L.A. Noire Review

[Jeremy]

L.A. Noire Review by Jeremy

PALGN Review: It would be criminal to miss it.

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[JP2daMC]

Good review that really nails the game for me.

I found the best way to play LA Noir was to only tackle a few cases in a row in any one gaming session. Otherwise you can lose the impact and pace of each case, and things can start to feel too similar and drag a bit.

I'd compare it to a crime show or even a serialised show like Supernatural or Burn Notice where each episode follows a certain routine, while a deeper narrative is building in the background. While these sorts of shows are great in smaller doses, watching the whole thing in one go can lessen the enjoyment.

In LA Noir, you can start to see each case as a series of predictable parts (go to murder scene, conduct interviews, chase criminals)if you play it for too long rather than appreciate the intricacies of each case and what you need to do to build a successful conviction.

In my opinion this would have made an excellent series that was made available each month or so on download like Sam and Max or Back to the Future.
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“Committed to gaming mediocrity and no platinum trophies.”

[Jeremy]

[Benza]

Couple of things

[Sin Ogaris]

Probably my biggest gripe with the game, which I adored I might add, is that the narrative is a bit too forced. While making mistakes can lead to different results, the overarching storyline doesn't change at all, and neither does your progression in it.

Also a lot of the narrative elements seem forced and in place because it's "noir" not because they actually really fit the storyline or the characters. All it needed to cover those grounds was some out of work time. I would have much preferred a Mafia II esque "end of case" where you go home and have interactions with people outside of the cases. It would have helped flesh out the characters more and make some of the plot twists make a bit more sense, or have more impact.

[Jeremy]

[Karai Pantsu]

[Frozencry]

I just find that the animations are too broad for the detail that the models have. There's a huge split between the fluidity of the animation in the face to the muddy texture detail etc. It gives off an eerie elasticity to the face, as there's no detail there to express proper frowning, lip movement and all that.

It's really bizarre.
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[Bronze]

The game bored me to death. Terrible pacing, repetitive mission structure, unlikeable protagonist, bland secondary world, and the reliance on increasingly tenuous evidence as the game progressed made it really frustrating to play.
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[Sin Ogaris]

I look at it as a step in the right direction, it's not perfect, but it's showing that SOMEONE is actually out there trying to push onward and upward rather than just cookie cutting everything else.

[Karai Pantsu]

... did you just mean inside the AAA title sphere, or was that in regards to the industry in general. 'Cause there is plenty of 'outside the cookie cutter' content to be found once you move your gaze away from the big houses like Rockstar.
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[Sin Ogaris]

Yeah, I meant AAA stuff. There's some crazy stuff going on outside of that but it doesn't get enough recognition, hell I bet if this didn't have Rockstar's backing the tech wouldn't even be getting discussed.

[Benza]

[mikezilla2]

well it doesn't mean they shouldn't do it ether
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[moonhead]

It annoys me that they don't release a game like this on PC. This is clearly supposed to be a AAA title, with a large over arching story line, designed to give many ours of gameplay, pushing graphics to the cutting edge, ect. ect. Clearly by NOT releasing it on PC Rockstar have nothing but contempt for their customers.

[Benza]

[Cyph]

I've started this up and am absolutely loving it. My only criticisms thus far is that the frame rate can become horrible during the driving bits and that sometimes it's difficult to read people during interrogations/interviews. Further on the latter point, sometimes you think you have the right bit of evidence when you suggest someone is lying but that bit of evidence doesn't match what the protagonist ends up accusing them of.

[Benza]

[Jeremy]

@Benza and Cyph, I don't know about others but I found that it's harder to eff up these situations later in the game - and even a couple of times there are multiple pieces of evidence that help you. But very early on, there are a couple of contentious bits, as you mentioned. Whether it's getting better at the game, or because the evidence is a bit more obvious... I'm not sure which has more bearing overall.

Also, I found that it's not just about 'reading' the people. You have to take into account, what they say, how they say it, what has been said before. It's a game that really demands that your attention when you play. In the very least, I found that patterns tended to emerge... and exploits...
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[JP2daMC]

[Banefire]

[Benza]

[Sin Ogaris]

Apparently they had their fingers in the pie a bit to make sure it turned out alright, which makes sense as I'm sure they sunk millions of dollars into the game to get it finished.

Also they should simply be commended FOR publishing it, it's the kind of game that I imagine some other big name publishers would have shied away from.

But yeah, Team Bondi developed it and created the tech.

[Benza]

oh yeah rockstar deffintly deserve credit for publishing something that is so different.

Gotta wonder how many customers are going to be pissed off buying it expecting GTA 4 in the 50's and getting a really pretty adventure game.
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[Gamesta]