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Long-Delayed L.A. Noire Gets Trailer, Spring 2011 Release

Posted by Soulskill on from the dark-and-stormy-night dept.

It's been years since the announcement of L.A. Noire, an expansive murder mystery game set in 1940s Los Angeles. After several lengthy delays, Rockstar Games has now posted a trailer and confirmed that the game will release in Spring of 2011. One of the game's major undertakings is to step up the realism of the voice acting and the way characters' faces and bodies are animated, "allowing players to analyze every subtle nuance of an actor's performance in order to get to the truth." The trailer shows in-game footage (though not actual gameplay), and while it's always a good idea to take such displays with a grain of salt, the facial expressions do look pretty realistic.

47 of 54 comments (clear)

  1. I think this about sums it up by QuantumG · · Score: 4, Insightful

    http://i.imgur.com/BITmX.jpg

    --
    How we know is more important than what we know.
    1. Re:I think this about sums it up by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      If you ignore the fact that it features a huge sandbox world many times the size of all combined doom levels, and isn't even an FPS, then your point stands! A++ would read again!

    2. Re:I think this about sums it up by Rogerborg · · Score: 1

      Bingo. Shaping up to be a $60 movie. Left, wait, up, wait, right, wait... on noes a Dragon!

      --
      If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
    3. Re:I think this about sums it up by imakemusic · · Score: 1

      I hope you're right. However, "huge sandbox world" could just mean a big world that you have to drive through to get between the rigidly defined points of action.

      --
      Brain surgery - it's not rocket science!
    4. Re:I think this about sums it up by ildon · · Score: 1, Troll

      RTFA. This game isn't an FPS it's a sandbox game like GTA3. Everyone who modded this insightful instead of off topic is an idiot and should go back to reddit.

  2. Uncanny Valley here we come! by antifoidulus · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The faces do look real, but I am going to have to agree with the uncanny valley crowd here and say that they look creepy.....maybe it looks better on an hd tv than it does in the trailer, but damn those things were creepy.

    --
    Monstar L
    1. Re:Uncanny Valley here we come! by caius112 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      The faces do look real, but I am going to have to agree with the uncanny valley crowd here and say that they look creepy.....maybe it looks better on an hd tv than it does in the trailer, but damn those things were creepy.

      It's chiefly because of the terrible (or rather, nonexistent) lighting. Seriously, it looks like global lighting from a 2002 game. I hope it's because it's only an alpha.

    2. Re:Uncanny Valley here we come! by naz404 · · Score: 1

      Also, they have absolutely horrendous eye-capture technology.

      Except for some cultures like the Japanese where they talk without making a lot of eye contact, a large part of facial expressions & mannerism is with the the eyes.

      Valve's Half-Life 2 was amazing because of this (well, they did bag the guy who worked on Gollum's animations...)

      That being said, Noire looks like it's full of creepy animated corpses because the eyes aren't alive. They keep staring in the distance instead of properly focusing at proper objects/people and flicking around like normal human beings.

      Also, Rockstar needs to learn proper editing and pacing of cutscenes. They all kept dragging on painfully in GTA IV/Expansions, making them really irritating to watch and yet unskippable if you wanted to find out more about the story.

      --
      http://www.object404.com
    3. Re:Uncanny Valley here we come! by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Also, Rockstar needs to learn proper editing and pacing of cutscenes. They all kept dragging on painfully in GTA IV/Expansions, making them really irritating to watch and yet unskippable if you wanted to find out more about the story.

      Ugh, no lie. GTA IV was easily the worst game I've ever played for this. After GTA:SA it was like pushing hot knitting needles into my eyes. Played it anyway though.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    4. Re:Uncanny Valley here we come! by Loosifur · · Score: 1

      Yeah, it's impressive in comparison to previous Rockstar games, maybe the best facial animation I've ever seen in a retail game. Still, there's something wrong with the eyes, and I can't quite put my finger on it. It's almost as if they're not connected to the rest of the expression, if that makes sense.

      Also, the animation of the body as a whole is still too stilted to look real. To be fair, I've never seen any game get that right. People are constantly in motion, making tons of small movements such as blinks, twitches, shifting their weight from foot to foot, breathing, etc. No one isolates movement to the "relevant" parts without fairly intense training and concentration. This game gets pretty close, but not quite. Also, the edges of the characters are too crisp. Everyone looks like very detailed paper cut-outs on top of a realish-looking background.

      Of course, none of this matters to me since it's only being released on console, apparently. I guess that's fine; I already know the Irish captain is in on it, and when you go to his house to tell him about the case he's gonna plug you in the kitchen.

      --
      This unbiased moderation brought to you by the Porcine Aviation Group!
    5. Re:Uncanny Valley here we come! by Monkeedude1212 · · Score: 1

      I didn't find them particularily creepy but one thing I noticed the trailer didn't show is a CHANGE in anyone's facial expression. No one went from calm to angry - which always seems to be where graphics have lacked. I've never not been able to tell when a character was mad, or sad, or whatever, in Half Life 2, or Doom 3, or whatever other FPS out there lets you see the face. The problem is that characters rarely seem to change their mood and their expressions to go with it. And if they do, it never seems to happen in the players view.

