Game Informer’s July issue features an interview with Max Payne 3’s Art Director Rob Nelson regarding the evolution of Max and where Rockstar intends to take the series, and as the cover art shows, the guy has gone through quite a few changes since we last saw him back in 2003.

Our bullet time hero is a more bearded, more desperate, more vengeful sort of guy this time around. In an attempt to mirror the drastic changes their main character has undergone, Rockstar hopes to bring some refreshing changes to the series as well. “It’s a tricky thing, because you’re taking this beloved franchise that you didn’t do originally. You have to maintain the elements of it that are special and that people remember, but you also have to evolve,” Nelson comments.

Rockstar has also confirmed the existence of online multiplayer in Max Payne 3, a first for the series. Whether or not we’ll be slow-mo blasting our friends or fighting alongside them is yet to be determined. The game is slated for a Winter 2009 release.