Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

You are here: MacNN Forums > Enthusiast Zone > Gaming > L.A. Noire

L.A. Noire (Page 2)
Thread Tools
The Final Dakar
Games Meister
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eternity
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 1, 2011, 10:39 AM
 
Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
The short answer? No.
It feels much more uneven than the normal cases where you almost never are in a gun battle, but i think they were looking to add some action, and some gun play into the mix.
That's retarded, but the explanation does make sense. AT least now that I know I won't be so tentative, trying to tackle and grapple people and being rewarded with death.

Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
Well after you finish a desk, an option opens in that desk...in the main screen, click "cases" instead of resume, you can then select "free roam" within each desk, this is where i spent a lot of time collecting cars, street crimes, exploring for golden reels, etc.
That's key information right there. I'm sick of hearing my partner bitch and moan. Not to mention I semi-screwed myself on a case last night because I was supposed receive a message over the radio, only I was busy cruising around in this thing so I didn't get it:


What's the deal with the Golden Reels? Are they supposed to be easy to find or are they all hidden in interiors of random places?

Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
As for the barriers, those are stopping points of the map, the entire city area is open from case one, and you can explore all the way from the LA river to the "Hollywoodland" sign, (i was glad to have the map completely open from the get go)
No, no, no, there are arbitrary roads in the middle of the ****ing map that have those barriers too.

Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
As i've said before, i'm a huge fan of 40's cars, and this game gets me giddy when i find something interesting (Cadillac V16 & Studebaker Commander for example)
That's quite the niche taste. I'd say 90% of these cars are ugly as hell.
     
The Final Dakar
Games Meister
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eternity
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 1, 2011, 01:49 PM
 
Couple more things I only just noticed because I am dumb:

• Time doesn't seem to progress outside of missions (Which is too bad, as the game looks amazing at night in B&W)
• After you cross-out a question, it gives you a check or x telling you if you dun goofed
• I keep losing clues because I'm triggering events with my super-sleuthing. Feels like punishment for being efficient.
• I had a case where I was chastised for letting a guy rot in jail while I chased down the real killer – because any good cop would have cleared that guy's name without having another suspect lined up (rollseyes)
• Ended a mission last night where the boss said I was sloppy and the case was poor, and I'd be working the streets for a while. Next scene we're in a diner and he's congratulating me for constructing such a great case the D.A. got a conviction. Bi-polar much? I was excited with the prospect of having to solve a few street crimes before the game would progress.
• Reviewing one of the cases on the wiki I saw a full "Crash Report" and I have no idea how to get such a thing in game.
     
Kevin Bogues  (op)
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 4, 2011, 08:39 AM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post

What's the deal with the Golden Reels? Are they supposed to be easy to find or are they all hidden in interiors of random places?
They are NOT easy to find, although most are outside (roof tops, parking lots, street corners, etc.)
I've only found a few so far
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
No, no, no, there are arbitrary roads in the middle of the ****ing map that have those barriers too.
I haven't run into any of these...interesting, i wonder what their purpose is.
     
Kevin Bogues  (op)
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 4, 2011, 08:41 AM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post

• Time doesn't seem to progress outside of missions (Which is too bad, as the game looks amazing at night in B&W)
Sounds like i need to at least try out the B&W, i've yet to even give it a shot.
     
The Final Dakar
Games Meister
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eternity
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 4, 2011, 02:57 PM
 
Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
They are NOT easy to find, although most are outside (roof tops, parking lots, street corners, etc.)
I've only found a few so far
We'll see if I bother after I beat the game.

Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
I haven't run into any of these...interesting, i wonder what their purpose is.
There's a definite section of the map it was purposely blocking off for me (slightly right of center, north. Probably a development). I haven't checked since I made the Vice desk.

Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
Sounds like i need to at least try out the B&W, i've yet to even give it a shot.
Do it. I'll give my self color as a reward once I beat the game, when I imagine I'll revisit cases.

Speaking of cases, I swear I'm getting worse at interviews. Not mention I got chewed out on a case that was 90% detective work because I blew two of three questions I had. BS.


