Opinion// L.A. Noire vs Heavy Rain - A Lot to Learn

Rinse Repeat
The upsetting thing about L.A. Noire was that these elements were littered throughout the game. You were constantly being told whether you were playing correctly or not through sound cues, NPC reactions and even an end of level score system.

You can see these moments in full effect from the very first investigation. The game explains to you - via on-screen text - that the music and audio will indicate everything from asking a question incorrectly to highlighting that you have found all the evidence required at a crime scene. You're also met with one of the most frustrating moments in Story Games: repeated dialogue.

If you happen to get a question wrong during your first interrogation, Phelps walks out of the room only to be told to, “Get back in there” by his boss. You then repeat the lines that you've already heard over again until you get the correct string of questions so that the game could proceed. If there is to be a new wave of games that try to reflect the world of cinema, these moments should never exist. They detract from atmosphere and decisions no longer become yours, they become wrong; something that gamers aren't able to cope with.

Good Jaaab Everybaady
The mechanic that drives conversation is also too contrived. Having the options of 'Truth' 'Doubt' and 'Lie' is a problem from the get go. You're never sure what the following dialogue will be so guiding conversation the way you want it to go is almost impossible. It uses heavy word-play in order to get the information required; it also uses hitting a button and hoping the correct sound effect chimes to give you a pat on the back. Sometimes, I don't want to be told I've done a good job. It's far more effective to let me discover that down the line.

Our Bad!
Maybe it's our fault that developers are scared to make a game that's less like a game. Gamers don't seem to be able to fall away from the mentality that they must achieve the perfect ending. They must find ways to keep everyone on board The Normandy alive, or to catch the killer. This results in looking up FAQs, alternate endings on YouTube and even resetting consoles when they believe that they have made a mistake.

SPOILER ALERT

These games shouldn't be treated like that. All you do when trying to achieve the best possible ending is rob yourself of potentially emotional peaks. Those who have looked ahead in order to keep their full team alive in Mass Effect 2 will never know the feeling I had when Grunt died during my final mission. A character I had grown to love, and one that I always took on missions with me was taken in front of my eyes. I was absolutely gutted, but it felt like I had experienced every emotion the game had to offer. It might not have been the emotion I wanted to feel, but it was one that I won’t forget.

Take Final Fantasy 7. When discussing the games story it's hard not to mention the pain you felt as Aerith Gainsborough died. It was up there with any cinematic death that had imprinted itself into your brain. A sad and distressing feeling that only added to the rollercoaster of a plot you had wrapped yourself into.

Now imagine if it was possible to keep her alive. Had that option been there, most would have tried everything to achieve that, which although might feel like the right thing to do, it would have stolen this wonderful moment in a game you loved.

END SPOILER ALERT

Now I’m not saying characters in these games should die regardless of your actions. What I’m saying is that they shouldn't die because you're playing the game badly. And if that is the case, the game shouldn't be telling you that if you carry on playing the way you are, bad things will happen.

An interactive story should be exactly that. It should flow without taking you away from it. It shouldn't make you aware of what you're doing as you're doing it. The plot should adapt without warning. It shouldn't be a case of doing well or not, it should tell a tale where anything can happen based on what you do and if you make it a black and white branch, you remove the intrigue.

Up to Us
We as gamers can help this develop. We need to stop worrying about achieving what we believe to be the best ending, as the best ending might be the worst. Imagine a world where all films end with the hero riding off into the sunset. We'd be robbed of engagement, experiences and tension. We're robbing that of ourselves with our completist mentality. We need to move on. We need to understand that we can't control everything in a game, and only then can the game take a little control back.

Heavy Rain tried to do exactly that. There are no repeating missions until you get them right, or highlighting each mistake you make. Because of this it was a far more compelling experience than L.A. Noire.

Both games can learn a lot from each other. L.A. Noire can learn that you can leave the gamer to decide the path that they are taking. Heavy Rain can learn that QTEs are not the only way to keep characters moving in a way that'll advance action and plot.

What is exciting though is that we're all on the brink of a new and exciting genre opening up to let gamers experience advanced narrative that is unrivalled by any other media.

I'm looking forward to making mistakes and working out my path. I'm looking forward to talking about how different my story was to a friends. I'm looking forward to watching the decisions I make unfold for the better or worse.

To me, this is what video gaming is about. I just hope that we're ready to accept it.

What do you think? Did you feel as though you were treated too much like a gamer in L.A. Noire, or did Heavy Rains approach have you scratching your head with lack of guidance. Comment below, I'd be really interested to read your thoughts.