As the first game in the series to be developed outside of Remedy, Max Payne 3 has drawn the ire of its most passionate fans. Rockstar VP of product development Jernoimo Barrera defends the changes made for the studio's take on the franchise, and promises that the game will retain many nods to the classic games.

"We wanted to make a game that would please fans of the originals and be accessible to newcomers," Barrera said. "As the games are so old now, plenty of people who would like Max were simply not gaming back in 2003."

One of the biggest criticisms fans have about the debut trailer is the seeming lack of noir. Sure, you had Max narrate the trailer, but why have the game take place in sunny Sao Paulo? "Noir is about much more than location," Barrera told Gamespot. "You'll see that we aren't moving away from those styles and techniques at all, and we've come up with what we think is an interesting interpretation of classic noir."

Barrera confirms that yes, the graphic novel style panels will be making a return to Max Payne 3--something that we have yet to see from the game. Also missing from the game so far: precipitation. Thankfully, fans are guaranteed that "there are, however, enough rain-sodden, pitch-dark nights in the game to satisfy the most ardent fan of dark and wet locations."

The reason why the Max Payne 3 seems so sunny so far is because the story "now takes place over a few weeks" instead of a single night. Consequently, Rockstar was unable to tell a story "realistically" by having it take place exclusively at night. "And while Sao Paulo may be a more colorful place in the daytime, it's a very different story at night."