L.A. Noire Review Round-Up: Rockstar Does it Again

LA Noire has been in development for the last seven years, and if the recent reviews are anything to go by, it seems well worth the wait and a breath of fresh air in an otherwise increasingly stale industry. In the first few reviews published, Joystiq says, "This is a little glimpse of an explored territory in interactive media, a hint at an incredibly exciting future that I can only hope we're hurtling towards," while Giantbomb said, "the game defies the expectations not just for the type of game Rockstar usually releases, but also for the type of game that receives this degree of care and proficiency in its execution." Check out the full-list of published reviews for LA Noire below.

10

guardian.co.uk review
In the past, games with such overwhelming ambitions have floundered on odd, usually peripheral, aspects that jarred – such as unrealistic animation (and especially facial animation), clunky dialogue, poor virtual camerawork or facile characterisation. LA Noire is the first game to lack any such element which naggingly reminds you that you're playing a video game, rather than strolling through a film or TV series.
Read Full Review

10

giantbomb.com review
L.A. Noire is a bold release, because it defies the expectations not just for the type of game Rockstar usually releases, but also for the type of game that receives this degree of care and proficiency in its execution. The world already has enough open-world action games, but a game which marries that open world to such a methodical style of gameplay, with a budget this big, is a rare thing indeed.
Read Full Review

10

gamepro.com review
This stellar detective story from Team Bondi and Rockstar Games is a bold, cinematic step forward in the evolution of the HD-gen adventure game genre.
Read Full Review

10

g4tv.com review
Games traffic in dreams and Rockstar and Team Bondi have served up two of the most potent: the human need to reclaim times lost to us as knowable, and the desire to see the actual world present with mystery and secrets that can deliver us from the banal. L.A. Noire transcends genre and the expectations of what a game can be and casts a spell that I have yet to shake.
Read Full Review

10

videogamer.com review
We've had games that let us play cop before, of course, but it's hard to remember anything that's ever come this close to actually make us feel like we're actually doing the job.
Read Full Review

10

totalvideogames.com review
One surprising element is the sheer breath of LA Noire's primary storyline, which provides plenty of duration despite its fast tempo. With 21 primary case missions to solve, along with 40 side missions and countless collectables, LA Noire packs the breadth of content we've typically come to expect from a Rockstar Games title. Hopefully, Team Bondi will look into the possibility of releasing content cut from the game as the promise of two more desks will be an enticing DLC proposition.
Read Full Review

9.3

nowgamer.com review
L.A. Noire is a game that needed making. It offers something truly unique in an unbeatable setting. It isn’t perfect, but it is a breath of fresh air in an otherwise increasingly stale industry. Team Bondi need to be proud.
Read Full Review

9.2

gameinformer.com review
At times, L.A. Noire is one of the most vivid, gripping game experiences I’ve had. Other times, it can be plain boring. As in much noir fiction, the truth lies in the gray area between those two extremes. It’s an adventure I won’t soon forget, filled with characters as fascinating as they are flawed – a bit like the game itself.
Read Full Review

9.1

gametrailers.com review
No Synopsis Available
Read Full Review | Video Review

9.0

joystiq.com review
This is a little glimpse of an explored territory in interactive media, a hint at an incredibly exciting future that I can only hope we're hurtling towards. L.A. Noire may not always be "fun" in the traditional sense, but it's also unsatisfied with being "merely fun," and the result of that aspiration is something that no one who cares about video games should miss.
Read Full Review

9.0

gamespot.com review
For all of its attention to detail, L.A. Noire hits the occasional false note. For instance, the way people you pass on the street constantly comment loudly to nobody in particular about having seen you in the papers or indicate that you could use a bath is awkward, and it sticks out like a sore thumb in a world that tries so hard to be believable. But this is a minor nitpick with a game that gets under your skin the way few games do.
Read Full Review | Video Review

9.0

metro.co.uk review
You could argue that many of the individual gameplay ideas are not new, but never has any game weaved action and interaction together in such a compelling and seamless manner. For a game filled with so many dark subjects this represents a bright new beginning for serious interactive entertainment.
Read Full Review

9.0

destructoid.com review
L.A. Noire is a testament to the possibility of bringing dark, adult, mature games to the mainstream market. When I say mature, I don't just mean that it throws in sex and violence under the pretense of being for grown-ups. It is truly mature, with the kind of narrative you'd only expect to see in a major TV drama series or crime movie. No game released this generation has tackled the subject matter found in L.A. Noire with the same degree of intelligence and respect, and no game has blended gameplay from various genres so seamlessly, in a way that delivers something far more unique in experience than the sum of its parts.
Read Full Review

8.5

ign.com review
I struggle with L.A. Noire, because at times I love it, yet it has some notable flaws. As a noir fan, I find moments that really get me grinning. There are certain cases that draw me in and side characters who eat up the scene. But it never adds up -- amazing pieces that don’t quite amount to an incredible game. At the same time, no one’s ever played a game like this before. And unless there’s a sequel, I doubt anyone will again for some time. Credit Rockstar for taking a huge risk, for succeeding in many areas, and for offering something fresh and different.
Read Full Review | Video Review

8.0

eurogamer.net review
L.A. Noire may owe its vision of the city to Ellroy and others, but as a game, it can depict it in a way those others can't. McNamara, Team Bondi and Rockstar have taken that responsibility seriously, convincingly peeling away the layers of a sick society over the game's length. That – not the curse words or the grim subject matter or the naked corpses – is what makes L.A. Noire a genuinely mature game.
Read Full Review