L.A. Noire

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[size=+2]L.A. Noire[/size]

Rockstar Games is known for its ambitious projects, and L.A. Noire proves that the company’s reputation is safe. While the rumblings about the game have been heard for years, our world exclusive cover story is the only place you’ll be able to get concrete information on the gritty crime epic. Over the course of our 10-page feature we look at the game’s astonishing reconstruction of 1947 Los Angeles and learn how the team took on such a massive undertaking. We also talk to the team to see L.A. Noire’s groundbreaking facial-animation system in action, and learn how it might change the way we look at games from now on.

Some of the other features in our March issue include a look at the status of some of our favorite old franchises, previews of some of the Independent Games Festival nominees, and a guide for parents interested in parental controls. We also grill Platinum Games’ director Hideki Kamiya on Bayonetta, dig into the legal battle over Duke Nukem, and check out some of the hottest tech around. If you’ve been wondering why Polyphony Digital seems to operate without deadlines, Sony’s head of internal development, Shuhei Yoshida, explains why the company cuts the Gran Turismo 5 developer so much slack.

Sequels to Mass Effect, BioShock, and Battlefield: Bad Company get reviewed in the March issue of Game Informer Magazine, along with Dante’s Inferno, Aliens vs. Predator and many more.

Subscribers will be getting the March issue soon, and it will be hitting newsstands shortly afterward.

[size=+1]L.A. Noire Gameplay Mechanic Detailed: Based on Real Life Murders?![/size]
http://www.gameguru.in/action/2010/23/l-a-noire-gameplay-mechanic-detailed-based-on-real-life-murders/

Missions based on real life events, Los Angeles 1947, like the "Black Dahlia" case which remained unsolved.
Sounds interesting.
Thoughts ?

[BizioEE]

[size=+1]L.A. Noire Revealed[/size]
Rockstar looks to raise the bar and change the way we view open-world games.

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.

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

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[size=+1]Full L.A Noire Preview in the new EDGE – Scans + Full Magazine Transcribed[/size]

The Depth Analysis solution uses 32 camera’s acting in pairs as range scanners, and a small, sound proofed white room, evenly lit to remove all the shadows.
“It’s the same technique used by the Dam Busters” says Bao “They used two eyes to work out what height they were from the water. It’s the same idea with our cameras – they’re all calibratedo s they know where they are from each other, so when they see a feature point, they can estimate it’s depth.”

The result is not so much an animation – indeed, animators are required to do little more than compose the moving model in a scene – but a 3D film of the actor, make up and all. There’s barely 20 minutes spent on processing each piece of raw footage before it goes straight into the game.

“The way it works is that we have video editors working in the background as we record, so they can start editing straight away.” Bao explains as he shows us around the inauspicious warehouse that serves as Depth Analysis’ LA Studio.
“They cut off the junk bits, top and tail, and whenever there’s downtime, like at lunch, they can show the takes to the directors so he can select the best. It’s very much like a factory”

http://www.rockstarbase.com/?p=4031

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[size=+1]L.A. Noire - First Trailer [/size]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4vXZH1FP6M&feature=player_embedded#!

Trailer was pretty impressive.  I just wish R* could couple those facial animations with some decent lighting.  Oh and just because they had shitty sound recording back when noir films were in their heyday doesn\'t mean they need to continue that tradition.

[BizioEE]

[size=+2]Rockstar Publishes Noire[/size]

Rockstar, makers of the Grand Theft Auto series, announced a partnership with Team Bondi Pty Ltd (the guys behind The Getaway) to publish L.A. Noire -- an "interactive detective story set in the classic noir period of the late 1940s." As the title indicates, L.A. Noire is an L.A. Story, but don\'t think of the Steve Martin flick, instead think of a 1940s setting buzzing with jazz, dark night life and a gumshoe solving capers. Well, we\'re figuring you\'ll solve mysteries, the game is a detective story, after all.

At this time, Rockstar has not confirmed which platforms L.A. Noire will arrive on -- but we\'re assuming the game will come to next-gen platforms. Though, an interactive detective story certainly sounds like something that could work on Nintendo\'s Wii, right?

http://www.1up.com/news/rockstar-announces-noire

It\'s been more than a year since Australian developer Team Bondi announced its PlayStation 3 "interactive story," L.A. Noire, and today the title\'s official publisher was announced: Rockstar Games.

Set in 1940s Los Angeles, L.A. Noire is said to blend a number of different elements such as action, cinematic storytelling, and problem-solving, and takes place in a meticulously-recreated version of the City of Angels from more than sixty years ago. Rockstar says that, when finished, Noire will provide players with "a post-war backdrop of corruption, drugs, and jazz."



Click for video teaser."Brendan and I have known each other for a long time, and to finally have the opportunity to work together on a game is exciting," said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. "The longstanding mutual respect and the combined experience between the two of us make this a great partnership," added Brendan McNamara, CEO of Team Bondi.

For the unfamiliar, Brendan McNamara is the same man responsible for the direction duties on Sony\'s The Getaway, and has also contributed to titles such World Tour Soccer, This is Football, and Powerslide.

An official release date for L.A. Noire has not been revealed as of yet, and Rockstar officials aren\'t talking. Interestingly, publisher representatives have made it a point to list L.A. Noire for "next-generation consoles" and not solely the PS3 as it was originally announced. Whether that means that the game is also headed to the Xbox 360, Wii, or a combination thereof is still unknown. As we went to press, Rockstar wouldn\'t confirm its destination either way.

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/735/735082p1.html

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[size=+1]L.A. Noire: "The Technology Behind Performance"[/size]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2EG5J05048&feature=player_embedded

[BizioEE]

LA Noire release date: April 5 ?

Rockstar and Team Bondi\'s impressive thriller LA Noire could be set for an April 5 release in North America.

That\'s according to several US retailers - including GameStop, GameFly and Amazon - who\'ve all listed April 5 as the launch date.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/284749/news/la-noire-release-date-april-5/?attr=CVG-General-RSS

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[size=+1]First L.A. Noire Gameplay Footage[/size]

After oohing and aahing at the recent cut-scene footage of L.A. Noire – snippets of scenes showcasing Team Bondi’s sublime motion capturing technology – it’s time to get a look at the game in action.

Presented below, check out the first in-depth gameplay video for a look at how the game employs your “detective skills, intuition and cunning” to “make or break each case.”

Entitled “Orientation”, the motley array of in-game scenes depicting witness interrogation, fisticuffs and the game’s shooting mechanics all suggest another mega-hit on Rockstar’s hands.

First in-depth gameplay video
http://www.thesixthaxis.com/2011/02/09/first-l-a-noire-gameplay-footage/


I think it looks great

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LA Noire Naked City Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1rZpkQ0OpU&feature=player_embedded

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New LA Noire Gameplay Video: Investigation & Interrogation
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DKUMU9pdWU&feature=player_embedded

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L.A. Noire "A Slip of the Tongue" Traffic Case Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=hEFoPoCtuBQ

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Mine

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LA Noire Gameplay Series Rising Through the Ranks Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhoDM7gEu6E

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REVIEWS

Gametrailers - 9.1
IGN - 8.5
1UP - A
Gamespot - 9.0
Eurogamer - 8
Metacritic


Great reviews.  Who will get it ?