L.A. Noire review

L.A. Noire comes from the same company as the phenomenally successful Grand Theft Auto (GTA) series. It uses the same game engine as the last GTA to recreate a sprawling urban environment. Furthermore it’s concerned with similar themes as GTA, with crime being at the very heart of its story. But despite all these similarities, L.A. Noire is a very, very different kind of game.

The clue’s in the name, with all your noir genre staples present here

Set in 1940’s post-war Los Angeles, L.A. Noire puts you in shoes of up-and-coming LAPD officer Cole Phelps. Phelps was a war hero, though he doesn’t like to talk about it, and after the fighting ended he joined the police force, where you follow his meteoric rise through the ranks. As the title suggests this is pure film noir distilled into video game form. But movies such as The Maltese Falcon, Touch of Evil and L.A. Confidential aren’t the only influence here; in addition there’s a big helping of modern TV conventions.

Here’s Phelps, left. The faces looks considerably better in motion than in stills

The characters, dialogue and plot structure are all immediately reminiscent of an HBO TV series. In fact you may recognise Phelps, as he’s played by Aaron Stanton – Ken Cosgrove in Mad Men. Beyond this, the dense and snappy dialogue is certainly realistic and gritty enough to pass muster on the now-revered US cable channel.

In terms of structure, the game is divided into 21 cases, most of which equate roughly to a TV episode’s worth of play. Just like most TV series, the early episodes largely stand alone, but a clear plot arc connecting the cases appears around half-way through the game.

The gameplay recreates classic police procedural novels and TV series – a structure familiar from cop shows as divergent as The Bill and CSI. Each episode starts with a suitably vague depiction of the (often) grisly deed being done, before cutting to Phelps, and one of a series of gruff partners, being dispatched to investigate the crime scene. You then investigate any leads until the perpetrator becomes clear.

This blood-soaked car is one of your first crime scenes, and they get grislier than this

This investigation part of the game breaks down into searching for clues, interrogating witnesses and suspects, plus the odd unique puzzle. Searching crime scenes, or suspects’ houses, is pretty straightforward; you simply walk Phelps about until the joypad gives a small rumble to indicate an item of potential interest – sometimes a red herring. You can then pick it up and manipulate it to look for clues, and anything you find of interest is logged in your notebook.

You can manipulate objects to get extra information from them

It’s best to look for clues first, before talking to anyone, as these are essential to get the most out of the characters you meet. And they really are characters, with some fantastic facial animation – captured directly from the voice actors as they delivered their lines. Once they’ve answered your initial question, you can react in three ways.

If you think they’re telling the truth, you can go easy and try to coax more information from them. If you doubt what they’re saying, or feel they’re avoiding the question, then you can badger them for more info. Finally, if you have a piece of evidence that directly contradicts what they said, then you can accuse them of lying and back it up from your notebook.

The old good cop, bad cop routine

The high quality of both the acting and the technology capturing it, lets you make a decent stab at whether the suspect is telling the truth. You can hear the nervousness in the voice, or see a guilty sideways glance. Sometimes, you do come unstuck, unsure whether a particular piece of evidence will support your theory. But generally it rewards careful investigation and logical thinking as you’d expect.

Inevitably as you get closer to your suspect, things get less cerebral and more physical. Fisticuffs, gunfights, foot and car chases are all on the menu. Here the game does become far more reminiscent of the GTA series, though it’s still not free-form. Unless the plot calls for it you can’t throw a punch or draw your gun, which gives both actions the dramatic intensity they deserve.

Another big difference is that you’re rewarded for minimising chaos and wreckage, rather than revelling in it. Experience points are earned at the end of each case, and you get demerits for collateral damage. As you level up you get intuition points, which assist with finding clues or interrogating suspects when you’re stumped.

Phelps is a war hero, pictured here in LAPD uniform, which explains why he’s a crack shot

The hand-to-hand fighting is a simple, block and counter affair, while gunfights largely resemble a shooting arcade, with targets popping up conveniently, plus there’s a hefty dose of auto-aim assistance. Neither is too challenging then, and failing repeatedly gives you the option to skip if desired. The foot chases are fairly straightforward, as long as you keep an eye on your quarry. Car chases can be a little tougher, due to the very skittish nature of the handling.

For those who want more action, you can respond to emergency calls while enroute to your next destination – picking up extra experience points for your efforts. Speaking of driving, getting around town could be a bit of a chore, however, you can always jump to the next location by simply commanding your partner to do the driving. That said, 1940’s LA is gorgeously recreated, and the locations you visit show imagination in their variety. The vehicles, clothes and even the traffic density have been meticulously researched to great effect.

Where would a police procedural drama be without a coroner and an autopsy?

We don’t want to say much about the plot, but the depth is clearly apparent from the outset, with flashbacks to Phelp’s time in the army and brief cutscenes of characters you haven’t yet met. If we have one criticism of L.A. Noire it’s the linear nature of the experience. The cases themselves occur in a strict order, and each one has only the slightest variations within it of how you go about things, often withholding information to funnel you a particular way. With the action sequences all being very staged, you can feel like a bit of a passenger, rather than in control.

Having said all that, this is a rare console game release; one that puts story and character ahead of all else. Its cerebral nature makes the current lack of a PC release date even more puzzling, though we live in hope. Yes, it makes sacrifices for its story-driven nature, but if you enjoy games and like noir movies or police procedural dramas, then this is an essential purchase.