Preview of: L.A. Noire

Reviewer: Dan McDonough

Title: L.A. Noire

Genre: FPS/Sandbox

Platform: Xbox 360

            Rockstar’s next big title L.A. Noire is set to come out in spring 2010. It is set in a perfectly recreation of 1940’s Los Angeles. It draws aesthetic elements from film noir of the 1940’s, and 50’s, giving the game a very unique look. It also uses global illumination, adding more realistic lighting to the game. Unlike Rockstar’s previous games, L.A. Noire is much more linear and puts more emphasis on the story line. You play as Cole Phelps, an honorable police officer in the middle of a department scandal. You start as a cop in training and soon become a traffic cop, investigating car crimes. You work on several different desks with many missions, working your way up to Homicide Detective. A very cool feature is the level of how much you can interact with witnesses, and suspects, and absorbing information to solve the case you are working on. L.A. Noire looks great, and with Rockstar’s reputation should be, but we can only wait and see.