• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Team Bondi's L.A. NOIRE |OT| Watchin' Faces, Solvin' Cases

People didn't like arson? I haven't gotten through all of it yet, but so far its my favorite desk. Thought the majority of Vice and Homocide were kind of just ok. I liked the last case in Vice, and I really like Earle now, as a character, because of how much of a total dick he is.

I really think this is a YMMV sort of game for the people unsure of whether or not to press on. I was getting disinterested during Homocide and Vice and frustrated with some of the game's system, but I push on because I don't typically quit things I start.
 
I finished the game and didn't find myself liking it too much. My biggest problem with the game is that every mission follows a set formula pretty closely, and I don't find any of the aspects of that formula to be particularly enjoyable.

Looking for clues was just a trial in walking around and waiting for my controller to vibrate. The interrogations were a lot of guesswork if I didn't have the evidence. Some were obvious, but I usually was not too confident in my selection. The action sequences are decent enough, but nothing special. The story was pretty good and the voice-work and facial animation were impeccable, but it wasn't enough to make it a good experience for
 

Pandemic

Member
I'm loving the side missions, where you chase criminals, etc. So good.

Does anyone know how I'd change back into the police officers clothing?
 

fernoca

Member
Pandemic said:
Does anyone know how I'd change back into the police officers clothing?
You can't. (unless you replay the Patrol Desk)
The gun he uses during Patrol is also exclusive to that desk, so keep that in mind if you're looking for the achievement/trophy of using all guns.
 

1stStrike

Banned
Pandemic said:
I'm loving the side missions, where you chase criminals, etc. So good.

Does anyone know how I'd change back into the police officers clothing?

Due to the crappy controls that shit was pissing me off later on when they started bolting all over the place.
 

unomas

Banned
Finally finished this game an hour ago, thank you god. It got better towards the end, but not the kind of game that kept me hooked like I wanted it to. I won't be going back for any achievements, this baby is hitting Amazon!
 

Turnstyle

Member
Finished the game last night. The story lost it's appeal to me halfway through because I watched my girlfriend finish it first, so I knew what was coming. I still really loved it though.

Just working on finishing the street cases and getting those last few cars. The film reels will take forever, and will definitely require a map. Luckily Rockstars social club is pretty good for that.

You can tell that a lot of content must have been cut from the game, and I hope we see it in DLC at some point. After putting 20+ hours into it, I happened across the airport last night. This seemed like the perfect place for a case to for me. And no, you can't fly the planes :eek:(

Oh, and how the hell do you stop a crimimal by shooting in the air? I have never managed it.
 

fernoca

Member
Turnstyle said:
Oh, and how the hell do you stop a crimimal by shooting in the air? I have never managed it.
That can only be done during chases (with guns). While the other guy's running and you aim with the Left Trigger, a circle starts filling slowly. If you hold it at the guy enough until the circle's full; Cole will shoot in the air (a warning shot)to scare the other guy and stop him. There, achievement/trophy unlocked. :p

I got it in the Arson Desk, on the case were you have to
look out for the 3 guys that had criminal records and one of them starts running through the houses. Instead of following him directly, I went through the side of the house, so that he ended directly in front of (and passed) me. As he passed me, I stood there aiming as he entered one of the houses, since he always takes that route completely straight.
 

Turnstyle

Member
fernoca said:
That can only be done during chases (with guns). While the other guy's running and you aim with the Left Trigger, a circle starts filling slowly. If you hold it at the guy enough until the circle's full; Cole will shoot in the air (a warning shot)to scare the other guy and stop him. There, achievement/trophy unlocked. :p

I got it in the Arson Desk, on the case were you have to
look out for the 3 guys that had criminal records and one of them starts running through the houses. Instead of following him directly, I went through the side of the house, so that he ended directly in front of (and passed) me. As he passed me, I stood there aiming as he entered one of the houses, since he always takes that route completely straight.

Ahhhh, ok....