  3. Why the 404? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    The http://news.slashdot.org/story/10/11/12/037241/Firefox-4-Regains-Speed-Mojo-With-No-2-Placing can not be found, though a few people seem to find it judging the the already posted comments, what is going on?

    1. Re:Why the 404? by Anne+Honime · · Score: 1

      noticed this too.

    2. Re:Why the 404? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      anything on news.slashdot.org is broken.
      my guess is broken mod_rewrite

    3. Re:Why the 404? by naz404 · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Offtopic, but yeah :-/ Can't access the page too. I guess this is as good as anywhere to comment on it right now.

      --
      http://www.object404.com
    4. Re:Why the 404? by Dhalka226 · · Score: 2, Informative

      Just take off the subdomain for now. http://slashdot.org/story/10/11/12/037241/Firefox-4-Regains-Speed-Mojo-With-No-2-Placing/

  4. i cant tell if real people are lying by aplusjimages · · Score: 2, Insightful

    So how am I supposed to know if a game character is lying? I have to agree that the lighting is oddly non dramatic on the characters.

    --
    Can I bum a sig?
    1. Re:i cant tell if real people are lying by Takichi · · Score: 1

      Maybe this can actually be used as a training tool for people that aren't able to interact with others because of their inability to recognise common social cues. (Not accusing you of anything, just saying)

    2. Re:i cant tell if real people are lying by Ihmhi · · Score: 1

      It's all in the eyes.

      --
      Random Thoughts From A Diseased Mind (Not For Dummies)
    3. Re:i cant tell if real people are lying by delinear · · Score: 1

      You need to be a Truth Wizard - and no, I'm not lying :)

  5. would mod you insightful if I had points left by Anne+Honime · · Score: 2, Informative

    The left hand map is from doom, IIRC.

    1. Re:would mod you insightful if I had points left by L4t3r4lu5 · · Score: 2, Informative

      Nope, sorry. E1M6 - Central Processing

      --
      Finally had enough. Come see us over at https://soylentnews.org/
  6. I wonder if they'll be any multiplayer by irockash · · Score: 1

    Seems like it would be tough, but I would love to have some sort of online detective story... Maybe where some players commit the crimes, while the others find them.

  7. Re:Could go 2 ways by Jesus_666 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    If you want to see how this would work in practice I recommend that you do an image search for "garry's mod".

    --
    USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
  8. Why don't the hats cast shadows on faces? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Took me a minute to twig what didn't quite look right about these - it's the hats, they don't cast shadows onto the faces. Considering the number of people in hats and focus on faces, this does seem quite a blunder. Sure self shadowing objects aren't the simplest of things to implement, however when striving for this level of realism, it's essential.

  9. So they finally made something by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I nearly ended up working for Team Bondi about 4 years ago. At the time, they had already been working for a few years, and didn't even have a working codebase they could show me, just lots of vague designs and promises. I wrote the place and the project off as just a way of milking money from investors, and went on my way to work elsewhere.
    Now if Rockstar have pushed them into making an actual game, based on the huge amount of background research they were talking about when I saw them, I could have been very wrong to write them off. I'd like to be proven wrong, if they've done what they were talking about back then, then it'll be the kind of game that shows that video games can indeed compete with other forms of art.
    I just hope they haven't churned out a quick shooter to try and prove they weren't another Duke Nukem Forever team.

  10. Oscar nomination? by Yuioup · · Score: 1

    The animation looks impressive. I wonder if games will become sophisticated enough to merit Oscar nominations.

    If Andy Serkis kan be nominated for an Oscar in Lord of the Rings for his performance as Smeagol/Gollum, surely the same can happen to voice/motion capture actors in games.

    Y

    1. Re:Oscar nomination? by macaddict · · Score: 1

      I wonder if games will become sophisticated enough to merit Oscar nominations.

      Not likely. The Oscars are for films, given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Television actors (even in "made for TV" movies) and theater actors don't get Oscars either.

    2. Re:Oscar nomination? by delinear · · Score: 1

      Video games seem to be a serious competitor in the entertainment industry, it's not inconceivable that they could usurp movies. Who is behind the Oscars anyway? If it's the stuios, they'd have a vested interest in keeping the newcomers locked out, if it's an independent body they might want to get on board before it's too late. And I wonder what happens as the line between the two blurs still further. I'm thinking a movie that uses clever scripting to allow the audience to shape the experience somehow, so a very simplistic game, but a game nonetheless.

    3. Re:Oscar nomination? by jackbird · · Score: 1

      It would be a different awards ceremony. Television, books, stage drama, and recorded music area all major parts of the entertainment industry, and have their own awards. Sometimes these overlap (i.e. the Emmy awards), but the oscars are and will always be about movies, because they're awarded by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Even the technical Oscars, which have been given for things that are fundamental to video game production (Premultiplied alpha, for example), were given because they represented huge advances for film visual effects.

