L.A. Noire: The Complete Edition

 PC
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1358 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 994 out of 1358
  2. Mixed: 268 out of 1358
  3. Negative: 96 out of 1358
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  1. Xon
    Nov 20, 2011
    9
    I like games which are interactive novels or movies. L.A. Noire neatly meets this criteria and brilliantly recreates a colourful period of L.A.'s history. I have never seen a game populated by believable characters who inspire compassion in the player. Nor have I seen real faces with real emotions, from the slight twitch of nervousness to red-faced, bulging eyes of fear.

    I didn't pay this    I like games which are interactive novels or movies. L.A. Noire neatly meets this criteria and brilliantly recreates a colourful period of L.A.'s history. I have never seen a game populated by believable characters who inspire compassion in the player. Nor have I seen real faces with real emotions, from the slight twitch of nervousness to red-faced, bulging eyes of fear.

    I didn't pay this game for its challenges or playablity. I want to be immersed in a world and interact with the environment. I want a riveting story that rings true.

    L.A. Noire delivers this and then some. I loved every second of this hard-boiled slice of life. In later years this game will definitely be looked back on as one of the most ground-breaking games of all time. It is the first game that I felt emotionally involved. And it was a riveting experience.    … Expand
  2. Rikdyou
    Nov 15, 2011
    10
    You know what your getting with this package. A fantastic game with all the bells and whistles. Im sure you've seen other reviews of L.A Noire, so il just say what's new in this. It features all of the previously released downloadable content for L.A. Noire, including the â
  3. largallama
    Jan 4, 2012
    8
    After taking a few levels to get to grips with this game i think that it is a brilliant game,it does have its flaws tho. I am playing it on a pc with 2x 1gig 4870`s in Crossfire,8 gig of ram and a AMD Phenom BE quad core @3Ghz and i cannot get this game to play smooth at all. I have gone from CF to a single card,had settings on max,had settings reduced,changed GPU drivers but nothing helpsAfter taking a few levels to get to grips with this game i think that it is a brilliant game,it does have its flaws tho. I am playing it on a pc with 2x 1gig 4870`s in Crossfire,8 gig of ram and a AMD Phenom BE quad core @3Ghz and i cannot get this game to play smooth at all. I have gone from CF to a single card,had settings on max,had settings reduced,changed GPU drivers but nothing helps which is a big shame because i think its a brilliant game. The thing i don`t get tho is that apart from the characters faces the graphics arn`t all that,i can run Crysis better than this game and that game is in a completely different league when it comes to graphics. I thought that when this was released later for the pc that they had not just ported it from console but it seems that they have done just that.Also the controls are a bit awkward but with all that said,i do think its a clever game,not just some shoot`em up,it does get you thinking,lets just hope that with the second one,they iron out the faults and its because of these faults it only gets a 8.… Expand
  4. whitespider999
    Mar 3, 2012
    9
    Since this is relevant to pc games, know this first. The game has been capped at 30 frames per second, this can be removed via the latest patch and a -60fps command. So I won't mark that against the game. The game also requires a very powerful pc to be able to run at 60 frames per second. It is choppy and unplayable on lower end hardware. If you have a duel core cpu and a low end gpu, takeSince this is relevant to pc games, know this first. The game has been capped at 30 frames per second, this can be removed via the latest patch and a -60fps command. So I won't mark that against the game. The game also requires a very powerful pc to be able to run at 60 frames per second. It is choppy and unplayable on lower end hardware. If you have a duel core cpu and a low end gpu, take this as a warning. Now, onto the actual game. La noir is a breath of fresh air, taking cue's from adventure games in it's mystery solving, focus on clues, and providing you with the successful illusion that you are solving them. It tells a long and involved story though a string of murders you have to solve, that delves into the territory of serial killers, police corruption and more, and it allows you to travel around an open world while doing so. This alone is enough to cement this game in an interesting heavy rain territory. However it goes a step further by introducing some facinating and downright impressive face animation mapping technology - and implements it in an innovative and involving way. You have to actually study peoples faces to gauge their honesty/personality, and make final decisions that rely entirely on your very own instincts. Putting actual detective skills in the players hands is so worthy of praise - that it makes other game's "new and innovative features" seem dull and lifeless in comparison. When you are as ambitious as this game is however - there will always be a price. In this case the main issue this game has is the outcomes for failing/succeeding. They mostly lead to the same results. Guess wrongly? You still progress in the same way minus a few points that can unlock intuition points (a free answer, basically). This makes your actual detective skills feel consequence free. And that's a shame. In the end, what the game does provide - is unique. Entertaining. Sometimes emotional. An experience like nothing else on the market. If you don't have a monster pc - get the ps3 version instead.… Expand
  5. Shaan4everyone
    Feb 12, 2012
    9
    Absolutely brilliant game... back in 40's. its a bit refreshing to play as a cop. n LA is shown beautifully. the game-play n technology used is fascinating
  6. feda1
    Nov 11, 2011
    8
    A solid game plagued by a few issues: 1) letterboxing on monitors with 5:4 aspect ratio 2) severe stuttering on some systems despite requirements being met (can be fixed by using the command line arguments -npd -str)
    3) interface could be better
    4) a big city, but very little to do
  7. Joelelel
    Nov 15, 2011
    8
    8 of people including me, having a lag issue with this game and all of us using duo/dual core. even you have the best vga card. it's not going to help you from this lag cuz this game is not optimized for duo/dual core. even thought, this game is way better port comparing with GTA4 only issue is the dual/duo core problem

