Rockstar on Bringing Max Payne Into the Era of Cover Shooters and Regenerating Health

For any developer looking to revive a classic franchise, there's always a challenge in looking at which parts of the series have withstood the test of time and which ones need a modern update. Rockstar has certainly found itself in just such a position when it comes to Max Payne 3. We recently spoke with Jeronimo Barrera, Rockstar's VP of product development, to see how the company has addressed those issues.
GameSpot: In your eyes, what's the one part of the third-person shooter genre that has changed most since Max Payne's last outing? How have you addressed that in Max Payne 3?
Jeronimo Barrera: Cover is something that everybody worked to adopt, and it quickly became a staple of third-person shooters. For us, the direction early on was to make sure we had a great, intuitive cover system but not make it the central or core mechanic. It's only natural when trying to build a game around gunplay that the whole environment comes into play, and it would look silly if Max couldn't assume a position behind obvious cover points. One of the goals was to make sure that AI reacted appropriately to the player if they're behind cover. If you're caught by a thug flushing you out, it can be deadly. That led to further development of the shootdodge and the ability to vault over cover in the fast and fluid manner that characterizes the Max Payne games. In the end it feels and looks great and is a totally natural progression for the series.

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Steam forum hackers gain access to information

Hacking activities have been the story of the year within the game industry, and the latest victim is Portal creator Valve Corporation. On Sunday, the Washington-based game company's message forums for its digital distribution platform Steam were infiltrated by a hacker collective. It now appears as if the culprits accomplished more than just vandalizing the website.

Valve appears to have sprouted a leak.

In a message sent to Steam users and forum-goers today, Valve managing director Gabe Newell said that the hacker group gained access to the Steam database in addition to its forums. In so doing, the individuals involved had access to various pieces of information, including "user names, hashed and salted passwords, game purchases, email addresses, billing addresses, and encrypted credit card information."
Newell said that the company currently has no indication that the intruders took any of the encrypted credit card numbers or personal identifying information. He also said there is no evidence that encrypted credit card numbers or passwords had been cracked. However, Valve is still investigating the attack.
As a result of the security breach, Newell said that all forum users will be required to change their passwords the next time they log in to the message boards. However, as it does not appear as if any Steam accounts were compromised, Newell said that it will only be advisable, and not mandatory, to change these passwords.
Currently, the Steam forums are offline. Valve plans to reopen them "as soon as we can."

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Saints Row: The Third signs up for Season Pass

Saints Row: The Third is getting on board the Season Pass trend. Joining the likes of Mortal Kombat, Gears of War 3, Forza 4, and Uncharted 3, Saints Row: The Third will give players a price break on downloadable content if they commit to all of it with an upfront purchase.

Here's a peek at the new content in the Saints Row 3 Nyte Blayde pack.

The Saints Row: The Third Season Pass will include three mission packs and a DLC outfit and vehicle pack centered around the gameworld's famous vampire-hunting superhero, Nyte Blayde. The Nyte Blayde pack contains superheroic outfits for Altar Boy and Bloody Canoness, Nyte Blayde's car, and Bloody Canoness' motorcycle.
The trio of mission packs will begin arriving in January with the release of Genkibowl VII, which offers a Wide World of Genki sporting take on the town of Steelport. Later in the winter, THQ plans to release the sci-fi-themed Gangstas in Space pack, with the Trouble With Clones add-on closing out the Season Pass offerings sometime in the spring. The Season Pass for Saints Row: The Third will cost gamers $20, which THQ expects to represent a 15 percent savings over purchasing all four add-ons separately.
Saints Row: The Third heads to stores for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC on November 15. The game picks up with the player running the Third Street Saints. Once a small-town gang, the Saints have grown to control the organized crime within Stilwater and even have their own brand, with licensed sneakers, energy drinks, and bobbleheads.
However, the Saints' success has drawn the attention of the globally powerful Syndicate, a criminal fraternity that insists on a cut of the action. Players will adopt the role of a member of the Saints who must relocate to the Syndicate's hometown of Steelport after a botched bank robbery forces them to flee Stilwater.
For more on the game, check out GameSpot's previous coverage of Saints Row: The Third.

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