Sam Lake is a Big Fan of the New Sam Lake Mod in Max Payne 3

Sam Lake, the writer and director best-known for his work on Alan Wake and Control, has a unique connection to Max Payne. In the original game, Lake’s face was used to bring the NYPD police detective to life. Lake even went so far as to dress up for the role in the original game’s cutscene.

So it’s perhaps no surprise then that Lake’s attention was grabbed by a new Max Payne 3 mod that faithfully restores his mug on the eponymous detected, comple with Lake’s “legendary facial expression.”

“Wow, this is very impressive work,” Lake wrote to modder Alexey Savvon.

Wow, this is very impressive work on Max Payne 3 mod @alexeysavvon https://t.co/4xKMZL5w8R

— Sam Lake (@SamLakeRMD) July 25, 2023

The mod, which released late last week, fully-integrates Lake’s face into Max Payne 3. Savvon writes that “all of the textures of the head have been adapted and every wound that appears on Max’s face during the story has been saved.” The mod also incorporates all 14 hairstyles from the story, each of which has been adapted to Lake’s head.

The mod description promises, “In total, the mod replaces 98 models and 66 textures. Plus models and textures in the mirror for the scene where Max shaves his head. Yes, you will see how Sam Lake shaves his head!”

No wonder Lake’s impressed.

The original May Payne 3 was released back in 2012 for console and PC. Like the other games in the series, one of its primary draws was its focus on bullet time, which was inspired by the then-relatively recent Matrix films.

Our review said at the time, “Action games continue to inch the dial towards 11, sometimes at the expense of their narrative integrity. Max Payne 3, however, has the conviction to reign in the action, imbue it with purpose – the spectacle still sparkles but it also makes sense.”

A remake of the first two games was announced last year. In the meantime, Lake is keeping busy with Alan Wake 2, which is set to release on October 17.

Kat Bailey is IGN’s News Director as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.