Remedy has become known as one of the most innovative and creative developers in the industry, often taking bold risks with their games which results in a truly unique experience for players to enjoy. However, to keep their games engaging, they also ensure to insert just enough challenge to complement their compelling stories and characters, and while most of them are pretty manageable, others can be especially unforgiving.

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Because a lot of Remedy's titles include special gimmicks and mechanics that help freshen up the gameplay, it means that players will usually need to master them to get through the game in one piece. Some of these abilities can be a little hard to get used to, and it can coincidentally end up making the experience pretty tough, but never to the extent of being impossible. Here's the full breakdown of the hardest games Remedy Entertainment has ever developed, and what exactly makes them so challenging.

6 Max Payne 2: The Fall Of Max Payne

Game FAQ Difficulty Rating: 3.01

While Max Payne 2 doesn't quite feature the brutal difficulty of its predecessor, it's still far from a walk in the park, and if players don't make use of all of Max's abilities, they can easily find themselves being gunned down in a matter of seconds. The biggest and most important mechanic in the game is Bullet Time, but it's been drastically improved in this game to where it will now boost Max's speed, alongside reloading weapons instantly when activated.

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It's an incredibly powerful mechanic, but the player will still need to be smart about where and when they use it since it can sometimes become more of a liability because of how fast and hard-to-control Max can become. There are also a few weapons in the game that become more or less essential for taking down large hordes of enemies, especially in the last few hours, with the sawed-off shotgun being the biggest example of this. The difficulty of Max Payne 2 never feels too daunting or unfair, but it still requires a good amount of skill with the Bullet Time mechanic to avoid an untimely death.

5 Control

Game FAQ Difficulty Rating: 3.03

Control is most well-known for its incredibly captivating and otherworldly story, but when it comes to the gameplay, things can become very difficult extremely quickly, especially when the game starts throwing endless hordes of enemies at the player in one go. Because Jesse is so vulnerable to damage, it means that acquiring health mods is pretty much essential, and while she does have a wide array of psychokinetic powers, these vary quite a lot in their overall effectiveness and reliability.

The combat plays a lot more like a rhythm game as opposed to the peek-a-boo third-person shooters that many people are used to, and thinking about it in this way can make the whole experience a little more straightforward. The hip-fire is also incredibly strong in Control, so players should get into the habit of moving and shooting at the same time to try and avoid enemy fire as best they can, rather than relying on picking them off from afar.

4 Alan Wake

Game FAQ Difficulty Rating: 3.05

While the unique combat of Alan Wake isn't too difficult to get used to, what ramps up the challenge is how unpredictable a lot of the enemy types can be. For example, after dealing with a few enemies near the start of the game, Alan will eventually encounter a much faster variant of the Taken whose lightning-fast attacks and slippery movements make them incredibly hard to deal with.

A little further on, the Darkness will even begin controlling inanimate objects which will randomly fly towards Alan without any warning, and if they manage to make contact, it will either leave him severely wounded or just kill him outright. So long as players make good use of powerful weapons like the flare gun to deal with big crowds, the game's challenge is made a bit more manageable, but there are still a few random difficulty spikes to watch out for during a playthrough.

3 Death Rally

Game FAQ Difficulty Rating: 3.17

Before Remedy found its footing in the third-person action-adventure genre, their very first title was a demolition derby game by the name of Death Rally, which is unlike anything they've put out since. When booting up the game for the first time, players will start with the Vagabond, which is by far the weakest car in the game, but as they take out other racers and win races, they will gradually earn more cash to acquire new weapons, equipment, and of course, brand-new vehicles.

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Because the player is essentially the underdog for the majority of Death Rally, it means that it becomes more or less inevitable that at least a few Game Over screens will appear during a playthrough, especially considering how strong the opponents can be. Because of how powerful some of the enemy cars can be, there is actually an option for the player to bribe a mechanic to tamper with the highest-rated vehicle before a race, but this ultimately costs a lot of money and isn't always worth it. Being the best of the best in Death Rally isn't easy by any means, but it's all so rewarding in the end.

2 Alan Wake 2

Game FAQ Difficulty Rating: 3.19

Remedy decided to double-down on the whole survival horror aspect of Alan Wake in the second game, leaving the player with barely any ammo or resources, and making enemies far more durable than they were before. What it results in is a very challenging experience overall that will severely punish the player if they don't take the time to explore their environment and utilize every resource they can get their hands on.

While dodging enemies was quite easy in the first game, because of how much slower Alan and Saga are this time around, it makes it very difficult to not only avoid enemy attacks but also to run away from confrontations in general. The intense combat encounters complement the dark yet captivating story very well, and while survival horror fans will no doubt welcome the challenge, it might be a little more difficult for newcomers.

1 Max Payne

Game FAQ Difficulty Rating: 3.29

Max Payne was viewed as a huge milestone in gaming when it was first released in 2001, not only because of its amazing storytelling but also due to its Bullet Time system. On paper, the whole concept of slowing down time to line up the perfect shot sounds like it should make the combat easier, but because of how fast and relentless the enemies are, it means that it never feels too overpowered and can even be a determent at times.

The game also features a built-in adaptive difficulty system which will change depending on how well the player is performing, making enemies much more durable and stronger if Max is gunning his way through them a little too easily. Leaping around corners as Max is a very useful technique that can be great for surprising enemies, but this is very hard to execute properly and can take a lot of practice to get right. Overall, while Max Payne is a game that's become known for its intense difficulty, the key to making it through without dying over and over again is perfecting the Bullet Time system and learning all the small intricacies that come with it.

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