Friday, May 27, 2011

This Is Not Your Nephew’s Video Game

 
  Courtesy of Rockstar Games


We have to admit that video games really aren’t thing. To put it in perspective, the last time we actually were hooked on them Pac-Man had just donned a bow for the first time. The modern beat ‘em up, shoot ‘em up style just doesn’t appeal to us. But then came L.A. Noire.

This game is a nod to the classic Noir films like The Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep. Set in 1947 Los Angeles it’s like getting to be a virtual character in Curtis Hanson’s L.A. Confidential.

The player starts off as patrolman Cole Phelps and rises through the ranks — ultimately serving as a traffic detective, homicide detective, vice agent and arson investigator. Sure there’s the requisite amount of video game fighting to be done but problem solving and sleuthing skills come into play as well.

Plus it looks super slick in an old movie kind of way not common in the gaming world. And the music will put you in a Noir mood, too. The soundtrack includes new tracks written by The Real Tuesday Weld and performed by German singer Claudia Brücken. But it also relies on original recordings by jazz greats Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday to help set the tone.

Finally a grown-up game has arrived. Rockstar Games’ L.A. Noire is available for Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 and is in stores now.

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