L.A Noire Review

The game L.A. Noire is the first detective game to come out on Rockstar publication. We all know Rockstar games for having a more violent and criminal style in gaming, and it's a nice change to see Rockstar showing the good sides of America; instead of the corrupt ganster side we've sen in the GTA franchise.The question I put today is 'Is L.A. Noire a good detective game and does it meet Rockstar's high gaming standards?'

In L.A. Noire, you play Cole Phelps, a robust, intelligent character who has a keen eye for evidence and clues, and has a detective's mind. You start as a patrol-man and work your way up the ranks, defying criminals from their many crimes in the 1940's style-city, Los Angeles. On every mission, you're assessed in your performance, and that levels you unto new pastures.

Unlike most Rockstar games, L.A. Noire does not allow free roam - since you're a police detective, I guess Rockstar noticed that killing/running over civilians and shooting everything wouldn't be a good move. While this does take away some of the freedom people love from The Grand Theft Auto Series, it does bring an entirely new game style into Rockstar gaming.

For a detective game, L.A. Noire is very well presented. You don't just have one approach to the game, and the game doesn't have one approach to you. You have foot and car chases, gun-battles, interrogations, eye-witness accounts, evidence collecting and brawls...all in one mission. It doesn't just give you a little stab at what detective life maybe was like, it almost gives you a full account of what some officers would have to go through in the 1940 LAPD.

The gameplay is fun, exciting and enthralling, I don't know if it's just my love for detective games, stories and films, but I enjoy every bit of a thrilling chase, a compelling web of evidence and deduction and a brilliant interrogation. All wrapped into one makes the game all the more better.

I love the fact that most of the missions come from real accounts of crimes in the 1940's in America. It makes the game different from others, more realistic and gives the player a much harder task in finding out what motives, evidence and clues the murderer could have.

Conversation

The conversation on L.A. Noire mostly comes from eye-witness accounts, interrogations and talking to fellow police-officers/investigators/detectives. There is hardly any conversation with rogue civilians, as you're always on a case.

The life that comes with a character is something that L.A. Noire really had to have, if the woman you're interrogating doesn't seem emotional about her husband disappearance and possible affair, the game isn't going to be worth it. I'm glad to say that L.A. Noire's conversation-system works well and that emotion and character building really do work.

The only problem I found was that sometimes you would have quite a pause in conversation, it made the scene feel less dramatic. I loved the complexed questions and interrogation, where you had to get everything right in order to crack the case.

Movement

The L.A. Noire movement is like GTA4, while more realistic, it's quite hard to grasp. You feel like a weight has taken over your controller - and you must use the toggles more than necessary. While this isn't a major problem, I would've just liked a more Saints Row approach to running and walking, especially since you do spend a lot of time chasing after criminals.

While the running and walking may need a tad tweaking, the chases up and down building are pretty cool. I love the realistic way you climb up ladders, pipes and other objects.

Graphics

With a new motion-sensing technology that is put into the game, the graphics on characters is much more realistic, and I think you feel a lot more accustom to the character when it's actually them playing he/she. Los Angeles is beautifully realistic, like most Rockstar games and the cars are well crafted. The graphics is a definite ten out of ten.

Unlike most single-player games that comes without free roam, L.A. Noire goes on for a good amount of time. Enough for you to have more than a few hours on it. Most of the people I have talked to who have completed the game state it takes around a week or so to complete, if you're playing about four - six hours per day. Much better than Modern Warfare, Gears of War, Saints Row or any other top game I can think of.

If you're into detective work, Sherlock Holmes in the 1940's type, then you will love this. The game works so well and there's little I can criticise it on, and almost all reviews and critics seem to agree. Its a must buy.