It seems that Rockstar Games is going to have its hands full for the foreseeable future as it constantly dodges questions about a hugely anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6 and the future for Red Dead Redemption 3, which leaves a long-overdue sequel in L.A. Noire 2 still stuck in the cold. For a series that performed admirably alongside its sibling franchises, it's astonishing that L.A. Noire hasn't yet received a follow-up despite being ported to several platforms following its release, with sideline adaptations to VR.
Traditionally, talks of a sequel or successor to L.A. Noire often get shot down in a less-than-hopeful manner, but it's surprising that developers would disregard clear fan demand for a new entry in an iconic series. Though there could be a few hurdles to getting a second entry into the series, at a time when Grand Theft Auto 6 and Red Dead Redemption 3 are both so far off on the horizon, it would be an exceptional opportunity for Rockstar to revive the series and take advantage of the hole in the market.
Behind The Scenes Of L.A. Noire
Unusually enough, though L.A. Noire carries the Rockstar pedigree, it was actually developed originally by a studio called Team Bondi utilizing the game engine Rockstar had for its hit Grand Theft Auto series. With Rockstar's backing and the capacity to capitalize on proprietary motion capture technology MotionScan, the studio was able to lay the groundwork for a detective game where the player could feasibly interrogate L.A. Noire's witnesses and suspects by reading facial expressions and corroborating evidence. Even in spite of some hiccups this had along the way, such as infamous moments where protagonist Cole Phelps lurched into a sudden rage or some facial cues that aren't as subtle as Team Bondi might have liked them to be, the game was very well-received with a host of award nominations following its release.
While it seemed likely initially that Team Bondi would again work with Rockstar to develop a sequel, hopes were dashed when Team Bondi declared bankruptcy and went into liquidation after accusations of a hostile workplace soiled its reputation. It was bought by Kennedy Miller Mitchell, which seemingly kept the flame alive for L.A. Noire in the form of a spiritual successor under the problematic name Whore of the Orient. This too wound up getting canned by 2016. A studio of former L.A. Noire developers called Videogames Deluxe later worked on L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files. Ultimately, though many people involved in L.A. Noire's future seem keen for the series to see a return, it still remains in a bizarre limbo where nobody's yet ready to give up, but nobody's prepared to be the first to pick up the torch and take the lead.
How To Bring Back L.A. Noire
A huge reason why L.A. Noire's legacy continues to live on despite not having any form of follow-up beyond 2017 is the self-contained narrative that is book-ended by its main character Phelps; the game follows his career from patrol officer to detective, finally resulting in his death by the game's closing. L.A. Noire itself was very much focused on the time period it sought to emulate, taking inspiration from real-life cases for Phelps to solve, meaning a new game would need to find itself a new lead and a new set of historical cases to explore. Fortunately, America has a wealth of locations to choose from, should L.A. Noire decide to venture further afield and drop the L.A. from its name.
For instance, locations such as New York offer the right hotbed of urban populations and a significant amount of historic crime. Given that several years have since passed following the first game's release, a direct sequel is probably out of the question, but if the developers had always planned for a spiritual successor regardless, then simply switching up the game's setting from Los Angelos to New York or elsewhere could be just enough of a fresh start it needs. N.Y. Noire has a promising ring to it, specially since New York has a wealth of strange and interesting crimes, ranging from the French Connection drug busts, the Wall Street Bombing in 1920, or the operations of the Mafia. Any of these could be easy beginnings of different story arcs and case files.
L.A. Noire's Future Is In Doubt
Though there is still sufficient fan following to drive momentum behind a new L.A. Noire game or a spiritual successor, with Rockstar Games rightly focused on its biggest franchises at the moment, L.A. Noire has fallen by the wayside. It sadly isn't the only casualty of Rockstar's lack of attention, as the likes of Max Payne and Bully have similarly been forgotten, and even though the former has been confirmed to have upcoming remakes in the works, new entries in its series are still nowhere to be seen. In light of this, L.A. Noire is less the exception and more just one part of the collateral damage as both Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption continue to soar.
There is a strong case for L.A. Noire to make a comeback however, so fans are still hopeful that Rockstar Games will remain true to its word that it has interest in the series, if not right now. However, as other games are seemingly meeting to fill the market gap, such as the Mafia series going strong with rumors of a fourth entry in development, Rockstar will need to decide whether it will continue to hold water in L.A. Noire's potential or if it will confirm the game's official end soon in order to dedicate more time to its other ongoing series. Frankly, the ideal time to announce the development and release of a new sequel to this beloved detective noir thriller would be now while its other projects are all uncomfortably quiet.
L.A. Noire is available now on Nintendo Switch, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.