  11. That's great but... by DiamondGeezer · · Score: 1

    ...Any sign of Half Life 2 Episode 3?

    --
    Tubby or not tubby. Fat is the question
  12. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  13. So it *looks* good by elrous0 · · Score: 1

    How is the actual story and gameplay?

    --
    SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    1. Re:So it *looks* good by BobMcD · · Score: 1

      Yeah, I had this same thought as well. I hadn't heard of the game until today, and while the trailer tells you about the setting and the cutscenes, it tells you absolutely nothing about how to play the game. Do you sit there and press 'X' to advance from one cutscene to the next, like a movie? Maybe with options, like one of those DVD games? The game is from Rockstar, so do you spend the time in between cutscenes stealing 40's era cars and beating up classy Betty Grable-style hookers? I'm confused.

    2. Re:So it *looks* good by delinear · · Score: 1

      To be honest, even if it boils down to a period GTA with prettier cutscenes I wouldn't be entirely disappointed. I'm surprised they haven't explored GTA in other settings (locale and time period) a little more, I'd love some European GTA titles (I know they did GTA London a long time ago, how about an update with the new engine).

  14. No PC version. by wiggles · · Score: 1

    No PC version? Rockstar won't be getting any of my money...

    1. Re:No PC version. by delinear · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Well, let's see how this plays out. These days if a title is "exclusive" to a particular console, it just means it will be released for all other platforms three months later.

    2. Re:No PC version. by imakemusic · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Well I couldn't play GTA:IV on my machine even on lowest settings, despite it meeting the requirements, so I wouldn't be in a hurry to buy another Rockstar game for PC anyway.

      --
      Brain surgery - it's not rocket science!
  15. Re:Could go 2 ways by geekoid · · Score: 1

    Do you know of a good source of how to's for Garry's mod?my young son is getting into it, but most the information we can find either makes a great assumption on what the person knows, or is wrong.

    My gut is that there is something fundamental we aren't getting. Like we are missing some basic software pack. It' works, but when ever we try to add models to it, specifically the tools need to create trains and rails, it never laods them.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  16. DOOM E1M6 by antdude · · Score: 1

    As a former DOOMaholic, I remember that old school map from DOOM's Episode 1 Map 6 (E1M6) [Central Processing]. :D

    --
    Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
    1. Re:DOOM E1M6 by cjb110 · · Score: 1

      Thanks for that! I knew I recognized it as soon as I saw that 'squiggly' (well squiggly for doom) tunnel.

      But fuck knows why my brain decides that remembering map layouts of game I last played 16 odd years ago is a good idea! Maybe it's because your using most of your senses and non-repetitive muscle movements??

      --
      ----- I refuse to have an argument with an unarmed person
    2. Re:DOOM E1M6 by antdude · · Score: 1

      Is it because you played too much DOOM like me? I was a DOOMaholic. I made mods, maps, visited ftp.cdrom.com/pub/idsoftware/doom.../ daily to download stuff, played a lot, etc. Here's even sadder. I still have DOOM 1 and 2 installed, but with Doomdays Engine stuff. I haven't touched it for ages though.

      --
      Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
    3. Re:DOOM E1M6 by cjb110 · · Score: 1

      well no, that's the thing...yes I played it quite a bit, but not *that* much! didn't play

      Same as Wolfenstien I know all the secrets on the first few levels, but again not played that in years.

      But it gets released on a phone or latest console and I know exactly where to go:)

      --
      ----- I refuse to have an argument with an unarmed person
    4. Re:DOOM E1M6 by antdude · · Score: 1

      Hehe. I bet you knew it in DOOM2's secret level too. :)

      --
      Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
  17. Re:Could go 2 ways by Jesus_666 · · Score: 1

    Unfortunately I never got around to actually getting Garry's Mod. I hope someone else can help you.

    --
    USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
  18. Re:Could go 2 ways by Kenoli · · Score: 2, Informative

    My gut is that there is something fundamental we aren't getting. Like we are missing some basic software pack. It' works, but when ever we try to add models to it, specifically the tools need to create trains and rails, it never loads them.

    A lot of stuff that people use to build things in garry's mod doesn't come with the game.
    There are some addons that are so widely used that they're practically required. At a minimum I would recommend "PHX Model Pack 3" and "Wire Mod".

    They can be downloaded and updated via SVN:
    https://phoenix-storms.svn.sourceforge.net/svnroot/phoenix-storms
    https://wiremod.svn.sourceforge.net/svnroot/wiremod/trunk/wire/

    Adding a folder in gmod's "addons" folder and putting the files in it is sufficient for installing an addon.

    Additionally, content from other source games such as Half-Life 2, TF2, and Counterstrike is also widely used. Installing those may help with missing models/textures.

  19. A giant leap forward in game design by presto87 · · Score: 1

    This game looks like it will be really, really amazing. Too bad they didn't release a video with gameplay, but I'm really looking forward to when it finally comes out