Edit: Oh there may be a way to stop some street crimes without killing the perp. Sometimes if you pull out your gun and "mouseover" the perp as they run, a small meter will fill up. Complete it and they surrender.
     
The Final Dakar
Games Meister
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eternity
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 5, 2011, 11:48 AM
 
I think one of my favorite parts of the game so far is I keep spotting this ****er everywhere:



He was drinking at Paul Kinsey's bar, later I spotted him as I was leaving the police station, responded to a crime in progress shortly afterwards, then noticed him fleeing some criminal as I arrived on scene.
     
The Final Dakar
Games Meister
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eternity
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 9, 2011, 07:23 PM
 
Signs Bogues is slacking: I beat this first.
     
Kevin Bogues  (op)
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 19, 2011, 08:07 AM
 
Finally got some time to beat the main campaign, what did you think Dakar?

I just noticed on the "social club" screen in the main menu you can compare your 100% tracking with friends
     
The Final Dakar
Games Meister
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eternity
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 19, 2011, 11:13 AM
 
Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
I just noticed on the "social club" screen in the main menu you can compare your 100% tracking with friends
Yeah, but the stats get ****ed when you replay a mission. Weird.

Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
Finally got some time to beat the main campaign, what did you think Dakar?
Hoo boy. It's been a week or two, so it's not quite as fresh a memory.

First off, the story is a complete mess, and after the ending I can say definitely, it is a piece of shit. The flashbacks are random, mostly uninteresting, poorly animated, and uninformative. Their dispersal is arbitrary as far as I could fathom. By the time you an glean some semblance of continuity with the main story it's too late and still far too little.

The newspaper flashbacks were strange. These stories behind the stories were even more random feeling. They too, took some time to glean their relationship with the main story, and by the time you relate to them it feels frustrating that this additional information is pretty much of zero use to you, gameplay wise.

Aside from the ending, the biggest WTF in game the for me was
 


Ahem.

Gameplay was mixed bag. I think my early review was it was a touch dry and a touch tedious. I think the big takeaway is the clue discovering system does not work as is. By the end you start just spamming the button as you walk around (Then, waiting for animation to reset before performing/canceling actions becomes your new button mashing nightmare). I almost feel it needs to be semi-automated, Psych style. Let me just look around. Automate the grabbing stuff that's relevant.

Then there's the inspection. Too many times you have to hold the joystick just right for it to further reveal a clue. Not to mention it becomes wildly inconsistent. The first time I examined a framed picture, I immediately opened it up and checked the back of the print, finding writing. The rest of the game I probably inspected another 4 or 5 framed photos. I never checked the back of prints for writing again! WHY U NO CONSISTENTLY EXAMINE EVIDENCE COLE?!

Same goes for packs of matches. Most f the time if I see something fro a specific bar or location this is a new destination. But on the occasional crime scene Cole somehow psychically know this pack is irrelevant and the bar is not worth going to. COLE WHY U NO PSYHIC ALWAYS?!


The interrogations were mixed bag. I do wonder if there's a subtlety I missed or if the suspect facial expressions were inconsistent to read. Also, the "Doubt" option seemed like a huge misstep. Call bullshit on someone and they flip out and stonewall. But doubt them and they spill their guts? They either need to remove the option, making the interrogations more binary, or allow partially correct answers, where you get some useful information but not everything.

Now, regarding the facial animation system: It was amazing – to a certain point.

I feel I'm corrupted by all that I've read, but it seemed the further into the game I got, the sloppier and more compressed some of the face would become. Hair is still terrible, and since the actors weren't really conversing each other, line of sight was completely inappropriate at times (character talking to two others, changing to address each one, eyes staring resolutely forward the entire time). Towards the end of the game I noticed that some of the faces would look amazing as long as they wouldn't be larger than a quarter of the screen.

Bodies, however, were typical Rockstar fare. Disjointed, not entirely smoothly animated, and thanks to the new heads, wildly inappropriate at times, in scale, or at least neck.