I assumed the meter was filling up for a direct shot. I had tried shooting into the air 'manually', with not luck. This explains it.

Cheers, will try this out.
 

Shiggy

Member
Don't lose your head ;)

bondi1sn69.jpg

bondi28uza.jpg
 

Adam Prime

hates soccer, is Mexican
Just started the game.

I really like it, it feels very much like a solid Phoenix Wright game with investigating and questioning suspects. The only thing that I really dislike about the game is that I really can't figure out the Truth/Doubt/Lie system.

Am I supposed to be calling BS on their answers or their mannerisms? A lot of times their statement is true, but the way they said it and their obvious facial expressions makes them suspicious.

Another question, the controller vibrates on all things that I can investigate, not necessarily clues, correct? Like in the first case I could pick up model air planes and ducks, I knew that had nothing to do with anything, but why was the controller vibrating like that was something important? Does it vibrate for just anything that you can touch, and then once you did the first time it stops? That's kind of annoying for certain things that you KNOW are not going to be related to the case.


Other than those two gripes, I mostly enjoy the game. The acting does seem a bit stiff at time, and Cole's ANGRY VOICE when doubting is out of character, but hilarious nonetheless.
 

Sectus

Member
Adam Prime said:
Another question, the controller vibrates on all things that I can investigate, not necessarily clues, correct? Like in the first case I could pick up model air planes and ducks, I knew that had nothing to do with anything, but why was the controller vibrating like that was something important? Does it vibrate for just anything that you can touch, and then once you did the first time it stops? That's kind of annoying for certain things that you KNOW are not going to be related to the case.
You hear the jingle and the rumble whenever you find something you can interact with. If it's something you know is not related to the case, ignore it. If you accidentally walk towards that item again, it'll stop being highlighted.
 

luxarific

Nork unification denier
De4th Strike said:
Anyone else managed to find the Cord hardtop on PS3?
It is the only thing holding me back from platinum.

I used this guide. Accurate, except for the Plymouth Sedan, which I could only find using the Wiki guidance.

In any case, try the following for the Cord hardtop:

Location: Hollywood. Outside the Hollywood Police Station at the beginning of "The Naked City."

Adam Prime said:
I really like it, it feels very much like a solid Phoenix Wright game with investigating and questioning suspects. The only thing that I really dislike about the game is that I really can't figure out the Truth/Doubt/Lie system.

Am I supposed to be calling BS on their answers or their mannerisms? A lot of times their statement is true, but the way they said it and their obvious facial expressions makes them suspicious.

99.9% of the time its their mannerisms (they'll blink rapidly, shift their eyes, or swallow, in most cases all three). However, unless you have a piece of evidence you can point to, if you choose "lie", your accusation will fail. If you don't have any evidence at all, but they look shifty, choose doubt. You can also choose lie, if you don't have any evidence at all, but you'll have to back out of the lie (pressing "O" on PS3, don't know what the 360 equivalent is).

BUT! Picking "lie" when you don't have evidence or don't know what evidence can be used to back up the accusation can be helpful however, since Cole or the suspect will often say something that will clue you in to what evidence you should use to back up the accusation. So, if you're sure you don't have any evidence that you think can be used to back up an accusation, choose "doubt". If you think you may have evidence, but don't know what it is, choose "lie" and listen to what Cole or the suspect say. If you still don't know what evidence you should pick, back out of the accusation and go with doubt or use an intuition point, which will cross out evidence you definitely shouldn't use.
 
I NEED SCISSORS said:
One thing I do wish they made more obvious were the importance of the newspapers - they are arguably the most valuable 'audio diary' that I have encountered in any game, so much so that I would consider them mandatory viewing to understand all the intricacies of the plot. I personally got 12/13 of them, but my concern is that some people might have missed more, and hence didn't receive their full benefit as storytelling devices. I think they should have been elevated to the same level as the Marine flashbacks (which themselves were effective in building the relationship between Phelps and his company, particularly Kelso).

