Mafia was originally released in 2002 and in the 18 years since, it’s had just two sequels.
Developer Illusion Softworks was responsible for the original title but eventually folded into 2K Czech
who later created the follow up.
2K Czech then merged into Hangar 13,
the creators of Mafia 3 and current stewards of the franchise.
Now, returning to the game that started all,
Mafia has been remade from the ground up to welcome new and returning members of the family.
Opening in 1938, the story focuses on Tommy Angelo,
a struggling taxi driver in the fictional city of Lost Heaven during the Great Depression.
Tommy meets with a detective to snitch on the Salieri Crime Family
and subsequently confess about his life of crime, beginning with a chance encounter in 1930.
The plot follows the same course as the original game, but it’s expanded with completely new actors
and a more hard-boiled edge compared to the romanticized, melancholic feel of the original.
It remains a highlight of the genre
and easily ranks among great tales of organized crime.
Lost Heaven is technically an open world, but each chapter features a linear mission
set in the city or surrounding countryside.
Waypoints always guide you from one location to the next,
but the focus on storytelling and realistic attention to detail
help pull you further into the world of the mob.
Objectives range from classic mafia tropes like small time shakedowns
to assassinations as you become more trusted within the family.
Transitions from gameplay to cut-scenes can be a little awkward, but
the story and world are so engrossing you’ll eagerly want to see where you end up next,
even if you’re already intimately familiar with the original.
The Mafia series is known for its period-authentic details
with appropriately slow and heavy vehicles
serving as the main form of transportation.
The radio broadcasts deserve particular praise, with topics ranging from Prohibition and mob violence
to commentary on baseball games.
As the years progress, the city features subtle changes to billboards and vehicles
that further contribute to the immersive qualities of Mafia’s storytelling techniques.
As a trusted enforcer to Salieri, most missions feature various levels of violence.
When Tommy is looking to rough someone up and send a message,
melee combat is suitably vicious.
Landing enough attacks while successfully dodging initiates a takedown,
while weapons like baseball bats and pipes can brutalize foes.
Stealth can also be taken advantage of in some instances to even the odds,
while a few missions require it to progress.
Since there’s quite a bit of shooting,
melee and stealth sections help add variety
and contextually contribute to the story in meaningful ways.
The answers to Tommy’s problems are often solved with a hail of bullets.
He can hide behind cover and use weapons of the era like pistols, shotguns,
and iconic Tommy Guns to riddle his enemies with lead.
Combat is fittingly graphic and visceral as bodies convincingly crumple to floor.
The controls leave some room for improvement however,
as swapping between cover never feels smooth,
and aiming can be a little clumsy.
While the core mechanics aren’t anything to laud,
the specific scenarios and environments make the encounters feel special.
Lost Heaven is a beautiful place, and the atmosphere of locations like
cozy Italian restaurants or glitzy hotels
set the stage for memorable shootouts.
There are four difficulties including easy, normal, hard, and classic.
Aside from making enemies much more lethal,
classic removes certain HUD elements and helpful driving assists.
On classic, strategically picking off targets with headshots is vital
during every encounter, and the infamous racing mission is just as difficult as veterans will remember.
You can freely change the difficulty any time at the expense of a trophy or achievement, but
classic mode should appease longtime fans looking for a challenge.
Driving 1930s vehicles around Lost Heaven is a central element of Mafia.
The layout and some locations have been altered, but the tone feels nostalgically similar to the original
with recognizable landmarks and bridges that connect the islands together.
The cars aren’t as slow as they once were, but most still lack the quick acceleration
of present day vehicles.
Sometimes you need to pursue someone in a thrilling chase sequence,
and the big heavy cars make them feel distinct from modern contemporaries.
One of Mafia’s notable features when it was released
was having police officers respond to your traffic infractions.
If you drive above the speed limit, they pull you over and issue a fine,
or if they witness psychotic behavior they attempt to arrest or kill you.
Since you have no currency, the idea of paying a quick fine just amounts to a few seconds of inconvenience, but
the threat encourages following the rules of the road and immersing yourself in the city.
The story is strictly linear but when you just want to explore Lost Heaven at your leisure,
you can jump into Free Ride.
The original game also featured Free Ride Extreme which housed secret cars and missions,
but now these elements are all combined into one mode.
There’s a lot to discover in the city, including additional collectibles,
hidden vehicles, and quests, but it also feels like a missed opportunity.
The quests lack voice acting and the production values of the campaign,
and aside from a garage full of vehicles, nothing ties the mode together in a significant way.
The visuals are excellent, and most importantly the performance is solid.
The brick and steel buildings of Lost Heaven believably convey the time period
while the motion-captured performances help draw you into the story.
Some animations can seem stiff and awkward but for the most part they get the job done.
Mafia Definitive Edition is a loving and faithful remake of an underappreciated gem.
The story, atmosphere, and sense of place have aged particularly well.
The cover-based shootouts feature memorable scenarios, but the controls
and Free Ride mode have room for improvement.
After 18 years, Tommy Angelo’s violent tale of organized crime is still as memorable as ever.
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