    get this game if you have quad core or better and do not get this    8 of people including me, having a lag issue with this game and all of us using duo/dual core. even you have the best vga card. it's not going to help you from this lag cuz this game is not optimized for duo/dual core. even thought, this game is way better port comparing with GTA4 only issue is the dual/duo core problem

    get this game if you have quad core or better and do not get this game if you using dual or duo core. I have to wait for the patch to fix this problem just like GTA4 that ported by Rockstar    … Expand
  8. AscAnsio
    Feb 12, 2013
    9
    This game has the best face animations of characters you can see in a video game, thanks to a newly developed "face mimics motion capturing technology", which belongs to Rockstar Games. Period. Besides that, the story is strong, gameplay is enhanced with so much fun, graphics are mostly stunning, sounds and musics, that mirrors the NOIR theme of that era, is just amazing. Do not hesitateThis game has the best face animations of characters you can see in a video game, thanks to a newly developed "face mimics motion capturing technology", which belongs to Rockstar Games. Period. Besides that, the story is strong, gameplay is enhanced with so much fun, graphics are mostly stunning, sounds and musics, that mirrors the NOIR theme of that era, is just amazing. Do not hesitate on buying this game. The Complete Edition deserves all the praises it receives.… Expand
  9. humor4fun
    Feb 6, 2012
    8
    This game is a ton of fun. The story takes a very strange turn towards the second half, but it was very well written.

