Preview by: Justin Amirkhani

If Red Dead Redemption showed Rockstar’s ability to offer something outside the Grand Theft Auto universe, LA Noire shows the company’s ability to completely reinvent what it does.

On first look LA Noire could be easily confused for a 1940’s edition of GTA. After a demonstration of the game’s principal mechanics it’s obvious this assumption would be a gross misstep; in many ways LA Noire is the antithesis of its chaotic predecessor.

Opening the game players are presented with a case book and a list of self-contained stories with a connected narrative arc. Rather than making the game a constant farm of missions, developer Team Bondi is letting each portion of the narrative sit apart. This narrowed focus allows for serial-like gameplay, complete with individual title cards framing the cases like episodes of a TV show.

The case we’re presented with – dubbed The Red Lipstick Murder – opens with a frantic woman being dragged out of a car and clubbed to death by a silhouetted figure. The brutality of the act sets the stage for the case, but doesn’t fully sink in until during a post-briefing visit to the crime scene where we see her naked mutilated body and are asked to carefully inspect her injuries for clues. It has become very clear the game takes a serious approach to mortality.

Walking around the crime scene hunting for clues the tone quickly shifts from somber to curious. Within the small police-tapped park there are over a dozen items to inspect and interact with, all of which add to the mystery with intriguing clues. Some items present very small mini-games before surrendering their information while others simply exist to rotate and examine.

Important clues are written down in a notebook, which acts as both a menu system and repository for case information. It’s a simple but effective system that keeps notes accessible without being obtuse or breaking the suspension of disbelief.