Tuesday, May 17, 2011
I spent a few hours playing L.A. Noire
The city looks great and has a dense feel of life to it. So far the vehicles don't respond very well, but I think that's OK since it mirrors what the handling would be like in the 1940's. Also, asking your partner for directions is a clever way of getting rid of the gps and getting the player to actually look at the world while they are driving. I find that if I head in the general direction of the icon that i'll get there pretty easily.
The game is doing a good job of teaching along the way and the first few missions being built around a particular mechanic seems to work well. Each of the first few missions are also very short which keeps the pace moving and keeps things fresh in that crucial first couple of hours.
The crime scenes have the great feel of old school adventure games like Police Quest
. Looking around for clues feels great since the rumble and music really help you narrow things down before any frustration sets in. I also LOVE how they have a camera cut as you approach the next location. This allows them to open the gameplay with a nice framed shot and also keeps the flow going better since I don't have to precision park before things will advance.I'm having a little trouble knowing exactly what to do in some of the interrogations and usually end up missing 1-2 questions each time. I'm trying to go off my gut based on their facial reactions and that works most of the time, but when I'm not sure...I'm unable to use the clues to my advantage. Is there something I'm missing at this point?
I'm having a blast so far and the best part is that my wife is enjoying watching me play. She's getting into it and giving me feedback based on if she thinks suspects are giving me good information. If it weren't for the action sequences, she would love to play this on her own.
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L.A. Noire is honestly a whole lot better than what I had previously expected it to be.
My thoughts where that they would follow suit that most games do: focus primarily on a subject (this instance is facial animation) and leave out everywhere else.
This time around it is not the case, as if you take a detailed look at the atmosphere and take in the overall environment; it is pretty astounding. Despite the interrogation sequences (I too had difficulty with), it is a more than good game.
Reviewers have been saying you can skip the action sequences and not impact your gameplay experience. I haven't picked this up yet so I can't personally confirm it.
Skipping would be interesting, I haven't seen an option for that. I'm curious how that would work since some of the on foot chases, etc seem so integral.