For those who aren’t aware of its existence yet, a new game is on the way from publisher Rockstar Games and Australian developer Team Bondi titled L.A. Noire, and so far it looks like it’s going to blow minds.

The game is very much in the same vein as acclaimed film L.A. Confidential — set in the decade prior in post World War II 1940s Los Angeles where “corruption, drugs, and jazz” reign. The city was meticulously recreated for the time period right down to billboards and ads selling actual products from back then, setting the stage for one of the biggest and most ambitious video game titles to date.

If you’d like — and it’s highly recommended that you do — you can click on over to the other side now to see the first trailer for the game, as well as a bunch of new screenshots. See for yourself why gamers are oh-so-very-excited for this one.

Along with the usual fighting, shooting, and driving that goes into Rockstar favorites, L.A. Noire will integrate a detective element, having you working on solving various murders going on in the city via searching and analyzing evidence, interviewing and interrogating suspects, and actually reading unfathomably realistic facial expressions to determine whether or not you’re being lied to. Add to that amazing advancements in graphics and filming methods, and you have the potential for one of the most realistic and cinematic video games we’ve ever seen.

What do you think?

Trailer

Screenshots

[Sources: Game Informer, Planet Xbox 360]