L.A. Noire Getting Switch Port, Here’s Why It’s Important

la noire nintendo switch, nintendo switch

Rockstar Games

The Nintendo Switch is getting a third party game in the form of the remastered edition of L.A. Noire.

The game is coming out on November 14, 2017 for the Switch as well as the PS4 and Xbox One. Alongside the console versions is a VR spin off called L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files for the HTC VIVE which features seven cases from the original game rebuilt for VR.

The Switch version will take advantage of the system’s features, with a Joy-Con mode with gyroscopic, gesture-based controls, HD rumble, and contextual touch screen controls. This is of course on top of the whole thing being portable. The game will also feature new wide and over-the-shoulder camera angles.

The PS4 and Xbox One editions feature a wider range of technical enhancements including enhanced lighting and clouds, new camera angles, high resolution textures, and more. It plays natively in 1080p for the PS4 and Xbox One and in 4K for the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X. The resolution of the Switch version has not been specified.

All three console ports are getting the complete game as well as all the additional downloadable content.

This is kind of a big deal for the Switch. Getting such a high profile game, even just a remastered port, at the same time as other consoles gives hope that the system will see continued support from third party developers and publishers.

This is great because even though the system sold so well, it hasn’t been receiving a lot of support from third parties. Say what you want about Nintendo’s initial list of third party partners for the Switch, but as journalist Laura Kate Dale writes, Middle-Earth: Shadow of War, Call of Duty, Assassin’s Creed, Red Dead Redemption 2, and Darksiders 3 are just a selection of the big games not appearing on the Switch. She said this may be due to the lack of power on the system compared to other systems, as even the Skyrim port is taking longer than expected. She said it could also be because third party publishers didn’t expect the system to do so well and want to wait and see how other third party games do before they fully commit. Either way, it kind of sucks since the portability alone would make Switch versions of these games the definitive version.

Now despite my excitement for the ports, there are some aspects that have me worried. First of all, the Joy-Con features may just devolve into tech demo-tier gameplay Nintendo loves shoehorning into their games for recently launched systems, much like the features in the Batman: Arkham City Wii U port and many others like it. And the lack of a specified resolution for the system has me worried that the port will not be at the standard 720p undocked and 1080p docked. We did reach out to Rockstar Games for a specific resolution for the Switch. Also, it would have been nice to see a port of a new release on the system rather than a port of a six year old game.

Despite my worries, I still have high hopes for the port. If it does well, it could open the door for more third party publishers to release their games on the system. Because even though the Switch is doing just fine as a “Nintendo game player,” it needs third party support if it wants healthy staying power.