Mafia: Definitive Edition showcased a story trailer during the PC Gaming Show. While short, the look did ensure Tommy Angelo’s story would be eventful. If the story is treated with the care it deserves, this remake could live up to the rest of the franchise and spark it back to life.
The Mafia remake has huge potential to be one of the best open world games of this generation if Hangar 13 integrates the best ideas from the open world genre into the Prohibition Era mobster setting. Thomas Angelo is an average working man, until one fateful day an encounter with organized crime ejects him from a career in taxi driving and into the Salieri crime family. Doing favors and earning respect to the limit of his conscience, Angelo finds himself in the front lines of a war with the Morello family. During the peak of Prohibition, money flowed just as much as blood, setting the stage for another gruesome tale of the consequences that come with the Mafia life.
Improving the open world with new and dynamic encounters with the citizens of Lost Heaven could breathe new life into the Chicago – inspired city and give it the level of engagement the graphical fidelity deserves. Random encounters with citizens akin to those in Red Dead Redemption or Grand Theft Auto offer countless opportunities to surprise the player as well as chances to uncover secrets along each corner of the map, giving players a deep sense of life to the world and rewarding them for poking around to discover goodies. During the Prohibition Era, illegal alcohol stills and speakeasies were established by criminals trying to quench the thirst of the people and make a quick buck. These underground and hidden businesses offer the player a potential robbery, but imagine if they could grow their empire and reputation by forcing the business to fold into their racket. Perceptive players would be able to grow their operation one block at a time. The more speakeasies under gamers’ control, the more potential exists to be harassed on the street by a drunk or perhaps witness a car crash due to an intoxicated driver, or maybe overhear a married couple arguing about a husband coming home late smelling like booze, ways to feel the impact the Mafia and players’ actions have on the city. Imagine the sense of discovery of uncovering a rival mobster’s fully customized hot rod inside a mechanic’s garage or happening upon an underground car meet. Interesting ways to create emergent gameplay stories and fill player’s own garage with nice cars. Witnessing a mugging in an alleyway can provide the opportunity to serve street justice or follow the mugger back to his stash for a nice score. Stumble upon a shakedown performed by a rival family, intervene and perhaps save a mechanic’s life which will grant a discount at the garage to fine tune a vehicle. Learning of a business that runs an invite-only poker game could let players force the store owner to open up and rob the table. Creating opportunities for players to stumble upon nuggets of life that fill the city could lead to one of the most memorable Mafia experiences available to this day.
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