L.A. Noire Review (Dinkibell)
L.A. Noire is a kind of game that we need more of. It isn't perfect by any means, but being a detective in 1940s Los Angeles is a hell of a premise for story and gameplay. I do hope we get a "sequel" for this game someday, maybe set in 80s Miami?
First, I want to get the bad things out of the way, because there are some frustrating this in this game (which can be pretty long). The drives from place to place can be too long, with not enough banter between your and your partner to fill up the silence and repetitive nature of driving. There's also no radio stations to choose from to listen to some 40s music or a good radio show, maybe even hearing about the events of the game on the radio, similar to how GTA series does it.
Additionally, the traffic is abhorrent; cars will almost intentionally get in your way, it's like they are programmed to get in your lane right when you get close to them. You can alleviate this by turning on your police siren, which makes the cars stop or get out of your lane, but that gets annoying pretty quickly.
The clues you find can sometimes be too vague when you accuse a suspect of lying, which can damage your case. Additionally, the car chases are too "on-rail"; enemy cars do not obey the law of physics and will follow a strict path no matter your influence, which can get frustrating quickly.
Furthermore, the game is a bit on the long side, with endgame cases being kind of a drag.
However, what the game does right is the story and its investigative gameplay. You go from an ordinary police officer to being promoted to Detective, with various desks, such as Traffic, Homicide, Vice, etc. There are some pretty cool storylines, a serial killer, shady corporate businesses, etc.
The 1940s atmosphere is authentic; the cars, the clothes, the way people behave and think, the music, everything is well done. The facial expressions are really great - the game gets memed on for the technology they used for mo-cap and facial expressions, resulting in some exaggerated expressions, however, most of the time the expressions are believable, almost like watching a noire TV show, since they were all scanned from real-life actors, most of which you will recognize.
All in all, I'd recommend this game to anyone who's interested in, but be aware of its flaws!