Opinion: Is it a game or an interactive experience? Either way, where’s the sense of control in LA Noire?
At the risk of stating what will be for many the proverbial “obvious”, I’m enjoying LA Noire. A fairly large amount, I hope, or somehow I’m made it to disc three out of some sort of deranged completionist-driven OCD. It’s innovative, clever and mostly fun. (And many things I like about can be encapsulated by this awesome song about the game: http://tindeck.com/listen/hguz)
But I don’t think it’s perfect. In fact there are bits where it’s so flat out jarring, I have to assume that Cole forgot to take some extremely important medication that morning just so I don’t find myself completely emotionally disconnected from the game.
The big issue, I feel, is one of control. Cole Phelps (badge number 1247, although apparently you need to shout that in an angry voice) is my representative in the world of LA Noire – I only get to experience the game’s environment with him as my proxy. But more often than not, I feel like I’m languishing in the backseat of a runaway truck, rather than behind the wheel of sleek convertible. His incidental dialogue with partners is brusque and aggressive enough to shame a snarky drunk, he stands by while horrible things happen to women and – without hitting spoiler territory – he seems to take on horrific revelations with nary more than a metaphorical and metaphysical shrug of the shoulders.
In short, I don’t like him and that makes it strange to play him.
“So what!” I hear you say. “It’s not just a boring old game you aging fool! It’s an interactive experience! Don’t submit it to the same scrutiny as a video game!”
Well first off, stop talking exactly like my inner monologue – it’s irritating. Secondly, you’re right – it is markedly different to what we traditionally think of as a game. So was Heavy Rain, which divided people so badly that small skirmishes in the gaming civil war that erupted after its release are still being fought on islands where the news of the ceasefire never arrived.
I really liked Heavy Rain too (go on, get the derision out of your systems) but at no point in it did I feel led by the character I was playing at the time. I felt like I was actually molding them, that their actions reflected decisions I was making. (Well, up until the end at least.) I’ve never felt that way with Detective Phelps and while it’s not stopping me from enjoying the game, it’s definitely stopping me from feeling immersed.
So, last night I blew the dust off my fat-style PS3 to indulge in a little Infamous 2 action. I loved the first game (man, do I just indiscriminately love games or what?) even if Cole MacGrath sounded like he gargled gravel with bourbon for breakfast each day and ran like an anthropomorphic raccoon.
Actually, on paper, Mr MacGrath was someone I should have despised: a poorly dressed, arrogant loser who treated his friends badly. Oh, and who seemed to revel in parkour – an activity I appreciate only for its capacity to provide me with videos of morons hurting themselves in new and inventive ways.
And yet... I got to direct Cole MacGrath. How he treated people – and thus how people related to him – was entirely within my discretion. Is it a fairly arbitrary Manichean world views of good actions versus evil, of light versus dark? Yes, yes it was. And I was perfectly fine with that, because it still gave me a sense of control.
Is it unfair of me to compare titles as wildly disparate as LA Noire and Infamous 2? Is it irritating of me to continually pose questions in a written piece? Yes on both counts, but while the second is inexcusable, the former allowed me to write the puckish pun in my headline that no doubt delighted you all.
All jokes aside, playing both of games back to back has proven to be an enlightening experience. The depth and complexity of LA Noire has often been remarkably thought provoking and it’s certainly been a massive topic of conversation in the Atomic/PC&TA part of the office. Infamous 2, on the other hand is a joyously chaotic blur of fun from the get go – a loud and fast-paced blast packed with explosions, hostage rescues and more.
Maybe the issue is me rather than the games. Maybe years of branching dialogue trees and so-called moral decisions in your Mass Effects and your BioShocks and Deus Ex and God help me even in your poor old under-appreciated Alpha Protocol – maybe that set my expectations... well, certainly not too high, but maybe it’s set them on a different axis to where LA Noire operates.
I don’t know. But I do know that I really wish I could get Cole Phelps out of his tight and over-starched collar and, maybe with a few martinis down his throat, I might feel like we had some common ground on which I could relate to him. Oh, and I wish I could get Cole MacGrath out of that awful asymmetrical backpack. Seriously dude, dress your goddamn age.
Issue: 137 | June, 2012