Mona Sax

Mona Sax
Series	Max Payne
First game	Max Payne (2001)
Created by	Sam Lake
Voiced by (English)	Julia Murney (Max Payne) Wendy Hoopes (Max Payne 2)
Voiced by (Japanese)	Mami Horikoshi (Max Payne)
Motion capture	Kathy Tong (Max Payne 2)
Portrayed by	Kathy Tong (Max Payne 2) Mila Kunis (film)

Mona Sax is a fictional character in the first two Max Payne video game series (Max Payne and Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne), as well as in the 2008 film.

In video games

Mona Sax is a mysterious femme fatale, working as a contract killer and living in a derelict theme park. She is introduced in the first Max Payne game as the "evil twin" younger sister of Lisa, the abused wife of the Italian mob boss Angelo Punchinello. By the end of the first game, Mona disappears after having been shot in the head inside an elevator by corporate mercenaries after she refused an order to assassinate Max.

Screenshot from the end cutscene of Max Payne 2 on the hardest difficulty level, showing the surviving Mona

In The Fall of Max Payne, a larger focus is given on Max and Mona's relationship, as she becomes one of the game's two protagonists.^[1] Mona is suspected of being behind the murder of Senator Gate, the case assigned to Max Payne's partner Valerie Winterson. Despite their past, Max does not inform the authorities that he knows Mona nor does he inform them of her visit to his apartment. They work together until she is shot in the back by Vladimir Lem near the end of the game. Mona either dies or survives, depending on the game's chosen level of difficulty (she lives only on the hardest level, "Dead on Arrival").^[2]

Gameplay

Mona became playable in three chapters of the sequel ("Routing Her Synapses", "A Losing Game" and "Love Hurts"). According to the first two games' writer Sam Lake, he "did want to switch to Mona ... but it was problematic. In the end, Max frames those sequences with his narration, saying that he doesn’t know exactly what happened, or what Mona did, but it must have been something like this. In other words, when you are playing Mona, you are actually experiencing Max’s guess of the events.”^[3] Mona's moves are more acrobatic than Max's, and her sections involve many sniping sequences (using an in-game exclusive Dragunov semi-automatic rifle as she provides covering fire for Max).

In film

Mona was portrayed by Mila Kunis in the movie version of Max Payne,^[4] whose role was described as "an assassin who teams up with the title character to avenge her sister's death."^[5] In the film, she is a Russian mobster and Max is the main suspect behind the death of her sister Natasha. Eventually, however, Max and Mona join forces to uncover the vast conspiracy behind the Valkyr drug.^[6]

Reception

The character of Mona Sax was critically well-received, acclaimed being one of "relatively complex, non-stereotypical female game characters".^[7] In 2004, TeamXbox ranked her as the #10 "Xbox babe".^[8] In 2006, the Polish edition of GameStar had her competing in the poll for the title of "Miss of the Video Game World", in which she placed at #17.^[9] In 2007, she was included by Tom's Games among the 50 greatest female characters in video game history ("A stone-cold killer who's incredibly tempting but not entirely trustworthy, Mona Sax is the perfect female accomplice to Max Payne.").^[10] In 2009, MSN included her on the list of gaming's 12 hottest babes ("smart, sexy and dangerous ... Mona was remarkably presented in the game, being given the cold feel of a hired gun, with no regret or remorse").^[11] She was also included on the list of 9 sexiest babes of action games by The Times of India, with a comment that she "fits in perfectly in the dark world of Max Payne".^[12]

The sex scene between Max and Mona ("actually one of the most fitting ever seen in a video game") was ranked as the #5 top sexy moment in gaming by Games.net in 2007,^[13] while their affair was ranked at #6 on the list of the most disastrous game romances by GamesRadar in 2011.^[14] In 2006, GamesRadar also ranked a cheat to undress Mona nude for her gameplay sections in Max Payne 2 as the #4 rudest cheat in video gaming.^[15]

References

1. ^ Christian Werner Thomsen, Angela Krewani, Hollywood: Recent Developments, Edition Axel Menges, 2005 (p. 142)
2. ^ 10 Things You Didn't Know About…Max Payne, 360, 28 Apr 2011
3. ^ "The Making of Max Payne - Edge Magazine". Next-gen.biz. 2008-11-02. http://www.next-gen.biz/features/making-max-payne. Retrieved 2011-10-07. 
4. ^ Handsome, Man (2010-09-14). "The Women of Video Game Movies: Mila Kunis in Max Payne". UGO.com. http://www.ugo.com/movies/mila-kunis-in-max-payne. Retrieved 2011-10-07. 
5. ^ Kunis Cast in Max Payne | That '70s Show star to play vengeful assassin, IGN, March 10, 2008
6. ^ "Mona Sax of Max Payne Character Study at The Rush". UGO.com. 2010-01-12. http://www.ugo.com/therush/character/mona-sax/183/. Retrieved 2011-10-07. 
7. ^ Jon Cogburn, Mark Silcox, Philosophy Through Video Games, Taylor & Francis, 2009 (p. 66)
8. ^ Top Ten Xbox Babes, TeamXbox, June 30th, 2004
9. ^ GameStar - Wybory Miss: Miss Świata Gier 2006 (Polish)
10. ^ The 50 Greatest Female Characters in Video Game History, Tom's Games, 2007-02-20 (archive version)
11. ^ Mona Sax - Gaming's Hottest Babes, MSN, September 7, 2009
12. ^ "Mona Sax, Max Payne- The Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/itslideshow/4344372.cms. Retrieved 2011-10-07. 
13. ^ GamePro Media:. "Pants Optional: Top Sexy Gaming Moments| Net Tens". Games.net. http://www.games.net/article/netten/2/103146/pants-optional-top-sexy-gaming-moments/. Retrieved 2011-10-07. 
14. ^ The Top 7… disastrous game romances, GamesRadar UK, 2011-02-18
15. ^ The top 7... rudest cheats, GamesRadar US, 2006-03-14

External links

• Mona Sax at Giant Bomb
• Mona Sax at the Internet Movie Database