    I had a few small complaints about the game, but the only things I want to mention here is that there is ZERO replay value other than achievement hunting.
  10. reanimatrix
    Feb 19, 2012
    8
    Beautiful game, brilliant plot-- love the way they interwove three stories into one game. I'm also incredibly fond of all the characters, and the animation is brilliant, particularly the expressions. LA is beautiful, and so are its cars. Someone really knows their history as well, and it shows. Over all, excellent and under rated game.
  11. offspring3003
    Feb 22, 2012
    8
    Very nice game.A great story. Poor management and optimization = 10-2 = 8 A lot of people compare this game with the Mafia game is absolutely wrong they have in common only the fact that the action games there in the first half of the 20th century in this respect, the game is much closer to those games like Heavy rain and Alan Wake. Most of the game like a very sad ending is drawn inVery nice game.A great story. Poor management and optimization = 10-2 = 8 A lot of people compare this game with the Mafia game is absolutely wrong they have in common only the fact that the action games there in the first half of the 20th century in this respect, the game is much closer to those games like Heavy rain and Alan Wake. Most of the game like a very sad ending is drawn in detail the injustice of our lives, where the good die first, and the bastards are still living… Expand
  12. bernlin2000
    Feb 18, 2012
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This was a game that built up slowly, until I was completely hooked onto the plot and the way the entire story twists and turns: very impressive. The gameplay itself is typical from the publisher of GTA, perhaps a bit more pedestrian than usual (in terms of combat), but it was easily made up by the enjoyable car physics (and various things your partner would say while running into a variety of things...always entertaining) as well as the incredible gumshoe framework. Gathering clues and interviewing people never got boring. The most disappointing part of the game for me, in the end, is actually the finale: yet another gigantic combat scenario with a finish that left a HUGE bitter taste in my mouth. SPOILER: The ending is just awful, imo: everything that Phelps is working toward is completely erased, and his memory is pissed upon at his funeral, with the corruption of the police establishment firmly intact. I suppose that there's hope that the honest ADA who remains could, over time, fight for less corruption, but it would have been nice to have more details about what happened in the future, so that I didn't feel like all the work I put into my character was all for nothing. Not being able to bring the chief of police down is a MAJOR disappointment, and although it might have been "historically accurate" it left the plot completely unsatisfying. Makes me less sad that the developer went out of business after the production of this game: they clearly aren't very good at plot endings.… Expand
  13. AlienSpaceBats
    Jul 9, 2012
    9
    An instant classic, trades in a linear play style for excellent presentation and acting, superb story and cinematic gameplay. Some users have reported technical difficulties getting this game to run even on high-end systems but mine was fine (at the time I used AMD Phenom X4 9750, 4GB RAM, Radeon Sapphire HD 6850 running at 1440x900).
  14. skeith
    Mar 2, 2012
    9
    You can really feel the discrimination of platform from the developers by playing this game on PC. I mean, those guys could have done better on the PC. Well, I could really give 10/10 if they can make it better on PC. For the game, great story, great gameplay. I really feel like I am a detective in the game. Great voice casting too. Also, very convincing facial expression and veryYou can really feel the discrimination of platform from the developers by playing this game on PC. I mean, those guys could have done better on the PC. Well, I could really give 10/10 if they can make it better on PC. For the game, great story, great gameplay. I really feel like I am a detective in the game. Great voice casting too. Also, very convincing facial expression and very detailed world. If you guys happen to own a Xbox360 or PS3 buy, just buy the game for the consoles. If you have a PC, you can really give it try.… Expand
  15. KouDy
    Jul 19, 2012
    9
    This game is basically must get for all fans of L.A. Confidential movie. L.A. Noire brings good combination of adventure and GTA games together in glittering shine of post war era. Graphic is nice, sounds are well handled. For some downside might be 30fps cap. The game is fairly linear but i don't think it would help if you could try solving 3-4 cases at once. It would get fairly complex.This game is basically must get for all fans of L.A. Confidential movie. L.A. Noire brings good combination of adventure and GTA games together in glittering shine of post war era. Graphic is nice, sounds are well handled. For some downside might be 30fps cap. The game is fairly linear but i don't think it would help if you could try solving 3-4 cases at once. It would get fairly complex. Interrogations are sometimes more of guessing than really figuring out whether that person is lying to you or not. Over all this game is pretty solid.… Expand
  16. zareh_m
    Aug 13, 2012
    8
    If you ever wanted to be a detective, interrogate people and find clues, then play L.A. Noire. A great detective game with bunch of cases, interesting and groovy story. You don
  17. Kp_109
    Jul 13, 2012
    9
    Its a very interesting game, you have 21 cases and every case is interesting in his own way, the city is very big and you have over 50 different cars to drive. But from my point of view its sometimes hard to follow the cases especially if they are talking about cases that you solved some time ago. Another big minus for me is the steering of the car. It is very hard to control a car withIts a very interesting game, you have 21 cases and every case is interesting in his own way, the city is very big and you have over 50 different cars to drive. But from my point of view its sometimes hard to follow the cases especially if they are talking about cases that you solved some time ago. Another big minus for me is the steering of the car. It is very hard to control a car with the W A S D keys at high speed with the keyboard. The firefights are ok but not very spectacular. Overall a very interesting and good game.… Expand
  18. eyeball002
    Dec 3, 2013
    8
    L.A. Noire is solid adventure game overall. Narrative is top-notch, and the overall setting is authentic enough for most of gamers to immerse themselves into this game. I can confidently say that L.A. Noire is just like GTA, but taking place in 1950's Hollywood. This means, that L.A. Noire suffers same shortcomings that GTA has also suffered.

