Posts Tagged 'LA Noire'

L.A. NOIRE and the Story That Wasn't There

Hank Quinlan: “Come on, read my future for me.”

In some ways, a game based on Film Noir would be the anti-GTA. Ah, the GTA series! The pursuit of the American Dream! To fight that good fight requires a great deal of optimist, no? The optimist believes the future is within his grasp.

Tanya: “You haven’t got any.”

Noir Films, however, are filled with pessimists who already know that the game they are playing is futile. That what they are playing is actually a poker game of death.

“What do you mean?”

The world is merciless. It’s unforgiving. We are already doomed no matter what we do. In the search of the American Dream, the fall from glory is a surprise; in Film Noir, the surprise would be not to fall from glory.

L.A. Noire isn’t the anti-GTA. It certainly isn’t the gaming equivalent to L.A. Confidential… or Double Indemnity …or even Who Framed Roger Rabbit. L.A. Noire may be many things – but it certainly isn’t Noir.

“Your future is all used up.”

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L.A. NOIRE and the Story That Wasn't There

Hank Quinlan: “Come on, read my future for me.”

In some ways, a game based on Film Noir would be the anti-GTA. Ah, the GTA series! The pursuit of the American Dream! To fight that good fight requires a great deal of optimist, no? The optimist believes the future is within his grasp.

Tanya: “You haven’t got any.”

Noir Films, however, are filled with pessimists who already know that the game they are playing is futile. That what they are playing is actually a poker game of death.

“What do you mean?”

The world is merciless. It’s unforgiving. We are already doomed no matter what we do. In the search of the American Dream, the fall from glory is a surprise; in Film Noir, the surprise would be not to fall from glory.

L.A. Noire isn’t the anti-GTA. It certainly isn’t the gaming equivalent to L.A. Confidential… or Double Indemnity …or even Who Framed Roger Rabbit. L.A. Noire may be many things – but it certainly isn’t Noir.

“Your future is all used up.”

/ 5 Comments

Team Bondi Owe Over $1 Million to Ex-employees

LA Noire’s development has been one of the most troubled in recent memory- a seven year dev cycle, multiple publishers, inhumane work-hours – but one of the most alarming facts surrounding its production was that any employee who didn’t stick it

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Team Bondi Owe Over $1 Million to Ex-employees

LA Noire’s development has been one of the most troubled in recent memory- a seven year dev cycle, multiple publishers, inhumane work-hours – but one of the most alarming facts surrounding its production was that any employee who didn’t stick it

/ Comments Off on Team Bondi Owe Over $1 Million to Ex-employees

Rockstar Tidbits on LA Noire, Red Dead Redemption and Max Payne 3

As we’ve mentioned before, the Max Payne series is defined by its noir-inspired comic book aesthetic, so the move to Sao Paulo raised a few eyebrows. Max Payne without permanent rain? Well, I never. Nevertheless, in an FAQ on their official

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Rockstar Tidbits on LA Noire, Red Dead Redemption and Max Payne 3

As we’ve mentioned before, the Max Payne series is defined by its noir-inspired comic book aesthetic, so the move to Sao Paulo raised a few eyebrows. Max Payne without permanent rain? Well, I never. Nevertheless, in an FAQ on their official

/ One Comment

Team Bondi officially closing down

Confirming Develop’s report in early August, LA Noire developers Team Bondi officially entered administration as of August 30. The Australian-based developer came in to controversy after a number of former employees came forward decrying the low staff retention rate and perpetual crunch-time

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Team Bondi officially closing down

Confirming Develop’s report in early August, LA Noire developers Team Bondi officially entered administration as of August 30. The Australian-based developer came in to controversy after a number of former employees came forward decrying the low staff retention rate and perpetual crunch-time

/ Comments Off on Team Bondi officially closing down

A protagonist is NOT you

Most protagonists are empty, hollow shells in need of something to fill them. Thus was our verdict, as handled by our own Stefan Samurai (this is the link to which this article is a response, by the way… CLICK IT!). What

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A protagonist is NOT you

Most protagonists are empty, hollow shells in need of something to fill them. Thus was our verdict, as handled by our own Stefan Samurai (this is the link to which this article is a response, by the way… CLICK IT!). What

/ 2 Comments

LA Noire developer Team Bondi is no more

Develop are reporting that Team Bondi, the studio responsible for LA Noire, is no more. According to their source, the Australian-based developer and its assets have been absorbed in to Kennedy Mitchell Miller, a Sydney-based multimedia production studio co-founded by

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LA Noire developer Team Bondi is no more

Develop are reporting that Team Bondi, the studio responsible for LA Noire, is no more. According to their source, the Australian-based developer and its assets have been absorbed in to Kennedy Mitchell Miller, a Sydney-based multimedia production studio co-founded by

/ Comments Off on LA Noire developer Team Bondi is no more

LA Noire star Aaron Staton terrible at interrogations, too

Yes, you read that right. The leading man himself, the actor who plays Cole Phelps in the critically acclaimed LA Noire, revealed that he’s not very good at interrogating people in his own game. Speaking in an interview with Edge,

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LA Noire star Aaron Staton terrible at interrogations, too

Yes, you read that right. The leading man himself, the actor who plays Cole Phelps in the critically acclaimed LA Noire, revealed that he’s not very good at interrogating people in his own game. Speaking in an interview with Edge,

/ Comments Off on LA Noire star Aaron Staton terrible at interrogations, too

Who Is Cole Phelps?

Spoilers for those who haven’t finished the game. Who is Cole Phelps? What is he like? Does he have trouble sleeping at night, thinking back on the war, does he feel the weight of the darkness keeping him up? Does

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Who Is Cole Phelps?

Spoilers for those who haven’t finished the game. Who is Cole Phelps? What is he like? Does he have trouble sleeping at night, thinking back on the war, does he feel the weight of the darkness keeping him up? Does

/ One Comment

Minimalism in L.A. Noire

Narrative in video games is all sound and fury and no subtlety. In a word, bang! Active voice, onomateopoeia, very physical and very direct, more akin to a Saturday Morning Cartoon than to a novel or a film. They are

/ 5 Comments

Minimalism in L.A. Noire

Narrative in video games is all sound and fury and no subtlety. In a word, bang! Active voice, onomateopoeia, very physical and very direct, more akin to a Saturday Morning Cartoon than to a novel or a film. They are

/ 5 Comments

LA Noire First Impressions

Despite being only about an hour and a half into LA Noire, boy has the game got me thinkin’ about a million things already. So here’s my gift to you guys: a bunch of disjointed, but hopefully interesting, thoughts! I

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LA Noire First Impressions

Despite being only about an hour and a half into LA Noire, boy has the game got me thinkin’ about a million things already. So here’s my gift to you guys: a bunch of disjointed, but hopefully interesting, thoughts! I

/ One Comment