It`s been 6 years since we`ve last seen a Mafia game hit our shelves and in our consoles. 6 years ago, Mafia 2 was released and was quite an enjoyable game to play, in terms of its open world and storyline throughout. We`re back with a new title 6 years later in the form of Mafia 3 by 2K, but is it a game that is a good addition to the franchise? Or is it a game that should have been shelved? Well, it`s very much actually a great addition to the franchise.
Mafia 3 was released at the beginning of October and developed by Hangar 13 and 2K Czech, and it is the 3rd instalment to the Mafia series. It focuses on the story of Lincoln Clay, a former soldier fighting in Vietnam, and we`re taken to the fictional city of New Bordeaux, and it`s 1968. Lincoln`s friends Ellis and Sammy are both murdered by the city mob mafia head, Sal Marcano, and Lincoln sets out on a path to wipe out him and his entire mafia. Not an easy feat, Lincoln is going to have to get the cash rolling in and by wiping out Sal`s districts and businesses to get to him.
Now, as soon as you enter the game and start the story, we`re issued with a warning of racism being depicted in the game, and it`s something that 2K have done very, very well. It`s very interesting and quite disgusting to now see where Racism was a huge problem in the US (and to this day in some areas continues to be a problem) and the story of Lincoln who in fact is a Black American, and the segregation in the game between black and white people. 2K show that in the game and it`s an interesting take on what was a huge problem in certain states, and to this day in certain states till contains to be a problem.
Onto the game itself, you`ll follow a very similar narrative and structural approach to what you did with Mafia 2. You`ll have the option to explore the city, take on missions for a range of people who are going to help you take down Marcano, and to go around exploring and collecting things in the city. You`ll need to hack into local radio networks and phone lines, to find out what Marcano and his men are planning.
The story is quite good. I`d been a little concerned in the build up to the game that the story was going to lack and it was going to not grip you in, as we`ve seen a few open-world games that perhaps the emphasis has been more on the exploring side of things and not the story. But that`s not the case with Mafia 3. The story has been well thought through and has been well investigated into the game. You`re out for revenge against Marcano. He`s murdered your friends and family, the people you grew up with before and post war. I quite like the open-world element within Mafia 3. You don’t have to do all the missions at once (as with any other open-world game) and the ability to explore almost everywhere on the map and not be limited, can be very beneficial for later use. It works out incredibly well for Mafia 3 as you`ll need to hack into local telephone lines to find out information, and doing that early on will benefit you later.
Graphically, the game is very, very good. I do believe that we are starting to see this year the true capability of next-generation graphics, and it`s something that 2K and Hangar 13 have done incredibly well. It looks fantastic, and the city, looks gorgeous.
It`s not a game that`s going to grip you hugely in terms of controls, and the controls are simple to pick up. I`ve played some open world games before that have been awful in terms of control configurations and have taken ages to pick the controls up surprisingly. But Mafia 3 offers a good config and something that doesn’t take long to pick up at all.
Overall, Mafia 3 is a very good game. It`s a game that is a great addition to the franchise, and it`s been a while since we`ve seen something like this. I like the use of factual reality in the game in terms of telling the story of racism, and it`s a game that they show it incredibly well in the game and in a friendly and factual way. Mafia 3 is worth a pick up though and 2K and Hangar 13 can be proud of their title.
A huge thank you to PREMIER for supplying us with a copy of Mafia 3.
Game: Mafia 3
Developers: Hangar 13/2K Czech
Publishers: 2K Games
Genre: Action-Adventure
Price: £54.99 (From Xbox Store)