James McCaffrey, the voice of Max Payne and Alan Wake 2’s Alex Casey, has died

By Tomas Franzese Published December 18, 2023

James McCaffrey, an actor best known for his work with Remedy Entertainment on video game series like Max Payne and Alan Wake, has died.

TMZ revealed the 65-year-old actor died on Sunday from multiple myeloma, a type of cancer. “We are deeply saddened to hear about the passing of our beloved friend and collaborator James McCaffrey, the iconic voice of Max Payne and Alex Casey,” Remedy Entertainment posted on its official X account. “His remarkable talent gave life to our characters and left an enduring impact on our community. Our hearts go out to his family.”

Sam Lake and James McCaffrey stand together. — Sam Lake

As Remedy Entertainment’s tweet alluded to, McCaffrey is known for being the voice of Max Payne throughout that entire series, which is currently being remade by Remedy. He then played a prominent role in Alan Wake 2 as FBI Agent Alex Casey. He also had a career in film and television, appearing in shows like Viper, New York Undercover, and Rescue Me. Sam Lake, the writer and director behind the Max Payne and Alan Wake series, shared his feelings on McCaffrey’s passing on X.

“I’m heartbroken to hear the sad news of James McCaffrey’s passing,” Lake wrote. “We worked together for more than 25 years. He was a lovely man and a dear friend. He was a key part of the Remedy family. He was a brilliant actor. No one could do what he did better than him. James was Max Payne, Thomas Zane, Zachariah Trench, and finally, Alex Casey. I had the honor of sharing Max Payne’s role and Casey’s role with him. He was a joy to work with. I will cherish his memory and I miss him. My deepest condolences to his family. Rest in peace, Jim.”

Topics

Tech News

Gaming Staff Writer

Tomas Franzese is a Staff Writer at Digital Trends, where he reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…

Gaming

Where to find all inventory upgrades in Alan Wake 2

Saga stands in front of an evidence board in Alan Wake 2.

While the first Alan Wake game certainly had plenty of scares and horror in it, the mechanics were not as strictly of the survival horror variety. Alan Wake 2 has gone fully in this direction, however, with a much darker tone, disturbing imagery, and restrictive combat mechanics that sustain the tension when The Taken attack.

Aside from limited ammo, low health, and tough enemies to bring down, a key aspect of survival horror games is an inventory system. The first game let you hold essentially as much ammo, batteries, and weapons as you wanted in each chapter, but the sequel introduces a grid system that will look familiar to Resident Evil fans. Just like Resident Evil, your inventory starts off quite small, but you can see there is plenty of space for it to grow. There are specific items hidden in and around Bright Falls that can let you expand your carrying capacity, but many are well hidden in dark corners. Here are the locations of every inventory upgrade in Alan Wake 2.
All inventory upgrades

Gaming

All stash locations in Alan Wake 2 and how to open them

Alan drenched in green light in Alan Wake 2.

FBI agent Saga Anderson and her partner, Alex Casey, are called into Bright Falls to investigate a murder committed by a strange group calling themselves the Cult of the Trees. These dangerous cultists are your main enemy in Alan Wake 2, and they put up quite a fight despite mostly using basic tools as weapons. They seem mindless and primitive, but the fact that they have a series of Cultist Stashes hidden all around the world suggests otherwise. These treasure troves are very well hidden, and they're protected with a small puzzle to try and prevent those who may stumble upon one from grabbing all the goodies inside. You'll find yourself short on supplies essentially all the time in Alan Wake 2, so scooping up some extra ammo and batteries is always welcome. Here is where you can find all the Cultist Stashes in Alan Wake 2 and how to open them.
All Cultist Stash locations
There are a total of 21 Cultist Stashes to find and unlock in Alan Wake 2. Each zone has its own set to find, and they all have different puzzles you need to solve to open them. None are missable, but some can't be obtained until you make story progress or get specific tools.
Bright Falls Cult Stashes

The first Cult Stash you can find comes as soon as you reach the town of Bright Falls for the first time. Instead of going straight to your destination down the block, turn around and head toward the dead end. Behind the truck will be a big locked box. To open this one, all you need to do is play a little game of Simon Says. The keypad will flash three buttons in a sequence that you simply need to repeat to open the box and grab the loot.

Gaming

Alan Wake 2’s Sam Lake explains Twin Peaks: The Return’s ‘bold’ influence

Alan Wake stands in front of a movie theater in Alan Wake 2.

Like Twin Peaks’ Dale Cooper trapped in the Black Lodge, Alan Wake has been in purgatory for a very long time.

Wake found himself stuck in the mysterious Dark Place at the end of his first game, and that would become a poetic tragedy. Funding troubles paired with a Microsoft partnership that would complicate the series’ publishing rights would force developer Remedy to move on to new titles like 2019’s Control. Still, writer Sam Lake would sit on an idea for a sequel for over a decade, just waiting for the moment when it could be freed from its own Dark Place.