Back to Roscoe Street: Matthew Essom Marks 25 Years of Max Payne

Max Payne turns 25 with a personal tribute from Matthew Essom

Twenty-five years after players first stepped into Max’s world, freelance illustrator and concept artist Matthew Essom has created a vivid tribute to Remedy Entertainment’s noir action classic.

The original Max Payne arrived in July 2001 and quickly established an identity unlike almost anything else at the time. Its graphic-novel storytelling, hard-boiled narration, bleak New York setting, and signature bullet-time gunplay helped make it one of Remedy Entertainment’s defining games.

To mark its 25th anniversary, Matthew Essom created an alternate-cover concept combining the game’s bitter winter atmosphere with the expressive color and cinematic composition that define much of his work.

The connection is not new. During our earlier Art in Games interview with Matthew Essom, he named the upcoming Max Payne remake as a project he would love to contribute to.

You can explore more of his illustration, concept art, commercial projects, and personal work through the official Matthew Essom portfolio.

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A game that never left him

For Matthew Essom, the anniversary artwork is more than a new interpretation of a recognizable game cover. It is a personal tribute to a character, atmosphere, and experience that stayed with him long after he first played it.

“25 years ago we stepped into Max’s world. An NYPD detective who returns home one evening to find his family slain.

I remember when I first played this game, admittedly way too young but its impact on me still remains.

The gritty atmosphere, the cold shattering winter night and the ambient sounds of sirens.

Not to mention the iconic score. One which teleports you straight back into this world.

This painting is not only my take on an alternate cover for the game, it’s a tribute to the character who had an impact on me growing up.”

— Matthew Essom, freelance illustrator and concept artist

His words capture much of what made the original game so memorable. The snow was not simply background decoration. The winter night, distant sirens, graphic-novel panels, music, and Max’s internal narration worked together to create a world that felt immediately recognizable.

Vibrant color inside a dark world

Essom’s interpretation preserves the snowy streets, danger, and noir mood associated with Max Payne, but presents them through intense reds, blues, purples, and textured brushwork.

That contrast also reflects what he told us during our previous interview. Essom said applying his vibrant use of color to the dark, gritty, and cinematic world of Max Payne would present an interesting creative challenge.

His wider professional work includes projects connected with Netflix, EA Sports, UFC, Paramount+, Lionsgate, and TNT Sports.

The Max Payne remake remains in development

Remedy Entertainment and Rockstar Games are developing Max Payne 1 & 2 Remake as a single title for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. No release date has been announced.

While players wait to see how Remedy rebuilds the first two games, Essom’s anniversary artwork offers a reminder of why the original remains so recognizable 25 years later: the snow, the sirens, the noir storytelling, and a detective entering the night with nothing left to lose.

Matthew Essom

Role: Freelance Illustrator and Concept Artist

Portfolio: Official Matthew Essom Portfolio

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