Sun, Feb 07, 2010 | 19:14 GMT

First LA Noire info from GI revealed

lanoire

The first pieces of info from LA Noire has been revealed in the latest issue of Game Informer, as promised.

Just as revealed back in October, the main character is called Cole Phelps, who is a part of a corrupt LAPD in 1947.

As the game starts, Phelps gets promoted in his department from traffic and vice, before ending up in homicide.

Find the rest of the info below, courtsey of AGB.

  • Phelps has his own issues to deal with, including some very bad things he did in World War II.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.

Awesome.

It was revealed last week, after the feature was announced, the game would be a multiplatform affair for PS3 and 360 at least, after previously been thought to be a PlayStation 3 exclusive.

It’s also thought to be coming to PC as well.

No date yet, but Geoff Keighley reckons it’s September.

27 comment-trail-alt Posted in: Action, Adventure, Hot, PS3, Rockstar, Xbox 360
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27 comments

#1

Johnny Cullen
07/02/10, 7:16 pm

We hear nothing for three-and-a-half years, yet it’s out in seven months?

WHAT THE FUCK!? 8O

#2

AHA-Lambda
07/02/10, 7:21 pm

Well those details sound good but no gameplay and SEPTEMBER!?!? Colour me cynical for now :|

#3

psxman
07/02/10, 7:22 pm

After reading about the piece Kotaku put up about this (http://kotaku.com/5456884/rumor-la-noires-development-more-of-a-mess-than-wed-imagined) I’m being super cautious about this game.

Also, I hope that ‘full make-up’ the actors are wearing actually means something, because when I think of motion capture, the last thing I think of is tarting someone up and sticking balls to their face.

#4

onlineatron
07/02/10, 7:22 pm

September is reasonable… it’s been in development for a looong time!

Sounds really interesting too :D

#5

Yoshi
07/02/10, 9:06 pm

Hopfully it wont be stiff gameplay like Getaway. BTW most of the details will probz just be released at E3 ;)

#6

KAP
07/02/10, 9:10 pm

“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.”

They serious?

#7

Psychotext
07/02/10, 9:23 pm

They’re probably talking about that crazy stuff Nvidia (or was it ATI?) showed off last year which allowed them to completely capture a face without using standard motion capture elements.

#8

loki
07/02/10, 9:45 pm

“It’s also thought to be coming to PC as well” – I hope only in PC gamers dreams

#9

onlineatron
07/02/10, 10:01 pm

@7
Probably why it’s taken so long for the game to manifest itself then. The ideas been there but the technology/funds have been lacking.

If rumors are to be believed I guess Sony provided a large portion of the money though.

#10

Psychotext
07/02/10, 10:23 pm

I’m trying to find it (the tech) but drawing a blank on what it was called. It was like this: http://www.mova.com/flash/ but even better.

#12

Erthazus
07/02/10, 11:46 pm

I hope it will come to PC. I don’t want to play it on PS3.

#13

psxman
08/02/10, 12:54 am

@11 I remember seeing that as a ‘featured’ video on YouTube some time last year.

Thought it was for Heavy Rain…. oops >.>

#14

RGW1982
08/02/10, 1:32 am

Game Sounds Boring.. Pass.

#15

Blerk
08/02/10, 8:35 am

Well, it sounds kind of different – if it’s not just a straight GTA clone in a different time period then that automatically wins it a bit of a nod.

I’d have rather been a PI than a police detective, though. Much more interesting to work cases around the corrupt law rather than from within it.

#16

onlineatron
08/02/10, 10:11 am

@Blerk

Yes but this way you get to experience a variety of different jobs, which sounds rather interesting.

#17

Blerk
08/02/10, 10:13 am

Traffic duty sounds interesting? :-D

#18

onlineatron
08/02/10, 10:38 am

I’ll put cones out like pro!

#19

Blerk
08/02/10, 10:44 am

You can’t park there. You don’t look like a doctor to me.

#20

onlineatron
08/02/10, 10:46 am

‘That tax disk is about to run out, you should get that sorted’

#21

Blerk
08/02/10, 10:48 am

What kind of bribe did you have in mind, madam?

#22

onlineatron
08/02/10, 10:59 am

‘What beat they got you on today Steve?’

‘Oh, not much, just keeping an eye on the dogging circut round bethnal green’

#23

NGCes26294BIV
08/02/10, 11:05 am

I really don’t get why Rockstar has sacrificed a multiformat release for RS-North’s Agent in order to bring a 7-years-in-development-hell title onto multiple consoles?

It sounds cool, but The Getaway wasn’t THAT good, was it?

#24

Blerk
08/02/10, 11:15 am

Do we actually know that’s what happened for sure, though? That’s all just internets-o-rumour, is it not? They’ve never actually come out and said that’s what happened.

Edit: And The Getaway was shit. :-D

#25

NGCes26294BIV
08/02/10, 12:02 pm

No, it may not be official, but it is a fact that Sony pumped a ton-o-money into LA’s development, and someone must have paid up for the game to go multiformat.

I also see no benefit to RSN releasing Agent on one format, especially when you look at the sales split on 360/PS3 for GTAIV.

When you look at the evidence, the trade off rumour just makes sense.

#26

Blerk
08/02/10, 12:11 pm

Sony did pump a ton of money into it, but at the end of the day they didn’t want it. Would Rockstar really ‘do a deal’ to ensure it goes multi-format when they could’ve just changed the name and said it was an ‘entirely new game’? Could Sony have even demanded a deal when they’d basically thrown the project in the bin?

It sort of makes sense on some levels but I get the idea that it’s still not quite right.

#27

NGCes26294BIV
08/02/10, 12:37 pm

Yeah, fair point.

Be interesting to know the truth, either way.

I’m just a bitter 360 owner that knows Agent is going to be awesome ;)

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