L.A. Noire

[danny275]

L.A. Noire is an upcoming video game in development by Team Bondi and to be published by Rockstar Games. The games intended platform(s) has not been announced. L.A. Noire is set in "a perfectly re-created Los Angeles" of the late 1940s, with players being given an open-ended challenge to solve a series of murders.

As the title suggests, the game draws heavily from both plot and aesthetic elements of film noir - stylistic films from the 1940s and 1950s that shared similar visual styles and themes including, but not limited to, crime, sex and moral ambiguity and were often shot in black and white with harsh, low-key lighting.

The game uses a distinctive colouring-style in homage to the visual style of film noir films. The postwar setting is the backdrop for plot elements that reference the detective films of the '40s, such as corruption and drugs, with a classical jazz soundtrack.

Though little information has been disclosed so far about L.A. Noire, Rockstar gives an impression of the game in the first trailer. L.A. Noire is also notable for using Darksprint's real-time global illumination technology. Team Bondi has announced that the game was in its final phase. The game would be finished soon.

This past week, we heard from Rockstar that gamers can expect a much-anticipated unveiling of L.A. Noire next month. Well, maybe we can get you started a little early.

Up until now, we had always thought the most intriguing element of this new game was its 1940s atmosphere and gritty, underworld feel. However, Rockstar has been saying all along that L.A. Noire will boast some very special features that might just surprise everyone. Perhaps this is one of those features: according to GameGuru and citing a brief resume for a Team Bondi designer, it seems much of the game's missions will be based on real-life crimes that happened in Los Angeles in 1947. This particular designer's job was to do research into LA newspapers for the year in question, and pick out crimes to place into the game's database. Obviously, this means you would set out to solve the crimes that actually occurred in 1947, which is just plain awesome. We get the feeling it's sorta like GTA with a twist of hardened reality that puts L.A. Noire in a class by itself. But we still have to wait for the official unveiling before we can bring you more details, like the all-important gameplay and control mechanics...

Anyway, the more we hear about this one, the more excited we become. It's okay that we've been waiting for a long time; we've had plenty of other titles to keep our attention, right?

Looking forward to this

[TheBroad]

Sounds Very Interesting....I'll Keep My Eye Out For Any Further Developments
EDIT:Just Seen:

[Ocelot]

It seems to be taking an age to finish, still, its Rockstar so its well worth the wait.

[G7SEV]

Another game i am interested in. look forward to hearing and seeing more from it

[nani17]

I bet the wait will be worth it ......it better be

[danny275]

We're really liking the look and feel of L.A. Noire and we're anxiously anticipating the big unveiling next month. But as most of you know, this game has had a dark and mysterious past...and perhaps a rockier one than you may have imagined.

Everyone is zeroing in on the new Voracious Sh** Twitter page, which is supposedly the account of a source close to Team Bondi, developer for L.A. Noire. Now, you can go through the dozens of updates and piece together the story but Kotaku has taken the trouble to summarize the entire ordeal. You can read the whole rundown over there but here's the general gist: Brendan McNamara, the creator behind The Getaway and founder of Team Bondi studios apparently had the idea for an "interactive 3D noire" that would "fu***** blow Rockstar out of the water." Now, Sony gave him the opportunity to realize his vision and they started working on this title way back in 2003; at the time, it was supposed to be a launch game for the PlaayStation 3. They figured that three years was enough time. But then, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas released and really sort out of outstripped what the team was working on; therefore, "the present game plan would no longer suffice." It soon began to become obvious that McNamara "had little clue what he was doing and was just following his arbitrary whims."

Then, after coming under the thumb of SCEE once again, they found out that Team Bondi didn't have much to show for over two years of work. And even though they had already dumped $20 million into the project, they were forced to abandon it. Ironically, Rockstar snapped it up in spring of 2006 and McNamara found himself working for his former rivals in the Houser brothers. The teaser they released that year actually wasn't even a teaser at all; it was "a target render done by an art outsourcing film in Sydney." Since that time, "the game has been revamped, ported, and delayed four times." Oh, and the title is actually the result of a typo (as we all should know, it's "noir," not "noire"). How's that for a tumultuous past for a game?

http://www.psxextreme.com/ps3-news/6505.html

[nani17]

Game Informer writer Matthew Kato has confirmed the once PlayStation 3-exclusive of LA Noire is… well, no longer exclusive.

It’s still coming to PS3, but is also releasing on Xbox 360 now as well.

“It’s not a PS3-exclusive. It was at one point, but it’s coming out for the PS3 and 360,” said Kato.

http://www.vg247.com/2010/02/05/la-noir ... e-says-gi/

[Ocelot]

Some exciting info about gameplay has popped up in the latest Game Informer mag:

L.A. Noire Revealed
Rockstar looks to raise the bar and change the way we view open-world games.
by Hilary Goldstein

February 6, 2010 - In the March 2010 issue of Game Informer (on stands this month), the first real details of L.A. Noire are revealed. Developed by Team Bondi (The Getaway), L.A. Noire is an open-world action-adventure game set in the City of Angels in 1947. Unlike previous Rockstar efforts, L.A. Noire exists in a real city, painstakingly recreated for historical accuracy. Don't expect the "shoot everyone" mentality of a Grand Theft Auto title -- this is something completely different.

You play as Cole Phelps, a beat cop looking to clean up the streets of L.A. It won't be easy, seeing as how the L.A. police force is mired in corruption from top to bottom. Phelps has his own issues to deal with, including some very bad things he did in World War II. Though he starts low on the totem pole, over the course of L.A. Noire Phelps progresses through a series of "desks" in the department, including traffic, vice and, ultimately, homicide.

