L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files Now Available On Oculus Rift

by Fanboy SEO · April 4, 2018

L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files is now available for the VR fiends out there and for those that actually bought an Occulus Rift. It’s not the complete game but it’s got choice missions and segments that fully utilize the VR experience.

Here’s what Rockstar Games had to say about the new VR game.

L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files for Oculus Rift has players step into the painstakingly recreated world of 1940’s L.A. through the eyes of Detective Cole Phelps to solve seven select cases from across all five desks of the original L.A. Noire, including: Upon Reflection, Armed and Dangerous, Buyer Beware, The Consul’s Car, The Silk Stocking Murder, Reefer Madness, and A Different Kind of War – each picked for their suitability to the virtual reality experience.

Come face to face with key witnesses for interrogations, investigate crime scenes for evidence with the ability to physically pick up and manipulate objects, get behind the wheel of period-specific cars, engage in chases and shootouts, and much more – all in an incredibly detailed recreation of 1940’s Los Angeles, with 360 degrees of freedom.

Here’s the breakdown of missions available in L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files:

The Cases

L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files for Oculus Rift features seven cases pulled from across the five desks of the original game – Patrol, Traffic, Homicide, Vice and Arson, picked for their suitability to the virtual reality experience, alongside an in-game tutorial:

Tutorial: Start – Loosely based on Warrants Outstanding from the Patrol desk, Phelps’ partner Ralph Dunn spots Wendell Bowers, a bum who jumped parole.

Patrol: Upon Reflection – Taking a call from KGPL, Officers Phelps and Dunn provide uniformed assistance for an evidence search after a brutal murder in a downtown alley.

Patrol: Armed and Dangerous – Phelps and Dunn respond to a radio report of a “211” (L.A.P.D. radio code for an armed robbery) in progress with shots fired at Westlake Savings & Loan.

Patrol: Buyer Beware – Phelps hears gunshots as he walks his beat down Grand Avenue across 7th Street and races to the scene of a fatal shooting outside the Nunn Bush Shoes store.

Traffic: The Consul’s Car – Phelps and partner Stefan Bekowsky investigate an abandoned car and uncover the seedier side to international diplomacy.

Homicide: The Silk Stocking Murder – Phelps and partner Rusty Galloway investigate the brutal murder of another young woman, left naked in an alleyway near City Hall. Is this the work of a lone wolf or a copycat serial killer?

Vice: Reefer Madness – Phelps and partner Roy Earle meet with Freddie Calhoun, a drug addict and police informer who may know something about a drug distribution ring the two are investigating. Reefer Madness is from the second downloadable pack to the original L.A. Noire.

Arson: A Different Kind of War – Claims Investigator for California Fire & Life, Jack Kelso is on the hunt for an arsonist known as the “Bug Spray Arsonist,” with potential links to a series of recent murders and kidnappings across the city.

Navigation – As Phelps, players have the ability to navigate the world freely via four different forms of locomotion, including;

Reticule-based, blink movement: By double clicking the right Trigger, the player can aim their reticule toward a desired position.

Object-based movement: An extension of blink movement where the player gazes to a key highlighted object in the area and clicks right Trigger to move to that object. The player will then see the character navigate to that point from a third person POV, before being teleported to the end location. Depending on the player, this may help to reduce disorientation that can occur during reticule-based, blink movement.

Motion-based virtual-walking with sprint option: While gazing in the desired direction of movement, the player can swing their arms in walking motion to initiate virtual-walking, and hold down the right Trigger to sprint. The character’s speed will also be tied to how fast the player swings their arms.

Classic Thumbstick-based movement (accessed via the Pause Menu): Akin to console directional movement in which a player can hold down a directional button for first person POV character movement.

Alongside these locomotion options, a player also has the ability to quickly shift their perspective by clicking the left Thumbstick for 180-degree rotations allowing for rapid reorientation.

Investigation

As evidence is critical to solving cases, players must carefully examine crime scenes for any clues. In L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files, a player has the ability to physically articulate clues, mirroring their hands as they inspect each item closely. Over 500 props have been upgraded to showcase the most minute details from any angle, with over 100 custom hand poses and animations for interactions within the game world, alongside adjusted physics to account for the expected “weight” of each clue.

Interrogation

L.A. Noire pioneered the use of MotionScan, a revolutionary technology that captures and scans every nuance of a real actor’s facial performances, giving players the ability to read the finest details of a witness or suspect’s face during interrogations. This creates a new kind of gameplay enabling players to truly feel like a detective, using their own wits and instincts to separate truth from lies.

In L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files for Oculus Rift, players will fine-tune these skills as they look into the eyes of witnesses and suspects. As a detective, Phelps’ notebook is as vital as any weapon and your notebook will catalogue all clues, locations and suspects during each case. Players will also have the ability to sketch freehand in their notebook while conducting interrogations, providing further means of assessment during a witness or suspect’s alibi.

In addition to a wide range of animation enhancements and in a change from the original game across all new versions of L.A. Noire, interrogation options have been modified from the original ‘Truth,’ ‘Doubt’ and ‘Lie’ to ‘Good Cop,’ ‘Bad Cop’ and ‘Accuse,’ to better reflect Phelps’ behavior during any given selection.

Action

Brawling – In L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files for Oculus Rift, Phelps will often resort to fisticuffs to disarm an adversary. After making a fist, players will punch by extending their arm in the direction of the adversary, timing their punches to make contact when an opening appears. They can strike the face, chest, and stomach and even have the ability to slap with an open hand. To block, they must raise their arms in front of Phelps’ face, and duck and dodge their opponent’s attacks to avoid damage.