I'm highly suspicious that the newspapers were a *very* late addition to the game when those story scenes could no longer be worked into the game organically after a ton of content was cut. I'd wager most or all of those scenes were parts of cases, originally.
 

Adam Prime

hates soccer, is Mexican
If I'm going through the game trying to get 5-Stars on everything, do yall think it's better to replay the mission directly after completing it, or will it have some sort of value to go back through the game once you finish it the first time in order to better appreciate the story on some level?
 

calder

Member
On the final case now, really enjoyed the game. But damn it sorta falls apart narratively at the end, the various plot strands seem really rushed to resolution the last few cases, and the jumbled result is almost confusing. Add some of the staggering coincidences that start popping up in the latter half (and a few just baffling decisions by some characters) and it's taking a bit of the shine off the story and characters I loved so much the first 2/3rds of the game.

Ah well, still nothing else quite like it and it does a lot very well. And any game that my wife actually plays (and loves) by herself has to be doing something right.
 

luxarific

Nork unification denier
Adam Prime said:
If I'm going through the game trying to get 5-Stars on everything, do yall think it's better to replay the mission directly after completing it, or will it have some sort of value to go back through the game once you finish it the first time in order to better appreciate the story on some level?

I'm personally going to wait until the remaining 2 dlc cases are released and then go through it again trying to five star everything and all the dlc cases.
 

Pandemic

Member
fernoca said:
You can't. (unless you replay the Patrol Desk)
The gun he uses during Patrol is also exclusive to that desk, so keep that in mind if you're looking for the achievement/trophy of using all guns.
When you say replay, do you mean start the whole game over again, or is it possible to do the Patrol desk missions again?
 

Turnstyle

Member
Pandemic said:
When you say replay, do you mean start the whole game over again, or is it possible to do the Patrol desk missions again?

Yes, just go to Cases from the main menu, and Patrol Desk is the first file.

I need 4 more cars to get the lot. Even with a guide it's a pain in the arse.
 

crispyben

Member
Can any PS3 owners please tell me the file size for each DLC included in the Rockstar Pass? I'm short on disk space for now, so that information would come handy, but all my Google searches take me to JTAG downloads... Thanks.
 
I am not sure exactly why but I didn't really like this game too much. The only case I found really enjoyable was the first one for the vice desk. It was nicely self contained for the most part and had a nice variety of interrogation, puzzle solving and action. The rest of the cases namely for arson and homicide desks were incredibly unsatisfying.
Mainly because most of them end up being extremely vague and none have a definite conclusion at all. So even when you do finish the case there is absolutely no satisfaction from it

Not even going to mention how absolutely awful the ending is.
 
Got the game a few days ago and I'm loving it so far.

Interrogations are frustrating, I can't consistently read the person whether they're lying or not. Every person is different.

Other than that it's pretty good.
 
Finished the game, and I really enjoyed it, but it's definitely in the lower class of recent Rockstar releases.

- The pace whole game needed to be more visceral, and more urgent. The investigations should've been the "slow" portion while the chases, shootouts, and interrogations should've been intense. The problem was that the on foot chases were slow, the in car chases were WAY over scripted with the AI pulling crazy turns out of their ass, and the interrogations were a bit too videogamey.

- In a sequel I hope they do something significant with the open wold instead of it just being there. Day/night cycle please, and give the city some personality. Much too "ghost town" for my liking. Have TRUE street crimes that pop up randomly like RDR as well.

- They should have tons of BRANCHING story options. No more telling me what I got "wrong" immediately after I choose it, just branch the story in another direction.

- Lighting and camera work during cutscenes should be MUCH more dramatic, and moody. They didn't play with the lighting nearly enough, and the cutscenes were very bland.

- Shooting, and movement need to be tightened up, period. Shooting was unsatisfying, there were no body physics, and movement when doing anything but walking was completely GTA IV.

In the end though, I appreciate when they did here, and as much as some of those issues were nagging me, I can help but thank God that Rockstar and Team Bondi are here to put this type of experience out there in the middle of the shooter shitstorm we're currently in. THIS is a mature game, and not because of the language, nudity, or violence.
 