The street crimes were... not bad, but definitely a Rockstarish addition. As has been noted before, it becomes a Rambo: Streets of LA exercise, constantly dropping perps committing crimes that don't always necessitate brute force. When you add the situation of performing several in a row, you have a work day where you massacred 10+ would-be criminals like they were Japs at Iwo-Jima.

Now for the curve ball – this was completely worth my time (Well, most of it). It's dry, it's tedious, it's convoluted, it's bi-polar – but it's completely unique. This is why games get sequels; The ability to create a polished new gameplay experience is impossible now. However taking this base and building on it leaves a lot of room for potential (I think of Assassin's Creed here, too, as that was quite the repetitive game in it's first iteration).
     
Kevin Bogues  (op)
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 20, 2011, 07:48 AM
 
I agree with most of what you said, i'll quote bomb your reply soon.
     
Kevin Bogues  (op)
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 21, 2011, 08:04 AM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Yeah, but the stats get ****ed when you replay a mission. Weird.
I noticed that, i also noticed on the social club website there is a map that shows locations (general locations) of the golden reels
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
First off, the story is a complete mess, and after the ending I can say definitely, it is a piece of shit. The flashbacks are random, mostly uninteresting, poorly animated, and uninformative. Their dispersal is arbitrary as far as I could fathom. By the time you an glean some semblance of continuity with the main story it's too late and still far too little.

The newspaper flashbacks were strange. These stories behind the stories were even more random feeling. They too, took some time to glean their relationship with the main story, and by the time you relate to them it feels frustrating that this additional information is pretty much of zero use to you, gameplay wise.

Aside from the ending, the biggest WTF in game the for me was
 
Agreed on all accounts, my main gripe is they tried to tie in an interesting story both with newspapers and with the flashbacks, like you said NEITHER materialized but both could have been interesting. Cases were interesting in their own right but the entire matrix of the plot line was both un imaginative and convoluted.

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Gameplay was mixed bag. I think my early review was it was a touch dry and a touch tedious. I think the big takeaway is the clue discovering system does not work as is. By the end you start just spamming the button as you walk around (Then, waiting for animation to reset before performing/canceling actions becomes your new button mashing nightmare). I almost feel it needs to be semi-automated, Psych style. Let me just look around. Automate the grabbing stuff that's relevant.

Then there's the inspection. Too many times you have to hold the joystick just right for it to further reveal a clue. Not to mention it becomes wildly inconsistent. The first time I examined a framed picture, I immediately opened it up and checked the back of the print, finding writing. The rest of the game I probably inspected another 4 or 5 framed photos. I never checked the back of prints for writing again! WHY U NO CONSISTENTLY EXAMINE EVIDENCE COLE?!

Same goes for packs of matches. Most f the time if I see something fro a specific bar or location this is a new destination. But on the occasional crime scene Cole somehow psychically know this pack is irrelevant and the bar is not worth going to. COLE WHY U NO PSYHIC ALWAYS?!


The interrogations were mixed bag. I do wonder if there's a subtlety I missed or if the suspect facial expressions were inconsistent to read. Also, the "Doubt" option seemed like a huge misstep. Call bullshit on someone and they flip out and stonewall. But doubt them and they spill their guts? They either need to remove the option, making the interrogations more binary, or allow partially correct answers, where you get some useful information but not everything.
Perfect description, I felt the clue system was flawed from the beginning, i needed a first person view and more "looking" "investigating" instead of just picking up random objects hoping my controller would vibrate to find a clue, and i couldn't agree more with the inconsistent information from the clues, also i think the coroner was under utilized, there was no real "CSI" investigations back then (for gods sake i was looking at dead bodies without gloves, and pulling clues from their pockets and putting it in mine), i think that a better interaction with bodies within the coroner would of provided at least SOME semblance of preserving the crime scene.

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Now, regarding the facial animation system: It was amazing – to a certain point.