As a detective, you have to solve cases through a mixture of investigations, interviews and interrogations. According to the article in GI, when you come across a scene, you won't find highlighted items sitting in obvious places. Crime scenes are said to look natural and require a deft eye to spot important clues. See a pair of glasses on the ground of a supposed murder scene and you can pick them up, noting details such as the brand etched on the inside of the frame. These little bits of information are jotted down on your notepad, which can be brought up at any time.

Things get a little more interesting in regards to the interview system. Team Bondi is using revolutionary technology that could change the way games are made. The new facial motion capturing system sets actors alone in a giant room with cameras all around. In full make-up, the actor delivers their dialogue. Every facial moment is recorded, from the most exaggerate of motions to the slightest twitch of an eye. The dialogue is recorded at this time as well, creating a seamless scene. All of this is then translated into a 3D game landscape with no animators needed. The result? According to GI, it's a picture-perfect rendering of the actor's scene. That's important to the gameplay.

When you interview someone, you'll need to watch their face and determine if they're lying. Like Mass Effect, your dialogue choices come from a handful of general options: coax, accuse or force. The way you handle an interview or interrogation is greatly determined by the reactions you get from the suspect. You can also refute testimony by selecting clues from your notebook.

Unfortunately, GI wasn't shown any of the gunplay, so the set-up for the action sequences is still a mystery.

You can read more details on the demo in the latest issue of Game Informer.

http://ie.ps3.ign.com/articles/106/1067305p1.html

[danny275]

Now that we've finally started to learn more about L.A. Noire, it may be time to start talking about a release date.

If you haven't gotten your hands on the new Game Informer - the one that features Rockstar's new action/crime drama on the cover - GTTV's Geoff Keighley has, and he has leaked the game's expected launch date over at this Twitter page. As you can see, the article in GI says the game is "coming in September for the 360/PS3," and considering the amount of time this project has been in development, that's not too far off. We're starting to think that L.A. Noire could become one of our most anticipated titles of 2010; the fact that we'll be involved in true-to-life crimes from 1947 Los Angeles is enough to pique our interest. What we need now are some solid gameplay details, which have proven to be elusive over the past couple of years. Remember, this game has had a very dark and murky past; it reads more like an industry soap opera than your standard long-running development process. But hey, I think it's high time we tossed out the term "vaporware" in regards to L.A. Noire, right?

Try to nab that new Game Informer when it comes out; in the meantime, we'll keep looking around for more info. Along with Red Dead Redemption, Rockstar could have another very big hit for the year.

http://www.psxextreme.com/ps3-news/6569.html

[Ocelot]

Rockstar has confirmed that L.A. Noire will be released in the fall. This is confirmation against the speculation around Keighley's Twitter post.

http://www.rockstarnetwork.net/content. ... lease-Date

[danny275]

The long-awaited L.A. Noire should finally be on the horizon, but what about a finalized release date?

Recent estimates have placed it in the fourth quarter of 2010, and all we have to go on are placeholder dates from GameStop and Amazon; the latter holding a date of September 1, 2010, which doesn't seem quite right. However, a new date has popped up: it's over at one of Amazon's European branches; Amazon.de. As you can see, the game has a January 17, 2011 date for that region, which may or may not be accurate. Last we heard, L.A. Noire was still on the "coming soon" list for Rockstar; most places say "Q3 2010" for the highly anticipated former PlayStation 3 exclusive. We're still hoping it'll release towards the end of the year but there has been a recent trend of releasing all new franchises in the first quarter of a year. The holidays seem to be reserved for the established franchises that are almost guaranteed to hit the market hard, and Team Bondi's promising title is definitely a fresh IP.

We'll have to see if Rockstar decides to issue a formal release date some time soon. We've been waiting long enough, haven't we?

http://www.psxextreme.com/ps3-news/7465.html

Wish they'd just hurry up

[ShadyKnight]

New L.A. Noire trailer released today!

[nani17]

lol just about to post it looks great

[danny275]

How did these get here

It's about bloody time that there was some sort of video
Looks better than GTAIV...miles better

[Peruzzi]

Looks good, I like that 40s period, one of the main reasons I like Mafia 2.

I hope its as open ended as they say, although seeing as its Rockstar it probably will be.

[ShadyKnight]

It looks cool - there's a definite L.A. Confidential vibe to it (complete with Irish police captain ), but that's always a good thing!

[Arsenalisti]

I'm definitely interested. Looks like a class game already.

[moeom]

Irish Captain Voice: Lookin Good Lookin Good!

[nani17]

Today, we present a brand new selection of exclusive screenshots from L.A. Noire - showing a glimpse of investigating crime scenes, examining lineups of suspects and other gritty detective work you'll experience in next spring's crime thriller. Stay tuned for a special look behind the scenes of the advanced motion scan technology used in the game, coming soon.

1947 was one of the most violent years in the history of Los Angeles, with an unprecedented number of assaults, robberies and murders. Phelps inspects the body of a victim for clues.

Onlookers gather at a family’s tragedy. You'll need to analyze crime scenes like this one in detail and interview witnesses in order to figure out what happened.

Sizing up the suspects. Each successfully solved case propels Phelps higher up the ladder of the LAPD.

As a detective, Phelps’ gun is a weapon of last resort. But Los Angeles is a dangerous place, and a successful detective makes enemies quickly.

[danny275]

Can't wait for this