Summary
Releasing all the way back in May 2011,L.A. Noirewas far from a perfect game, but it managed to make a lasting impression on many fans. A true graphical showcase for its time,L.A. Noireput its cutting-edge motion-capture technology front and center of the entire experience, and while it’s mocked relentlessly nowadays, it was very impressive back in 2011, albeit still a little too uncanny. And then, there’sL.A. Noire’s gameplay. Though limited in its player-freedom,L.A. Noirepresented players with a wealth of mysteries to solve and a handful of shootouts to blast their way through, pairing nicely with the game’s stellar presentation.
It certainly wasn’t perfect, butL.A. Noireshowed a great deal of promise, promise that could have been embraced by a future sequel. Unfortunately, with the closure of Team Bondi and Rockstar seemingly expressing no interest in returning to the IP, anL.A. Noiresequel will probably never happen, so now it’s up to games likeNobody Wants to Dieto carry that legacy forward.
Nobody Wants to Die Looks Like a Great Spiritual Successor to L.A. Noire
Nobody Wants to Die Fuses Noir with Cyberpunk
Announced on July 21, 2025,Nobody Wants to Dieis a new Sci-Fi detective game from studio Critical Hit Games and publisher Plaion. Though major details of the game are still shrouded in mystery,Nobody Wants to Die’s debut trailer offered a visual feast, teasing some classic genre tropes in the process. Based on the trailer,Nobody Wants to Dieembracesthe detective noir genrewholeheartedly. Players take control of an archetypal hard-boiled detective who’s been tasked with solving an off-the-books case, and the game’s environments look as though they’ve been heavily inspired by 1940-50s gothic architecture.
But at the same time,Nobody Wants to Diealso fully embraces theSci-Fi cyberpunk genre. While NPCs are driving 1940s cars, those cars are flying across a neon-soaked New York skyline, set in the year 2329. Advanced Sci-Fi technology will also play a major role in both the game’s story and gameplay, withNobody Wants to Dieapparently revolving around themes of transhumanism and the dangers of immortality, with humans having discovered a way to store their memories and live forever in this world.
Advanced Sci-Fi tech will also seemingly be used asNobody Wants to Die’s main source of gameplay, with the player’s detective protagonist being able to wield a device on his wrist that rewinds time in a crime scene, allowing him to see the origins of a fire, where bullets have impacted a surface, and how a victim has been killed. This feature isn’t particularly new, withtheBatman: Arkhamserieshaving beat it to the punch a decade ago, but ifNobody Wants to Die’s trailer is any indication, this could end up looking truly spectacular.
Running onUnreal Engine 5,Nobody Wants to Dieappears to have some incredibly impressive presentation. Photorealistic graphics, beautifully stylized lighting, realistic fire effects, and so much more are already present inNobody Wants to Die’s trailer and pre-release images, making this a game that is definitely worth keeping an eye on for anyL.A. Noirefans who long for a return to technically-impressive detective games with a lot of style.
LA Noire
WHERE TO PLAY
Using groundbreaking new animation technology, MotionScan, that captures every nuance of an actor’s facial performance in astonishing detail, L.A. Noire is a violent crime thriller that blends breathtaking action with true detective work to deliver an unprecedented interactive experience. Search for clues, chase down suspects and interrogate witnesses as you struggle to find the truth in a city where everyone has something to hide.Amid the post-war boom of Hollywood’s Golden Age, Cole Phelps is an LAPD detective thrown headfirst into a city drowning in its own success. Corruption is rampant, the drug trade is exploding, and murder rates are at an all-time high. In his fight to climb the ranks and do what’s right, Phelps must unravel the truth behind a string of arson attacks, racketeering conspiracies and brutal murders, battling the L.A. underworld and even members of his own department to uncover a secret that could shake the city to its rotten core.