I feel I'm corrupted by all that I've read, but it seemed the further into the game I got, the sloppier and more compressed some of the face would become. Hair is still terrible, and since the actors weren't really conversing each other, line of sight was completely inappropriate at times (character talking to two others, changing to address each one, eyes staring resolutely forward the entire time). Towards the end of the game I noticed that some of the faces would look amazing as long as they wouldn't be larger than a quarter of the screen.

Bodies, however, were typical Rockstar fare. Disjointed, not entirely smoothly animated, and thanks to the new heads, wildly inappropriate at times, in scale, or at least neck.
The facial animations i thought were fantastic, I really feel like this is a first step in the evolution of story driven and character driven games (the system is not perfect by any-means) but i can see how this type of animation can be applied to make awesome interactions next gen (or this gen) in games of all genres. It seems to me like the basic evolution of making games more like movies (at least games with character driven plot lines). I think hair and body types are a victim of old Rockstar, I think that so much time was put into the actual production of this facial animation that the rest just didn't get the attention it needed.
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
The street crimes were... not bad, but definitely a Rockstarish addition. As has been noted before, it becomes a Rambo: Streets of LA exercise, constantly dropping perps committing crimes that don't always necessitate brute force. When you add the situation of performing several in a row, you have a work day where you massacred 10+ would-be criminals like they were Japs at Iwo-Jima.
Exactly as i said earlier, i liked the street crimes, and for the most part enjoyed the ability to do something while i was cruising LA, but it was purely an addition for action types, and for the minimal amount of murdered/drug dealers i killed in the story, i killed 15 people who stole a bottle of whiskey.
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Now for the curve ball – this was completely worth my time (Well, most of it). It's dry, it's tedious, it's convoluted, it's bi-polar – but it's completely unique. This is why games get sequels; The ability to create a polished new gameplay experience is impossible now. However taking this base and building on it leaves a lot of room for potential (I think of Assassin's Creed here, too, as that was quite the repetitive game in it's first iteration).
Even with all the flaws you pointed out (and i agree with) I thought this was a great game, and defiantly deserves a sequel (of some type), as i step back and view the map from a far, and cruise the streets of LA I think that the one thing you didn't mention that impressed me was the actual city, I thought Liberty City in GTA was good, i thought the areas of RDR were great but i couldn't help but think how much time it took to create so much detail as it was in that time. For me the city scape stole the show, and i've read some articles on how much work went into designing it and it makes me appreciate it that much more.
     
The Final Dakar
Games Meister
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eternity
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 21, 2011, 10:05 AM
 
Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
Agreed on all accounts, my main gripe is they tried to tie in an interesting story both with newspapers and with the flashbacks, like you said NEITHER materialized but both could have been interesting. Cases were interesting in their own right but the entire matrix of the plot line was both un imaginative and convoluted.
I don't even see the need to have a story. The answer was right there anyway; The Black Dahlia cases which conclude Homicide and tie together. Further, saving them for last would have made more sense as they even comment in the game that getting moved off Homicide to anywhere else is a demotion.


i needed a first person view
Good call, I forgot to mention this. The nature of third-person cameras is clumsy and if you watch you characters on screen actions while you're "searching for clues you look like a drunk, blind man.


Even with all the flaws you pointed out (and i agree with) I thought this was a great game, and defiantly deserves a sequel (of some type), as i step back and view the map from a far, and cruise the streets of LA I think that the one thing you didn't mention that impressed me was the actual city, I thought Liberty City in GTA was good, i thought the areas of RDR were great but i couldn't help but think how much time it took to create so much detail as it was in that time. For me the city scape stole the show, and i've read some articles on how much work went into designing it and it makes me appreciate it that much more.
Did you play night in B&W?

I've been enjoying the game in color, but replaying missions is far less fun than I thought it would be. The clue finding part is twice as tedious since it was hard to screw up, so I'm just trying to find everything as fast as I can so I can get to the interviews – the hard part. Then that becomes twice as hard as I don't recall what I should do there and I get aggravated when I make the same mistakes.
     