Superimposer

This is getting weirder all the time
Really quick question, how do you ask for driving directions? Just started Fallen Idol, have yet to experience them.
 

luxarific

Nork unification denier
crispyben said:
Can any PS3 owners please tell me the file size for each DLC included in the Rockstar Pass? I'm short on disk space for now, so that information would come handy, but all my Google searches take me to JTAG downloads... Thanks.

The Naked City: 1272 MB
A Slip of the Tongue: 687 MB
The Consul's Car: 664 MB

Everything else, the suits, weapons, the pass itself, and the Badge Pursuit challenge, are in the range of 100-500 kb each.

Superimposer said:
Really quick question, how do you ask for driving directions? Just started Fallen Idol, have yet to experience them.

Press square when you're driving with a partner and the partner will tell you the direction to go in.
 
Net_Wrecker said:
No more telling me what I got "wrong" immediately after I choose it, just branch the story in another direction.

Was one of the first complaints I voiced and ultimately ruined the game for me. Even if the story didn't branch, I still don't understand the choice to immediately tell us when we made a mistake. Basically removed any and all chance of mystery/uncertainty in one fell swoop.
 

crispyben

Member
luxarific said:
The Naked City: 1272 MB
A Slip of the Tongue: 687 MB
The Consul's Car: 664 MB

Everything else, the suits, weapons, the pass itself, and the Badge Pursuit challenge, are in the range of 100-500 kb each.
Thanks a bunch luxarific, I appreciate you looking it up :) Since I'm in Europe, no Consul's Car for me, so I'm looking at 2 GB... Hopefully it fits!
 

jackdoe

Member
Just beat the game. Wow. The ending was truly atrocious.

I get the need to kill a main character in a noire story. I truly do. But the way Team Bondi handled it was completely terrible. By spending the last two hours of the game with Jack Kelso (a head scratching decision) you pretty much disconnect players from the character of Cole Phelps. For fuck's sakes, you don't even play as Cole for the last level leading up to his death! And his death scene was a fucking joke. Ugh. Ending pretty much soured my entire experience with the game.
 

dangrib

Member
hi guys. im in the arson section at the moment so i know im nearing the end of the game.

i just purchased the rockstar pass too. so i was wondering is it possible to finish the main game then do the DLC cases later or do i need to download them now?
 

fernoca

Member
dangrib said:
i just purchased the rockstar pass too. so i was wondering is it possible to finish the main game then do the DLC cases later or do i need to download them now?
Yeah, you can do them later.
Just go to the respective files/desks to choose them (Vice = The Naked City, Traffic = A Slip of the tongue,...)
 
I have to say I'm disappointed in this game. It started out so promising and awesome but just seems to drag on. I'm on the last case now and can't wait for it to end.
Kelso has to be the lamest playable character I've had the misfortune of playing as in a long, long time.
 
I thought Tom Bissell's Extra Lives book was mostly dumb, but he kinda kills LA Noire in this review:

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/6625747/view/full/la-noire

Gamers are trained to view every video-game encounter as an input-output clash, but to approach L.A. Noire in this manner turns its most human element into something unpleasantly android. During interrogations, you are not supposed to control Cole Phelps. You can only guide him, as one might guide a slightly crazy boxer.

...

Playing L.A. Noire, one cannot help but wonder whether an involved, character-driven story even belongs in an open-world video game. If a game like L.A. Noire is unable to pull this kind of thing off, can any video game?

...

I played [50 Cent: Blood on the Sand] through in two days, after which I wondered if the single most damning thing about video games is the fact that one could argue, legitimately, that 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand is a better game than L.A. Noire.