    I want to start off with interrogation    L.A. Noire is solid adventure game overall. Narrative is top-notch, and the overall setting is authentic enough for most of gamers to immerse themselves into this game. I can confidently say that L.A. Noire is just like GTA, but taking place in 1950's Hollywood. This means, that L.A. Noire suffers same shortcomings that GTA has also suffered.

    I want to start off with interrogation system first, as it is the main focus of the game. Here, you need to find out whether suspect is hiding something or speaking truly by looking at their facial animations. Then, players can choose three options after listening to the suspects you can either believe them, doubt them, or prove them that they are lying. This is where the problems with interrogation sequence kicks in There are no place for player's reasonings to come in. You just choose one of three options, and your avatar Cole Phelps or his sidekick will do come up with all the reasonings. It is fatal flaw for game that focuses heavily on investigations for its gameplay. Rather than feeling like detective in 50s, it feels more like watching detective film. That said, if you buy this game looking for action, you better look for other games.

    This is same problem suffered by the GTA series. You'll feel freedom when you're racing through highway with cops on your tail, but there are little to no freedom regarding what you do in in-game missions. In L.A. Noire, whole game is basically an in-game mission of GTA, so there aren't any freedom in it, except maybe running over some innocent citizen with bouquet on their hand. Lack of freedom leads to one conclusion L.A. Noire didn't do well enough to utilize its open world setting. Although there are whole world to explore, after finding few hidden cars and solving emergency dispatch missions, you'll just going to hear lot of "straight through the intersection." You'll find the open world interesting at first, but it will just all come down to boring rollercoaster ride once the amazement has weared off.

    The action part of the game is... questionable. Since it is an adventure game that focuses on the investigation, it is normal that the action part cannot compare to other AAA quality TPS games. One might argue that the action part is good enough for games like this, but one might also argue that the developers could've done better job with it. It depends on your perspective really, so there aren't much to say to it. Only problems I've found is that each emergency dispatch missions basically all boils down to "run from point A to point B" or "Shoot all the baddies" or "Smash baddies' car", or "run point A to point B, shoot all the baddies in process and smash baddies' car" so even though there are over 40 emergency dispatch missions, there aren't a lot of incentives to play it unless you want to desperately prolong your playtime of this game.

