L.A. Noire First Videogame Honored at Tribeca Film Festival

Greg Tito

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Sep 29, 2005
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L.A. Noire First Videogame Honored at Tribeca Film Festival



The official selection at a major film festival is further proof that the latest crime drama game from Rockstar straddles the line between videogames and movies.

One could say that gaming conventions like E3 and GDC are to the gaming industry what the Cannes or Tribeca Film Festivals are to Hollywood. And while there might be a few movie properties showcased at E3, like say Tron: Legacy, it usually only occurs if there's a videogame tie-in being announced. The reverse of a videogame being presented at a major Film Festival almost never happens, even if there is a tie-in. That is, until now. Rockstar and the Tribeca Film Festival, started by Robert De Niro back in 2002, announced today that L.A. Noire will be the first videogame honored with an official selection at the prestigious event. Rockstar will present an "interactive screening" of a single criminal case from the game, and hold a Q&A session afterwards. The screening will happen in New York City on April 25, 2011 and Rockstar is pumped by the reception its game will hopefully get. The game itself is out May 17, 2011.

"We're thrilled that L.A. Noire is being recognized by the Tribeca Film Festival in this way," said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. "It's a real honor, and another step forward for interactive entertainment."

For the Film Festival, including games under its ouvre seems like a logical step in the evolution of the meium. "What Rockstar and Team Bondi have accomplished with L.A. Noire is nothing less than groundbreaking," said Geoff Gilmore from the Tribeca Film Festival. "It's an invention of a new realm of storytelling that is part cinema, part gaming, and a whole new realm of narrative expression, interactivity, and immersion. We are poised on the edge of a new frontier."

From what trailers and gameplay I've seen of L.A. Noire [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/trailers/2685-L-A-Noire-Trailer-2], the technology used to display an actor's face in the game is really impressive. It might be the first time that a game truly claws its way out of the Uncanny Valley, and gameplay that encompasses more policework than running and gunning will be refreshing. More than a few of us at The Escapist offices are excited for the game and it's definitely cool that people outside of the gaming industry are just as interested.

I hope the screening at the Tribeca Film Festival sways people into respecting games as an art form on par with cinema or literature. Is Roger Ebert attending?

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Tony2077

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Dec 19, 2007
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wow i never thought I'd live to see the day where a video game would show up there. Guess I'll have to check this game out it keeps looking better and better but i should just rent it
 

Woodsey

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As I said on CVG, this is silly. They're two different mediums, LA Noire isn't any more of a merging of the two then, say, Mafia or Uncharted 2 were.


""It's an invention of a new realm of storytelling that is part cinema, part gaming, and a whole new realm of narrative expression, interactivity, and immersion. We are poised on the edge of a new frontier.""

Why? Because they're using more advanced mo-cap? I seriously don't get this at all.

Evidently we're still so uncomfortable with our own preferred medium that we have to try and find technicalities with which we can squeeze it into "credible ones".
 

josemlopes

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Woodsey said:
As I said on CVG, this is silly. They're two different mediums, LA Noire isn't any more of a merging of the two then, say, Mafia or Uncharted 2 were.


""It's an invention of a new realm of storytelling that is part cinema, part gaming, and a whole new realm of narrative expression, interactivity, and immersion. We are poised on the edge of a new frontier.""

Why? Because they're using more advanced mo-cap? I seriously don't get this at all.
I dont believe that the game can be comparable to Uncharted 2 or Mafia.

The biggest element of gameplay in here is the choices that you make, not the headshots, not the skill to be able to kill everyone in the room, its the choices that make the game so you can compare it to a movie (an interactive movie).
 

Woodsey

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josemlopes said:
Woodsey said:
As I said on CVG, this is silly. They're two different mediums, LA Noire isn't any more of a merging of the two then, say, Mafia or Uncharted 2 were.


""It's an invention of a new realm of storytelling that is part cinema, part gaming, and a whole new realm of narrative expression, interactivity, and immersion. We are poised on the edge of a new frontier.""

Why? Because they're using more advanced mo-cap? I seriously don't get this at all.
I dont believe that the game can be comparable to Uncharted 2 or Mafia.

The biggest element of gameplay in here is the choices that you make, not the headshots, not the skill to be able to kill everyone in the room, its the choices that make the game so you can compare it to a movie (an interactive movie).
There's plenty of combat, and you aren't going anywhere if you can't shoot straight. And even if it were mainly about choices, why not pick up on the RPGs that have been doing just that for years?
 

ElephantGuts

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I'm extremely glad games are making this important step towards being accepted as a legitimate mature form of media. And it's certainly fitting that a Rockstar game is the first to make it to Tribeca. I've always said that Rockstar's games are the closest to movies in their quality and the best chance we have of showing the rest of the world that games can be taken seriously. Finally, that's what's actually happening.
 

Ubermetalhed

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If L.A. Noire and Heavy Rain had a love child then that would be the game to show at Tribeca.

L.A. Noire on its own isn't really going to change opinions especially people like Roger Eberts.
 

Wieke

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Mar 30, 2009
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I'm so disappointed that this isn't coming to the PC. A noire detective with high quality acting made by rockstar? It sounds so awesome.
 

GonzoGamer

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Apr 9, 2008
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I?m not sure what?s more disappointing: that R* is still not done climbing the mountain of pretentiousness they started on with gta4 or that their hype machine is now also becoming lip curlingly pretentious.

Ubermetalhed said:
If L.A. Noire and Heavy Rain had a love child then that would be the game to show at Tribeca.

L.A. Noire on its own isn't really going to change opinions especially people like Roger Eberts.
I don't know if you remember his TV show but Ebert usually gave thumbs down to pretentious drivel that takes itself too seriously. That Siskel guy was the one who liked those movies.
Stunts like this will just give Ebert more ammo.
 

ComicsAreWeird

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Oct 14, 2010
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Great news. It´s good to see videogames get some credibility in the film industry. As for Ebert, who cares about what that dinossaur thinks? His views towards videogames are similar to the way painters complained that photography wasnt art a few decades ago. Time will prove him wrong.
 

Realitycrash

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Dec 12, 2010
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You know..I watched the trailer a few months ago, and now I watch it again. The facial-expressions and bodylanguage is impressive, I agree, but anyone else notice that the rest isn't exactly...Crysis, so to speak?
Office, buildings, furniture in general..You can clearly tell what they dumped their money on (and I understand why they did it), but the contrast just..Ruins a bit of the illusion for me.
 

BlindChance

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Sep 8, 2009
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Gotta admit, not a fan of this.

The last thing we need is to start craving the approval of film-makers any more. Yes, film is a wonderful medium, but games aren't that medium and don't need to be. We should be content, ourselves, with the artistic value of our medium, instead of looking for it from outside. This feels like a step backwards.

Now, y'know what would be good? For the makers of L.A. Noire to do a live demo of their facial capture system at Tribeca. That is something films can, and should, be stealing, and using themselves. Game makers can, of course, teach film makers some tricks, and vice versa. But they're their own forms, and that's a good thing, not a bad thing.
 

GeorgW

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Aug 27, 2010
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Fuckin' awesome!
Hopefully the game will be good. Sure it looks nice, but if it doesn't play well...
I would like the game to end with the bad guy you're investigating getting free and you taking the law into your own hands. Then it's your turn to be investigated!