But ultimately:

Interactivity sabotages storytelling. There is no longer any use arguing to the contrary. Thus, the story of L.A. Noire can never be good — at least, not in the way it is trying to be. As a story, then, L.A. Noire is not successful. As a game, too, L.A. Noire fails. In a lot of ways, it is a terrible game: frustratingly arbitrary, puzzlingly noncommunicative, and not very fun. But I love L.A. Noire. I think it's fantastic. What this suggests is that we need a new name for whatever it is that L.A. Noire does.

...

L.A. Noire comes closer than any previous digital experience to showing us where the hands are on the clock: half past movie, a quarter past video game, and a quarter to … what, exactly? I have no idea, which is a large part of what makes the game wonderful. L.A. Noire's failures are not that important when weighed against its successes, and the first video game, or whatever we wind up calling it, to do perfectly what L.A. Noire does surprisingly well right now will be hailed as the real breakthrough. It is, finally, a game that made me certain, after months of morose uncertainty, that any writer who is not interested in what we are now calling "video games" is a bystander to one of the most important conceptual shifts between story and storyteller in a hundred years.
 
Okay so I'm stuck on the
case with the serial killer and he's leaving his notes around the city. I've just done to one with the pyramid top on the building, but I have no idea where to go next. I've check all the other landmarks I've unlocked but none of them are right?
 

Superimposer

This is getting weirder all the time
Scythian Empire said:
Okay so I'm stuck on the
case with the serial killer and he's leaving his notes around the city. I've just done to one with the pyramid top on the building, but I have no idea where to go next. I've check all the other landmarks I've unlocked but none of them are right?

I don't want to give it completely away but
the locations involved in this case which you haven't yet discovered show up as question marks on the map. Look at these and it should become clear when you consider the clue, especially the "black deep" part.
 
Just platinum'd this bitch.

The only difficult trophy/achievement I had was the Public Menace. I kept completing the mission just under $47k in damage. Easiest way is doing "The Driver's Seat" mission since it's the shortest and using the Duesenberg Walker Coupe car, it's a bonus car and I used about 9-10 of them and racked up fucking $130k worth of damage.
 

sneaky77

Member
So I finally finished this today, at the end I had to force myself to finish it. The interrogation system of truth, doubt, lie, never quite worked for me, and the story in the end was disappointing. It was a decent game, but I don't think it should have gotten a lot of the high marks it received.
 
Today my mother came in, while I was playing LA Noire, she watched a little how I was trying to solve a case and then asked: "Why is this guying touching everything with his bare hands." :/

Seriously that must be the most annoying shit in this game. Plus the fact that 90% of my interrogations lead to "doubt"...
 

Superimposer

This is getting weirder all the time
Alright, so... just finished.

Why the hell would Earle attend the funeral in his regular attire? Also what about Cohen and the morphine? I thought that was going to be the main thrust of the game after the case where everyone on the ship is being killed off...

A rushed ending, I felt some things were a bit shoehorned in needlessly
I thoguht Kelso and Phelps teaming up was definitely shoehorned in towards the end for the sake of imitating L.A. Confidential to be honest, and the Elsa affair - wtf was that about
, but overall I thought it was a great game, much better than most of GAF seems to believe.
 

dwebo

Member
goku3000 said:
are the dlc worth the money?
I think so, of the two released so far anyway. If you liked the game, or if you didn't like the desks after traffic mainly because
all the cases were interrelated
, you'll like the DLC cases. If you just didn't like game full stop, then there's nothing in the DLC that will change your mind.
 

Qatar

Member
one downside about the game is that the open world is mostly useless. that's why I always let my partner drive as I got bored from driving from a location to another without anything interesting on the streets.
I like the game overall and I enjoy the interrogation a lot. I am going to finish it soon.
 

schick85

Member
Qatar said:
one downside about the game is that the open world is mostly useless. that's why I always let my partner drive as I got bored from driving from a location to another without anything interesting on the streets.
I like the game overall and I enjoy the interrogation a lot. I am going to finish it soon.
Legitimate question: How did you have your partner drive? It would change my view of the game somewhat if this is true. I always found it weird having them ride shotgun. It's their car you know.
 
Top Bottom