It's going to be refreshing to play a shooter without regenerating health for a change.

But the last Max Payne game was released eight years ago, and the expectations for third-person shooters have changed in the interim. As such, Rockstar has a challenge on its hands making its upcoming threequel, Max Payne 3, feel relevant without watering down the franchise's original appeal.

It's responded by introducing a cover system and choosing not to implement regenerating health. Rockstar's VP of product development Jeronimo Barrera explained the decision:

"We wanted to encourage players to be strategic in their approach to combat spaces and not to rely on cover as simply a point to sit and regenerate health. Max Payne is about the beauty of the gunplay itself, in knowing when to launch yourself into an area, finding the right lines of attack, and perfecting bullet time kills. Regenerating health would have an impact on the game's natural rhythm."

Barrera added that Rockstar is hoping to implement bullet-time in a manner that appeals to both fans of the old games and newcomers alike.

[Thanks Gamespot]