Released here today, it’s one of the most long awaited games in history and received rave reviews.
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However, it now seems just crime thriller LA Noire, hitting Aussie shores today, is causing more than just thrills – it appears to be freezing and shutting down some gaming consoles.
This follows complaints from several US gamers this week, the first to get their mitts on the much hyped game last Tuesday.
LA Noire makers Rockstar confirmed the game was causing issues with Playstation 3 but initially denied it was affecting non Sony devices, and blamed a 3.61 firmware patch for PS3, part of Sony’s update to its Playstation network following the hacking crisis.
“We have received some reports of PS3s overheating while playing L.A. Noire or beeping three times before shutting down/turning themselves off, mostly on older 60GB and 80GB fat models,” it said on a blog in reply to a customer query.
“Primary reports seem to be that updating to firmware 3.61 will cause PlayStations to overheat. There have been various reports of this on a few different games now, all reporting their PS3s turning off or ‘Red Lighting’ after having installed 3.61,” Rockstar said.
“This can range from games randomly freezing to PS3s turning off anywhere between 30 mins use to 2 hours.”
However, it also pointed out many other gaming titles have been affected, insisted the issue was not just confined to its newest release. “Multiple games (Rockstar and non-Rockstar) overheat or freeze only when 3.61 is installed.”
However, this appears not to be the case, with Sony denying culpability from its firmware update.
“As with the release of any System Update, we will invariably see a very small number of users whose console has failed following updating their console, which is an unfortunate coincidence,” Sony told Edge publication.
Rockstar have now since backtracked and admitted LA Noire is to blame and have updated the FAQs, confirming the freezing is affecting non Sony consoles.
Microsoft Xbox 360 users have also reported freezing issues although the number of consoles affected are said to be relatively minor.
“Rockstar have now updated their FAQ on the matter, have admitted that it is a fault with their latest title LA Noire and have offered a workaround,” claimed the Sony rep.
“I find it hard to call it great if i can’t play it. Very disappointed right now. People are reporting frequent freezes on both platforms so its not just an xbox issue,” one gamer said on XBox blog.
Rockstar and Sony release this joint statement just hours ago:
“We have received a very small number of customer support questions about PS3’s overheating or shutting down while playing L.A. Noire. At this time, Rockstar Games and Sony can confirm that neither L.A. Noire or firmware update 3.61 are causing the PS3 hardware to overheat.
We are both committed to working hard to find solutions to this and any issues that may arise. If you are experiencing any issues with L.A. Noire or your PS3 hardware, please contact technical support using any of the means provided below:”
Rockstar Support: www.rockstargames.com/support/ Rockstar Support on Twitter: twitter.com/RockstarSupport
PlayStation 3 Support: us.playstation.com/support/PlayStation 3 Support EU: www.eu.playstation.com
The life sized game, developed by Team Bondi set in post World War II allows game enter the murky world of veteran turned LAPD detective Cole Phelps as he attempts to unravel the truth behind a conspiracies and brutal murders.
It features “groundbreaking” motionscan animation technology that mimicks real life facial expressions.
“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,” the trailer says.
Well, maybe Cole Phelps can crack the console freezing case.
