10 Hardest Alternate Endings In Video Games
5. Max Payne 2: The Fall Of Max Payne - Mona... Lives?
Detective Max Payne can't catch a break, can he?
His wife and child murdered in the first game, then femme fatale love interest Mona Sax gets bumped off in the sequel.
Yet whilst it may seem like the gods aren't smiling down on Payne, you can defy them if you're prepared for it.
And boy, you'd better be prepared for it.
It doesn't require any convoluted method to get the ending that sees Mona live and share a kiss a with Max. Simply complete the game on Dead on Arrival difficulty to earn your reward.
Well, I say "simply", but there's nothing simple about it. You've got to be quick on both the draw and the dodge, manage Max's pain level and try not to allow yourself to be riddled with bullets.
Of course, it would be too twee and heartfelt to make this the normal ending, wouldn't it? It just had to be hidden behind the hardest difficulty.
It's one thing to live a tortured life, Payne. It's another to force that torture onto the player for you to get your happy ending.