    So, from what I just said, L.A. Noire just looks like a adventure game with questionable action sequence and questionable investigation sequence, but here is a catch this game is heavily narrative driven, and L.A. Noire does supreme job with their narrative. Believable settings, authentic looks and reference to the 50's culture all adds up for great narrative factor. This game feels like watching detective film, but a good one at that. Also, all those flaws I've listed, I didn't notice it until I completed the whole story mode. Each cases in story mode takes almost an hour to complete, and even more if you're looking for all five-star completion. There are many cases to solve in this game. So, what are you waiting for? grab your fedora and detective badge. The case isn't going to solve itself, right?    … Expand
  19. BudSpencer
    May 13, 2013
    8
    This game gets a 8 not a 7 or 6 because many people exaggerate totally and they don´t enjoy the atmosphere, they don´t play with controller, they don´t play the game how it should be played, so they ruin their own experience. It´s on the PC yes, but non or less the game has to be played with a controller, because you have to sit in a comfortable chair and enjoy the world. The graphics areThis game gets a 8 not a 7 or 6 because many people exaggerate totally and they don´t enjoy the atmosphere, they don´t play with controller, they don´t play the game how it should be played, so they ruin their own experience. It´s on the PC yes, but non or less the game has to be played with a controller, because you have to sit in a comfortable chair and enjoy the world. The graphics are not as beautiful as people expected. The new technology which has been used for the facial expression which is a essential gameplay factor in this game, let animations be so smooth and realistic that you think this game was touched by god! The game is mainly about being a detective solving cases so if you are more the action guy, you shouldn´t buy this game especially because all the action happens only in side quests. The side quests are emergency calls from your police station, you can answer to in your police car. Sometimes you have to stop a bank robbery and sometimes smaller things like killing some gunmen. The story is fantastic and well written and you will suck it up fast. So the game is good, it has it´s flaws in graphics and it has not enough action for most people, but everything else is just perfect. WELL, the PC port is not quite as good as the console versions. The framerate is limited to 30 frames because that gives the game a movie like feeling. I understand that. No fps drops though, its stable, but they up DX11. DX9 runs smooth, but DX11 has some technical issues for some. Just test it out. It´s recommended to play the game with a controller, but the mouse and keyboard works fine too. Despite the fact that the technical side of the game is non or less weak except for the animations which are the best ever seen, the game is really only for slow paste type guys who like a adventure with case solving elements. Go and get it, lick the sexy looking box and play more than 20 hrs of pure climax! OH before i forget it: GET A QUADCORE YOU HILLBILLY! What do you expect? A dev who never developed for PC to optimize the game on your oldass Dual Core which can´t even play Black Ops straight? you should get a console then, you poor bastard. OR maybe getting a new job. Idiots… Expand
  20. pomidomi
    Jun 8, 2013
    8
    Brilliant detective story with amazing characters
  21. Mahdiar
    Jul 6, 2016
    8
    Gameplay : 7
    Graphics : 7
    Story : 9
    Sound : 7
    **********************************************************************************
    Overall : 8
  22. jkrules
    Oct 16, 2013
    9
    This game is crazy good. This game did what other sandbox games couldn't. Every aspect of the environment could give you clues to break the case. Facial expressions are great they could give you just information you need to call someone on a lie and get viable information for the case. I've not seen a game like this yet and that what makes this game so good. I highly recommend to try this game.
  23. Yamorimlo
    Aug 2, 2015
    8
    L.A. Noire is a fun detective game. Although, it doesn't come without faults. The game is clearly not very optimized for PC, as there are bugs concerning keyboard and mouse control. Using a mouse to select stuff while doing detective work can sometimes be frustrating. The options menu is lackluster with the video options, making you have to fine tune everything in the .ini file. Also, theL.A. Noire is a fun detective game. Although, it doesn't come without faults. The game is clearly not very optimized for PC, as there are bugs concerning keyboard and mouse control. Using a mouse to select stuff while doing detective work can sometimes be frustrating. The options menu is lackluster with the video options, making you have to fine tune everything in the .ini file. Also, the game is capped at thirty frames per second.

    I've enjoyed my time with L.A. Noire so far though. The voice acting is well done, the lip sync technology is awesome. I'm generally not very peeved off by clunky controls; I get over them quite well. Some people might not though, so you might want to play the game with a controller or on a console.    … Expand
  24. Overvulture
    Nov 9, 2015
    8
    A great experiment with mixed results, the use of face capture technology is very impressive but probably won't age well. Tying the unique tech to an interrogation mechanic is a great idea, though sometimes the interrogations themselves can be frustrating and illogical, even to the point that I'd just restart the mission if it became a wash. Shooting and driving are both passable andA great experiment with mixed results, the use of face capture technology is very impressive but probably won't age well. Tying the unique tech to an interrogation mechanic is a great idea, though sometimes the interrogations themselves can be frustrating and illogical, even to the point that I'd just restart the mission if it became a wash. Shooting and driving are both passable and functional, except for a frustrating sequence in the finale which involves way more shooting than the rest of the game.

    What I love most about this game is its adherence to Noir style, complete with all the backstabbing intrigue that comes with it. Nearly every Noir trope is in full effect here, and there's some truly excellent acting to be found, on par with Hollywood productions, probably because there are a great deal of talented character actors involved that you'll probably recognize from this thing or that. The story is solid and kept me hooked, and its final scene is brilliantly delivered. As with others I've enjoyed, this is a game I recommend not for the strength of its mechanics, but for its "feel", and in terms of making you feel like a hard-boiled Noir detective, you won't find anything better on the market.    … Expand
  25. Nicoteen
    Mar 9, 2016
    10
    " L.A. Noire is totally underrated! It's one of my favourite games of all time. The setting, the style, the acting, the story, everything is just awesome. It starts pretty good but, you longer you play it's getting better, better, better,... In the end L.A. Noire is a Masterpiece."

