L.A. Noire five-star walkthrough and newspaper guide

Arson Case 4: A Polite Invitation

Investigation: Curtis Benson's apartmentInterrogation: Curtis BensonInvestigation: California Fire & LifeInvestigation: Hall of RecordsInvestigation:Leland Monroe's OfficeNewspaper 11

Investigation: Curtis Benson's apartment

After leaving the hospital and heading to Benson's place, check the mailboxes out front to verify which apartment is his.

Inside, there are two places you need to check, both of them behind where Benson is sitting.

First, look on his desk.

There you'll find an insurance agreement between California Fire & Life and Elysian Fields.

Next, look on the dining table next to the desk for a folder containing stock certificates.

Be sure to flip through them all to get the clue to register.

You've found all the clues, but there's one more nasty surprise that'll let you know what kind of person you're dealing with. To find it, just open the bedroom doors, shown below:

Interrogation: Curtis Benson

Ask Benson about his Motive for fraud, and he'll Lie to your face.

Show him you mean business with the Share certificate.

Next, he'll try to Lie when you ask him about Suburban Redevelopment.

This time, flash the Insurance agreement his way.

Finally, ask him about the Buchwalter case settlement. This time, Doubt his reply.

Investigation: California Fire & Life

Follow the directions up to the office, and then check the case file on the desk.

This time, tap on the latitude/longitude blurb on the upper-right corner of the blueprints...

... andon the valuation line of the property slip.

Investigation: Hall of Records

Follow the guard's directions up to the Land Registry Office; look for the open door on the second level.

Talk to the clerk, and he'll lead you over to the bookcase marked "S." Search it.

You'll pull out a ledger of company records; flip forward to find the Suburban Redevelopment Fund.

Tap the entry, and then tap Courtney Sheldon's name at the bottom of the list.

Next, the clerk will lead you over to a searchable map table.

Using the analog sticks, set the coordinates to latitude 34-04-29, and longitude 118-17-58.

Next comes the most excruciatingly unnecessary, needlessly complicated and slowest"puzzle" in the entire game. Walk over to where the clerk is standing and examine the adding machine.

Punch in 1876988, then hit the division key...

... then, punch in 90,000, and turn the crank to get 20.

20 corresponds to the 21st letter of the alphabet (since A is counted as zero). So head over to the shelves marked "U."

Search the ledger you pull out until you find 1876988, and tap on the entry. Then get ready for a gunfight, which after that last puzzle should feel like a nice little reward.

Investigation: Leland Monroe's Office

Once you're free to search, head over to Monroe's safe on the right.

Grab the little notebook on the bottom right to see a list of who's on the take from Monroe.


Above: Why, hello, Roy!

Next, examine the pile of blank stock certificates...

... and, finally, the folder on the top shelf toread a report on Dr. Harlan Fontaine.

Next, take a look at the folder on Monroe's desk.

Open the folder and tap on the names Steffens, Sawyer and Morelli.

Newspaper 11

Finally, turn around and look on the credenza opposite the desk. There, you'll find the next newspaper.

You'll also find a photo of the Suburban Redevelopment Fund. Pick it up and take a good look to end the case.

Next page: The story draws to a close with A Different Kind of War

Mikel Reparaz
After graduating from college in 2000 with a BA in journalism, I worked for five years as a copy editor, page designer and videogame-review columnist at a couple of mid-sized newspapers you've never heard of. My column eventually got me a freelancing gig with GMR magazine, which folded a few months later. I was hired on full-time by GamesRadar in late 2005, and have since been paid actual money to write silly articles about lovable blobs.