free Aim mode requires practice. Thankfully, all your xp, weapons, unlocks, etc. are transferable, so you can switch between the modes at your leisure.
Let’s get one thing out of the way to avoid any potential confusion: the Burst Meter is filled by adrenaline, and serves as not only a means of activating your equipped Burst ability, but also a Shootdodge meter (just like in single player mode). Everyone can use their meter for Shootdodging, but only those who have the specific Bullet Time Burst can use standard Bullet Time.
Adrenaline
Adrenaline is obtained several different ways, but you earn the most by outright killing, looting corpses, denying streaks, and winning vendettas. Getting shot at won’t fill the meter like it would in single player mode, so at the very least you will have to hit an enemy with at least one bullet to earn adrenaline. Now, how you end up using your hard-earned adrenaline is dependent on the circumstances you find yourself in, and can be the key to surviving longer than the average n00b.
Shootdodge
Shootdodging in multiplayer mode only affects those who are within the line of sight of the user. This does not mean, however, that everyone within that line of sight reaps the benefits of Bullet Time. Everyone except the user will move slower, aim slower, and shoot slower bullets. Shootdodge costs half of one segment of Burst Meter (or one-sixth of the total meter).
Once you activate Shootdodge, you take slightly less damage and players are not able to use Soft Lock on you.
Bursts
Bursts are special abilities that are unlocked and equipped from the Loadout menu and sap your Burst Meter just like Shootdodging. Bursts offer serious tactical advantages, and should be equipped to fit specific builds. Just like weapons, items, and accessories, Bursts (and their levels) are unlocked as you rank up.
But that’s not all! Your Burst Meter has three levels to it, so it only makes sense that Burst abilities have the same number of strength levels. For instance, the level 1 Paranoia Burst only makes enemies see their teammates as hostiles, but at level 3, it also enables friendly-fire and bounties for the opposing team. Some Burst may become unlocked at certain ranks, but their tiers are further rank-locked (see screen above).
Starting at rank 4, you’ll be able to customize your own Loadouts. This is great, until you realize how difficult it can be to balance your gun-lust with your ability to move and regenerate health quickly. Everything you equip has a weight to it (except burst abilities), so it’s important to experiment with different weapons, equipment, and abilities to find what works best for you.
As you carry more weight, your health will regenerate slower and you won’t recover stamina as quickly. Crossing the third weight threshold completely removes regenerative health and stamina does not recover at all (see the above screen). Because of this, it’s important to create multiple builds for various situations instead of having one build that carries three weapons and full armor. You’ll only be able to customize three loadouts until you reach level 16, and four until 34. That should be more than enough considering there are only five multiplayer maps at this point.
Weapons
Using weapons and completing their specific grinds levels them up. As your weapon rank increases, you gain access to accessories such as suppressors and scopes. Leveling up one-handed weapons to rank 6 allows you to dual-wield that particular weapon.
For starting rifles, we definitely favor the Mini-30 over the AK-47, at least on soft lock mode. Although the Mini is semi-automatic as opposed to the AK being full auto, the Mini is more powerful, more accurate, and better at long range. In fact, the Mini-30 remains a damn fine weapon long after you’ve unlocked others.
Tip: Try leveling up a fully automatic one-handed weapon to rank 6 so you can dual-wield that weapon. For example, two M10s can prove an extremely deadly configuration for close-quarters maps such as the Branco Offices. While you’re leveling your M10, why not throw a PT92 pistol in your other hand? The combo isn’t quite as deadly as dual M10s, but it’s far better than only using one handgun at a time.
Additional weapons are unlocked as you increase your rank. At rank 40, all weapons become unlocked.
Projectiles
There are six projectiles: grenades, flash grenades, smoke grenades, tear gas, molotovs, and tin cans. In most cases, grenades will serve you well. It’s in the objective-based rounds of Gang Wars where projectiles such as smoke or flash grenades come in handy. For instance, you can use them to conceal checkpoints or disorient bag carriers.
Important tip: tap LB/L2 to throw a projectile without switching weapons.
Items
Items provide another way to bolster your Loadout, and grant serious advantages at the cost of increased weight. Along with the head and chest ‘slots’ for various helmets and body armor, you have an additional three gear slots (the second unlocking at rank 16 and the third at rank 25).
Like everything else, additional items are unlocked as you increase your rank. At rank 40, all items become unlocked.
Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch
Nothing new or special here. The player or team with the most kills after the allotted time has run out wins the match. Large (meaning up to 16 players as opposed to 8) and Hardcore (Free Aim only, no regenerative health, friendly fire, no mini-map) versions of these modes are also available.
Payne Killer
In this mode, you begin in a free-for-all state. The first person to get a kill will become Max Payne, and the second player to kill will become Passos. Once these two actions occur, the other six players become a sort of cooperative team with a similar goal: kill Max and Passos. Whoever kills either of the two heroes will immediately assume that role. Both Max and Passos can take a lot of damage, begin with a full Burst Meter (which can only be used for Bullet Time and Shootdodge) and have at least two painkillers.
It’s important to note when multiple players are firing on Max or Passos, it’s not necessarily the player who gets the kill shot who becomes the hero. While that is one of the determining factors, total damage dealt and whether or not you are alive, all are taken into account by the game when deciding who gets the glory. If it turns out that wasn’t you, don’t worry – loot Max or Passos’ corpse for some significant cash (at least $100). This is an excellent way to gather funds, especially if you’re too far behind on the scoreboard to actually win.
Being Max: Max is equipped with two M10’s, so he’s not exactly meant to be picking off enemies from 200 yards away. Your goal should be get close to enemies and stay out of sight until you do.
Being Passos: Passos is essentially identical to Max in every way except for his weapon. Passos carries an LMG .30, making him better at long range combat than Max but slightly weaker at close range.
For both Max and Passos, adrenaline for Bullet Time is very important, as are painkillers and ammunition. If you plan to stay alive longer than 30 seconds, you’re going to want to loot corpses when it is safe to do so. If not, you’ll find yourself with an empty mag and no abilities – essentially, completely defenseless.
Sticking together as Max and Passos is also key. While each man may be a souped-up killing machine, they’re still no match for six enemies at once. However, if you’re jockeying for the number one slot with 30 seconds left on the clock, teamwork may not be in your best interest.
In the end, only one player can win the match. The point system is structured in such a way that you obviously benefit from being Max or Passos for as long as possible. As these heroes, killing is much easier and there are simply more enemies to kill. Basically, becoming Max or Passos is awesome, and you will win if you do that more often than everyone else.
Here's a breakdown of Payne Killer's point system:
Gang Wars
Gang Wars is a five-round, team-based, objective-oriented multiplayer mode. The fun part is that there are 11 possible scenarios the game chooses from for the first four rounds. For instance, Last Man only gives one life to each team member for that round. In Turf Grab, the teams fight to see who can occupy a single point on the map for a set amount of time. The final round will always be Showdown, which factors in each team’s performance over the previous four rounds, and doles out points (which translates into kills) accordingly. It then becomes a game of team deathmatch, with one team starting at an advantage.
Gang Wars is a good way to gain a lot of xp, mostly because the rounds are over quickly and you’re rewarded for your team’s efforts as well as your own.
Wagers (unlocked after earning $2000 total) can be placed at just before the start of most rounds of Gang Wars. The criteria on which these bets are based are generated based on the objective, though the three players on which you can bet seem to be randomly generated. Unless you know your teammates well or can coordinate, wagers are extremely random and we do not recommend you make use of them too often (unless you’re trying for the achievement/trophy).
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