    OVERALL RATING: 10.0
  26. Oceansize
    Nov 11, 2011
    9
    I'm surprised at the relatively low scores here. I think this game is fantastic. It is what Mafia II was supposed to be on the storytelling/narration front. I'm normally very sensitive to shoddy ports, but this port doesn't seem to have consolitis at all in my opinion. I never played the console version so I can't compare. It certainly seems to control better than, say, Dead Space 1I'm surprised at the relatively low scores here. I think this game is fantastic. It is what Mafia II was supposed to be on the storytelling/narration front. I'm normally very sensitive to shoddy ports, but this port doesn't seem to have consolitis at all in my opinion. I never played the console version so I can't compare. It certainly seems to control better than, say, Dead Space 1 or 2 did on the PC. The acting, story, and facial animations are world-class, and the facial animations really do raise the emotion of the scenes...you can see people's Adam's apples move when they gulp, for crying out loud! Doesn't sound very important except when you consider that much of what you're doing in the game is trying to find out if people are lying or not. I would say this is a GOTY contender if it weren't for the fact that Arkham City is about to come out, which I assume will dominate. My only gripe is that the cars handle way too well for cars of that era. They're very 'sticky'. It has worked perfectly 'out of the box' for me (purchased on Steam), no stability issues at all, except the game crashes whenever I quit. Obviously that is a non-issue, doesn't affect the experience at all because it only happens when I quit. I also don't have any of the frame-rate issues that some are reporting.… Expand
  27. BillGR17
    Jan 2, 2012
    8
    this game is awesome it has a lot of good stuff in the storyline and you are a true detective (from other games that i have played) the only bad stuff that i didnt like is that the faces was doing weird things when they lied and when they not lying most of them just stay still like they frozen LOL the graphics on the mouth and the eyes are perfect but on the hair or on the trees is like ithis game is awesome it has a lot of good stuff in the storyline and you are a true detective (from other games that i have played) the only bad stuff that i didnt like is that the faces was doing weird things when they lied and when they not lying most of them just stay still like they frozen LOL the graphics on the mouth and the eyes are perfect but on the hair or on the trees is like i an old game play game! its like they just took the same graphics from the console and put it for the pc just like that without working on it so it was a little bit disappointing :(… Expand
  28. idfdefender
    Dec 24, 2011
    10
    This is more of a mystery game for me than adventure. Adventure is just a part of this game but the mysteries between the cases are just realistic and are based on history.
  29. chatins
    Jan 2, 2012
    9
    Game starts out like a GTA 4 but within 40 minutes an experienced gamer should make the promotion to detective. 1940's world is incredibly detailed. New face rendering tech is emersive. Fantastic game on sale for $12.49.
  30. DameLCFC
    Jan 2, 2012
    9
    Bought this game in the STEAM winter sale and it was probably the best Ã
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Awards & Rankings

32
#32 Best PC Game of 2011
26
#26 Most Discussed PC Game of 2011
15
#15 Most Shared PC Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 23 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 28
  3. Negative: 0 out of 28
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Feb 29, 2012
    90
    A unique adventure game that borrows many features from mystery and action games, incorporating them seamlessly in the narrative flow, thus creating a truly special game that not everyone will enjoy. And that's because it has its own character, defying contemporary 'fast food' games that are churned out today and because it's reminiscent of endeavors made in another era, where immersion of an ultimate single-player experience was the first and last goal of their creators.
    Read full review
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 19, 2012
    90
    Ingenious game merges a classic adventure with sandbox action titles, resourcefully. Playability is not always perfect but overall impression is stunning. [Christmas 2011]
  3. Games Master UK
    Jan 12, 2012
    92
    The wannabe detective's definitive version to plump for. [Feb 2012, p.101]
See all critic reviews »