L.A. Noire for the Xbox 360 and PS3 slots in as the latest in line from one of the most well-known studios for open world titles. Developed by Rockstar and Team Bondi, the game takes players to the City of Angels as it was towards the end of the Second World War; a city made of hopes and dreams. But as we saw through our review there is another side to this magnificent city; the ever-present crime and inseparable corruption. Incorporating Havok, the game delivers a cold, hard film noir-styled feel minus the excessive black and white sequences.
It’s no doubt that Rockstar Games revels in making free roaming titles and the studio seems to be getting increasing better at it, no matter which direction they choose to take. The innovatively-styled video game attempts to turn back the clock, but this time players view the world through a completely different looking glass. Cast in a 1940s Los Angeles, L.A. Noire fuses the regular stuff of sandbox titles that we’ve come to expect with new elements which will blow your mind. As an investigator it’s your job to inspect crime scenes, dig up clues, as well as interact with and interrogate “persons of interest”. And to throw it up even more, there are some blood-curdling cases that come your way.
The intrigue, the mystery, the challenge of a puzzle, and a crazed psycho serve to maintain focus and keep you driven. Once you get steeped in it all, throwing in the towel is no longer an option. Sleep takes a back seat to bringing the responsible to justice while Cole Phelps, the man of the hour, is on the road to avenging his past atrocities. Everything you find at a crime scene may not have a profound meaning or even an immediate implication, but knowing what to throw at hostile witnesses is a skill that comes with the territory. It may seem hard at times to pull out all the stops, but not to worry, Team Bondi provides a cure. Intuition points, gained in various ways from chasing down criminals in tiny “mission-ettes” to discovering city landmarks while driving around in your cruiser, can be used to lighten your burden, highlighting the road to success.
The game’s mix-it-up style makes certain that the detective work never gets dull or repetitive. Side missions find a place in just the right manner, also helping to boost rank and grab a few achievements. And you’ve got to have a real keen eye if you are to drive and unlock each and every one of the 95 different vehicles and collect the entire mother-load of fifty gold reels strewn about the place. A challenge within a challenge is what L.A Noire delivers, and does so wonderfully.
The game may be a bit slow off the start, but make no mistake, it will draw you in and keep you glued with its skewed view of reality and cases you won’t be able to forget. Graphics are stunning, and the environments are simply pristine. The clean 1940s air and an ever hopeful city of Los Angeles make a perfect setting for the one of the most unique experiences ever provided by a video game. You partner is always on hand if you are confused about a decision or if you hit a little bump in the road.
Interaction with the environment is astonishing and manipulating objects is simply fascinating. The game employs a rather unconventional approach to such interaction involving sound rather than glowing objects. The game makes use of global illumination technology, and even an automobile with a brown paintjob can appear bluish if the light hits it just right. Such is the unprecedented level of realism in L.A Noire.
Although the game incorporates a good enough cover system, a simple yet sufficient brawling mechanic, and a chase system which practically does everything for the player, it is the somewhat awkward control scheme that threatens to derail the near seamless switch of heart-pounding action. And the game’s AI doesn’t help either. Computer controlled characters seem disjointed, which can be annoying.
L.A. Noire is a solid game with more entertainment value than you could imagine. Just when you think that you’re past the hill and that things are going to get dry from then on end, the game’s old school, hard-boiled police work uncovers truths that shock you back to this world. Some cases are so extreme that they can turn your stomach inside out, causing an unsettling queasy feeling.
The Final Word: Great graphics, a wonderful story, music reminiscent of the times, and beautifully conceived environments painstakingly put together to provide an unmatched experience, are rolled up into one big ball of noire. Even if you prefer simply driving around with the top down listening keenly over the police band, the game makes for a sure-fire pickup. A video game you just can’t miss out on, L.A. Noire features a story so dramatically compelling as well as gameplay so viscerally rewarding, that even with the slightly clumsy controls and poor AI, it promises to vie for Game of the Year. The depths of the mind are murky indeed; and then there’s L.A. Noire.
Graphics: 9.5/10.
Environments: 9.5/10.
Game Sounds: 9.0/10.
Story: 9.5/10.
Gameplay: 9.0/10.
Overall (not an average): 9.0/10.