When you introduce a video game to an older relative who doesn't play them—a parent or a grandparent—and they realize they've underestimated how detailed, how immersive these things really are, the conversations you have after that really are special. If this hasn't happened for you, ask anyone for whom it has.

Or better yet, just go read Christian Donlan's charming story of exploring Los Angeles with his father in L.A. Noire. The elder Donlan grew up in Los Angeles in the 1940s, and has a vivid recollection of the city in that time—where long gone landmarks were located, how wide the streets were, what sorts of things you'd see in a diner window.

L.A. Noire, a jewel box of a period piece, did profoundly well against his father's memory, whose photographic quality probably comes from his father, a Los Angeles police sergeant. Donlan's granddad had brushes with tabloid fame and deviations into petty graft, adultery and all the other pursuits that make for a good film noir cop. A colorful recounting of his career, including the only time he used his gun, opens the piece.

It's in the sightseeing tour of downtown Los Angeles where the real affirmation comes. Even minor landmarks seemingly there just to hold a city block together present some antecedent for Donlan's father to remark on and marvel at. There are some details gotten wrong—an engine note in one car is off; too many of them have whitewall tires. But the fact his father praised the gloomy quality of lighting on the streets, at night, in the game is rather profound. It reflects a great credit on anyone who worked on this game—for all of its troubled history—for it to get this stamp of authenticity, even 18 months out.

Donlan later asked his dad for a few thoughts on what he had seen. His reply concludes the essay, and it is well worth reading through to the end. But here's a highlight. "This seemed a refreshingly thoughtful—almost intellectual—scenario that I would not have expected in something called a game."

Night and the City [Eurogamer]

Brendan McNamara's most recent game had players exploring the seamy underbelly of an impressive, gleaming recreation of 1940s Los Angeles with L.A. Noire. The first glimpse at his next game—being produced with director George Miller's film production firm KMM Interactive—the grime is all out in the open.

Despite the fact that McNamara's Team Bondi was supposedly absorbed into KMM, the dev studio's website shows off what appears to be the first image from Whore of the Orient. The title is being described as being developed for next-generation consoles and PC. The page also has the Warner Brothers logo on it, likely due to the fact that they've distributed KMM projects like the Happy Feet 2 movies and video games.

Last year, Kotaku's own Luke Plunkett speculated that the game would be set in an early 20th Century Shanghai, since the project's title came from that city's infamous nickname. The description on the Team Bondi site follows:

Shanghai, 1936. Whore of the Orient. Paris of the East. The most corrupt and decadent city on the planet, where anything can be had or done for the right price. Plaything of Western powers who greedily exploit the Chinese masses. Boiling pot of Chinese nationalism, with the Kuomintang ruthlessly trying to suppress Communism and the labour movement. Home to the International Police Force, a group of Western cops hopelessly trying to keep the lid on and keep the peace.

From the development team who brought you L.A. Noire and The Getaway, along with the Academy Award winning film production team of Kennedy Miller Mitchell comes a completely new and original IP being developed for next generation games consoles and PC.

The Getaway, famous for its photo-realistic look, strong narrative and uncompromising gameplay style, sold over 4 million units on the PlayStation 2. The release of L.A. Noire set the quality bar even higher selling over 5 million units. L.A. Noire was critically heralded as a breakthrough for interactive storytelling and was the first game ever to be invited to be shown at New York's world renowned Tribeca Film Festival. L.A. Noire has gone on to become the UK's fastest selling original IP - a title previously held by The Getaway - and a worldwide number one hit. Using award winning animation technology to capture every actor's facial performance in astonishing detail, L.A. Noire combined breathtaking action with true detective work to deliver an unprecedented interactive experience.

Proving once again that it pays to wait when it comes to the hottest PlayStation 3 games, today Sony is launching Ultimate Editions, a selection of hit PS3 titles bundled with all of their downloadable content for one low price. How much would you pay for complete editions of Red Dead Redemption, BioShock 2, or L.A. Noire?

They're like Game of the Year editions, only downloadable. Today through June 4, PlayStation 3 owners can hop onto the PlayStation Network and purchase more-or-less complete editions of some of the hottest older games on the console for 30 percent off what all the bits would have cost individually. For a DLC-heavy game like Motorstorm Apocalypse, scoring the whole shebang for $50.49 isn't too shabby.

Of course it's even better when you're a PlayStation Plus member. Then the bundles are 50 percent off, dropping that Call of Duty: Black Ops Ultimate Edition from $66.46 to $46.54. Maybe it's finally time I look into hooking up a year of PlayStation Plus.

Here's the full list of Ultimate Editions going up today.

• Red Dead Redemption with Legends and Killers, Liars and Cheats and Undead Nightmare — $27.99 ($19.59 for PlayStation Plus)
• InFAMOUS 2 Complete Edition — $33.99 ($23.79 for PlayStation Plus)
• BioShock 2 with Exclusive Character Pack, Minerva's Den, The Protector Trials, Rapture Metro and Sinclair Solutions — $27.99 ($19.59 for PlayStation Plus)
• MotorStorm Apocalypse — $50.49 ($35.34 for PlayStation Plus)
• Call of Duty: Black Ops with First Strike, Escalation, Annihilation and Rezurrection Packs — $66.49 ($46.54 for PlayStation Plus)
• L.A. Noire: The Complete Edition — $27.99 ($19.59 for PlayStation Plus)
• Mafia II with Betrayal of Jimmy, Greaser Pack, Jimmy's Vendetta, Joe's Adventure, Renegade Pack, Vegas Pack and Hero Pack — $20.99 ($14.69 for PlayStation Plus)
• Just Cause 2 Ultimate Edition - $20.99 ($14.69 for PlayStation Plus)
• Mortal Kombat with the Warrior Bundle and Klassic Skins Pack 1 — $34.99 ($24.49 for PlayStation Plus)

PSN Introduces Ultimate Editions [PlayStation Blog]

Think about it: L.A. Noire should work on a tablet. Rockstar's 2011 crime drama essentially updates the old-school adventure game formula that has players going places and clicking on items. A natural for conversion to a tablet, right? Well, yes… and no.

OnLive's still chasing the somewhat counterintuitive dream of bringing hardcore AAA video games onto portable smartdevices. The video above shows Kotaku intern Nick Vanucci taking on the OnLive tablet version of L.A. Noire. You'll see that the touch controls work great in some places and utterly fail in other places. Should you play the adventures of detective Cole Phelps on a tablet if you haven't played them on console? Watch the video above before you make a decision.