Driving – In L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files for Oculus Rift, players will have the unique ability to enter and exit a vehicle at any time. While behind the wheel, a player will have the option to:

Enter and exit the vehicle at any time during cases using the respective Secondary Trigger/Grip to open and close the door
Start the engine by physically turning the ignition key
Steer the vehicle by holding their arms out to the wheel and hitting each Grip to lock onto the wheel (and Grip to remove their hands to interact elsewhere), using right Trigger to accelerate and left Trigger to brake and reverse
(While in a patrol car) sound the siren by pushing the red button, Grip the radio mic to engage with dispatch, and in Armed and Dangerous and Reefer Madness, have access a shotgun and a Tommy gun, respectively, from the trunk
Receive verbal directions from your partner while driving by looking in his direction
Trip-skip to yellow flag destination indicator noted on in-vehicle mini-map via character notebook or ‘warp’ lever beneath mini-map

Shooting – Players will have several weapons at their disposal in case of a shootout; including, a pistol, shotgun, Tommy gun, and flame thrower – all with the option to use a left or right hand as the dominant control hand.

Players will Grip the pistol to unholster Phelps’ sidearm, aim, and use Trigger to shoot. To reload, players will click B with their armed hand to eject the round, and tip the bullet shells out of the chamber. They’ll then reach for ammo on their left hip with their free hand, hit Grip to grab the new round, and drop it into the pistol. They’ll then flick their wrist to close the chamber.

Players aim the shotgun using their right hand and use their left hand to steady their aim by hitting Grip to hold the barrel, and Trigger to shoot. After each shot, players will hold Grip to pump and reload the shotgun. They’ll then reach for ammo on their left hip with their free hand, hit Grip to grab the new round, and feed the round into the shotgun. A shotgun can carry four rounds.

Shootouts have also been completely reworked to allow for players to take full advantage of their environment. In order to stay out of adversarial fire, players can use their surroundings as cover as they would in the natural world, and push forward using any form of locomotion. For instance, if using a car as a point of cover, players can lie on the ground and shoot underneath the chassis at their targets, or reach around the side to blind fire.

For a breakdown of the control scheme, please see the below:

Enhancements & Collectibles

In addition to upgraded visuals and textures such as smog layers across the full game, the starting menus have been significantly updated.

Case selection begins in the office of Cole Phelps, now a completely interactive space created just for the virtual reality experience, with a number of tangible items and activities literally at a player’s fingertips, including:

A record player (with the ability to select and play music)
A mirror to inspect the character
Ability to change Outfits by placing different hats on Phelps’ head
A number of objects such as a smoking cigar, revolver, period-specific décor, and folder for case selection

The title screen and main menu have added layers of immersion, including:

The ability to gaze at the opposing rooftop for new angles of the original title screen sign, along with a view of the main menu alley below
360 degrees of view in the main menu alley, with a view of the title screen sign above

Collectibles include eight Novels & twenty Badges, spread throughout the game map in locations completely unique to L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files. As an added bonus, records are also hidden across Los Angeles – when a player finds a record, it adds to their record collection in Phelps’ office.

System Specifications

Minimum Specifications:

OS: Windows 8.1 64 Bit, Windows 10 64 Bit
Processor: Intel Core i7-4790K @ 3.60 GHz
Memory: 8 GB
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 8 GB
Sound Card: 100% DirectX 11 compatible
HDD: 18 GB

Recommended Specifications:

OS: Windows 8.1 64 Bit, Windows 10 64 Bit
Processor: Intel Core i7-6700K @ 4.00 GHz
Memory: 16 GB Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 8 GB
Sound Card: 100% DirectX 11 compatible
HDD: 18 GB

Due to current performance issues with AMD hardware, only specific combinations of AMD and NVIDIA/Intel Hardware will allow the game to play as intended:

If using an AMD Ryzen 7 CPU, an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (or above) graphics card is required to play
If using an AMD Vega 56 graphics card, an Intel i7 6700 (or above) CPU is required to play
Attempting to use an AMD CPU and GPU together to play the game is not supported at this time

L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files only supports a single graphics card architecture; NVIDIA SLI and AMD CrossFire features are not supported.

Over time programming changes will change the system requirements for this game. Please refer to your hardware manufacturer and www.rockstargames.com/support for current compatibility information. Some system components such as mobile chipsets, integrated, and AGP graphics cards may be incompatible. Unlisted specifications may not be supported by publisher.

Other requirements: Installation and play requires log-in to Rockstar Games Social Club (varies 13+) network; internet connection required for activation and periodic entitlement verification; software installations required including Rockstar Games Social Club platform, DirectX 9, DirectX June 2010 Redistributable Package, Chromium, and Microsoft Visual C++ 2012 and 2015 Redistributable Packages, and authentication software that recognizes certain hardware attributes for entitlement, digital rights management, system, and other support purposes.

Single use serial code registration via internet required; registration is limited to one Rockstar Games Social Club account (varies 13+) per serial code; only one PC log-in allowed per Social Club account at any time; serial code(s) are non-transferable once used; Social Club accounts are non-transferable.

Some of the cool stuff about L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files I’d like to note include their “full body animation”, detailed streets of 1940’s Los Angeles and you get to collect all kinds of stuff. Seriously the only thing missing here is calling a panzer or an Arams Tank and mow people down ala GTA V.

L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files is available for only $29.99 – available for download at the Oculus Rift Store, SteamVR, and the Rockstar Warehouse