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This is most definitely an interesting piece. Rockstar, the creators of Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption, set out with L.A. Noire to create the interactive equivalent of film noir, the genre to which black-and-white detective films such as The Big Sleep, Out of the Past (which I was delighted to see is actually playing in theaters across the game world of L.A. Noire), and The Maltese Falcon belong (if you've not seen any of those, I highly recommend you do). In typical Rockstar fashion, they did so by recreating the entire city of Los Angeles as it may have appeared in 1940, because they like doing a lot of work. Once again, that painstakingly detailed torture they have put themselves through has worked; though far from perfect, L.A. Noire is a fantastic example of interactive storytelling and investigative gameplay.
Shootouts are the most disappointing part of the gameplay, but they are definitely not terrible, and they are a small enough part of the experience that it will not have much of a negative impact on your experience. The cover system is similar to that found in Red Dead Redemption, but it is actually more clunky and difficult to accurately control. I would often try to round cover or switch to the other side of a doorway, only to find myself standing in the path of a bunch of bullets instead of actually moving anywhere. What's more, the right trigger both fires your weapon and makes you run. You can imagine the confusion that tends to cause, aside from the fact that it severely limits the application of both actions. In addition, the game's painstaking attention to detail falls a short here; namely, there is no way to take someone alive in a shootout. You must always kill them. For what the game is, this adoption of straightforward shooter rules seems a bit out of place. If the game spent more time on shootouts I might take bigger issue with their shortcomings, but in the 25+ hours of gameplay I only spent about 2-3 of those hours in combat, so it's really not a huge deal.
The city of Los Angeles is absolutely huge, and the player will spend a lot of time traversing it. Many landmarks have been faithfully recreated and can be discovered, and the architecture, music, and 95 specific types of cars from the time period and location have been perfectly recreated to make the atmosphere of the game spot-on. The world definitely seems inhabited as well, with many people walking the streets and even talking about recent events such as Cole's cases. There is even an option to play the game in black and white, a feature I turned on a few hours in and never went back; it made the entire experience like a playable classic movie. Exploring the city is fun not only because of the atmosphere, but because there are a total of 40 street crimes that will be called in on the radio every so often. These are short and simple, usually consisting of a shootout or car chase, and can occur anytime you are driving around the city.
All in all, L.A. Noire is a game that stands as an example of what gaming can be, and though it wobbles a bit with the steps it takes forward, new ground is being covered and is well worth exploring. Considering Take Two has said the game's sales make it a "<url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/110357-L-A-Noire-is-a-Powerful-New-Franchise-for-Take-Two>powerful new franchise," here's hoping to a sequel where they can iron out the wrinkles and further develop the game's more groundbreaking elements.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n9roClojWSg/Td8v4zqt0rI/AAAAAAAAAEI/T3LM9hL771s/s1600/BN+Divider.jpg
This review, along with weekly articles on Saturday and mid-week random thoughts or reviews, can be found at Binary Narrative, a blog about exploring and discovering the potential and power of video games as a storytelling art.
This is most definitely an interesting piece. Rockstar, the creators of Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption, set out with L.A. Noire to create the interactive equivalent of film noir, the genre to which black-and-white detective films such as The Big Sleep, Out of the Past (which I was delighted to see is actually playing in theaters across the game world of L.A. Noire), and The Maltese Falcon belong (if you've not seen any of those, I highly recommend you do). In typical Rockstar fashion, they did so by recreating the entire city of Los Angeles as it may have appeared in 1940, because they like doing a lot of work. Once again, that painstakingly detailed torture they have put themselves through has worked; though far from perfect, L.A. Noire is a fantastic example of interactive storytelling and investigative gameplay.
Shootouts are the most disappointing part of the gameplay, but they are definitely not terrible, and they are a small enough part of the experience that it will not have much of a negative impact on your experience. The cover system is similar to that found in Red Dead Redemption, but it is actually more clunky and difficult to accurately control. I would often try to round cover or switch to the other side of a doorway, only to find myself standing in the path of a bunch of bullets instead of actually moving anywhere. What's more, the right trigger both fires your weapon and makes you run. You can imagine the confusion that tends to cause, aside from the fact that it severely limits the application of both actions. In addition, the game's painstaking attention to detail falls a short here; namely, there is no way to take someone alive in a shootout. You must always kill them. For what the game is, this adoption of straightforward shooter rules seems a bit out of place. If the game spent more time on shootouts I might take bigger issue with their shortcomings, but in the 25+ hours of gameplay I only spent about 2-3 of those hours in combat, so it's really not a huge deal.
The city of Los Angeles is absolutely huge, and the player will spend a lot of time traversing it. Many landmarks have been faithfully recreated and can be discovered, and the architecture, music, and 95 specific types of cars from the time period and location have been perfectly recreated to make the atmosphere of the game spot-on. The world definitely seems inhabited as well, with many people walking the streets and even talking about recent events such as Cole's cases. There is even an option to play the game in black and white, a feature I turned on a few hours in and never went back; it made the entire experience like a playable classic movie. Exploring the city is fun not only because of the atmosphere, but because there are a total of 40 street crimes that will be called in on the radio every so often. These are short and simple, usually consisting of a shootout or car chase, and can occur anytime you are driving around the city.
All in all, L.A. Noire is a game that stands as an example of what gaming can be, and though it wobbles a bit with the steps it takes forward, new ground is being covered and is well worth exploring. Considering Take Two has said the game's sales make it a "<url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/110357-L-A-Noire-is-a-Powerful-New-Franchise-for-Take-Two>powerful new franchise," here's hoping to a sequel where they can iron out the wrinkles and further develop the game's more groundbreaking elements.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n9roClojWSg/Td8v4zqt0rI/AAAAAAAAAEI/T3LM9hL771s/s1600/BN+Divider.jpg
This review, along with weekly articles on Saturday and mid-week random thoughts or reviews, can be found at Binary Narrative, a blog about exploring and discovering the potential and power of video games as a storytelling art.
