PERHAPS the most anticipated game of the year, L.A Noire, throws the gamer into the midst of a 1940’s crime adventure.

Title: L.A. Noire

Platform: PS3

Genre: Action/Adventure

Price: �44.99

THE lines between film and virtual console fiction continue to blur as graphics technology provides increasingly realistic and engrossing gameplay experiences.

L.A. Noire, the latest effort from Grand Theft Auto pioneers Rockstar, employs revolutionary facial recognition and motion-capture effects to produce the most lifelike in-game characters ever.

Which is vital, because this gloriously gritty 1940s crime adventure requires you, playing as lead character Cole Phelps and co, to interrogate subjects and predict who’s lying purely from their facial expressions and mannerisms.

Add to that some fantastic crime-scene evidence gathering and some batting on the admirably authentic streets of crime-ridden Los Angeles, and you have a genuine contender for game of the year.

Score: 96%