Kevin Bogues  (op)
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 25, 2011, 03:38 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Did you play night in B&W?
Yes, i was extremely impressed, i ended up playing my last few missions in B&W, defiantly a cool experience.
-------------
Had some time to put in today and got my way through the rest of my Film Reels (general locations on the social club map were sufficient to find the rest)

Also did some more car hunting and got myself to 89/95 ...before I had to resort to a guide, i was left with a few service vehicles (including a second ambulance i never saw before), a police car (van?), and some odd 2/4 door cars.

In the end got myself to 100% game completion
I've actually got 100% completion in GTA IV, RDR, and now L.A Noire.

Still have 9/10 missions to back through and get 5 stars to finish out the achievement list, which I'm actually dreading.
     
The Final Dakar
Games Meister
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eternity
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 25, 2011, 03:44 PM
 
Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
Also did some more car hunting and got myself to 89/95 ...before I had to resort to a guide, i was left with a few service vehicles (including a second ambulance i never saw before), a police car (van?), and some odd 2/4 door cars.
That's impressive.

I've managed to get myself to around 65 cars... without jacking a single car ever. I saw an exterminator or milkman or something, and I kept wrecking into him, but the bastard was determined not to get out of his vehicle. I kept blocking his path until I did a 360º sweep with the camera and he magically despawned. They can't fix that in open world games fast enough.
     
Kevin Bogues  (op)
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 25, 2011, 03:48 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
I've managed to get myself to around 65 cars... without jacking a single car ever. I saw an exterminator or milkman or something, and I kept wrecking into him, but the bastard was determined not to get out of his vehicle. I kept blocking his path until I did a 360º sweep with the camera and he magically despawned. They can't fix that in open world games fast enough.
Actually that's impressive, I've been pulling out my badge and gun to steal civilians rides since my first mission.
I found a few of the service vehicles were just different flavors of the same car which kept me from paying attention thinking that i already had that vehicle.

In general i love the car collecting in this game, but i was wishing for a garage, where i could collect and make any car a "police" vehicle and cruise to missions.
     
The Final Dakar
Games Meister
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eternity
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 25, 2011, 03:51 PM
 
The feature I thought was missing was allowing you to choose what rare vehicle you wanted once you discovered a location. I'm not interested in driving 5 minutes just to get a car I want when a similar garage is near by.
     
Kevin Bogues  (op)
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 25, 2011, 03:51 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
I saw an exterminator or milkman or something, and I kept wrecking into him, but the bastard was determined not to get out of his vehicle. I kept blocking his path until I did a 360º sweep with the camera and he magically despawned. They can't fix that in open world games fast enough.
Had an experience like this earlier, i'm cruising the streets, I finally found a fuel truck (been looking for 30 minutes), i jump out of my ride to catch it at the red light, light turns green, i take off running, followed it for three blocks, it made a turn, i round the bend and....
     
Kevin Bogues  (op)
Senior User
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Charlotte, NC
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 25, 2011, 03:53 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
The feature I thought was missing was allowing you to choose what rare vehicle you wanted once you discovered a location. I'm not interested in driving 5 minutes just to get a car I want when a similar garage is near by.
Agreed, why did i always have to take my partners car, I would of liked to at least been able to choose from discovered cars to spawn at the police station on each desk.
     
Leonard
Professional Poster
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Jul 25, 2011, 04:28 PM
 
Originally Posted by Kevin Bogues View Post
Had an experience like this earlier, i'm cruising the streets, I finally found a fuel truck (been looking for 30 minutes), i jump out of my ride to catch it at the red light, light turns green, i take off running, followed it for three blocks, it made a turn, i round the bend and....
Yeah, I've seen that happen in Saint's Row 2 where you have to collect cars. Sometimes if you let them get out of view, once you saw them, they would un-spawn.
Mac Pro Dual 3.0 Dual-Core
MacBook Pro
     
 
Thread Tools
 
Forum Links
Forum Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Top
Privacy Policy
All times are GMT -4. The time now is 11:18 AM.
All contents of these forums © 1995-2017 MacNN. All rights reserved.
Branding + Design: www.gesamtbild.com
vBulletin v.3.8.8 © 2000-2017, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.,