Mafia II: Definitive Edition

Developer: 2K Czech | Released: 2020 | Genre: 3PS

I played more than 2 hours of this one before bailing out, so I decided to let it have its own blog post. The version I played was the Definitive Edition from 2020. I never played the classic from 2010 so I can’t say how much better it looks. I did complete the first one, but that was more than 20 years ago. Way too long to report on its graphics now – the rose-tinted glasses get in the way.

What I can remember is that the game was a third person shooter driving in a city between mafia jobs. This second game was more of the same. I was in control of the handsome Vito, starting out with a little bit of military action in Sicily 1943. Back in the USA, Vito gets jobs from his friend Joe, such as stealing a car for Vito himself, getting money for a barber, and stealing gas stamps from a safe.

There was a lockpick minigame lifting pins in a cylinder, doors and car doors could be opened or kicked, and the fist fighting felt balanced and fun. At one point Joe and Vito stole a car and I got the police on my ass. After driving the car inside a small repair shop, I could switch the letters and digits on the license plate, get a new car paint, and even tweak the engine.

Later I also bought a nice suit in a clothes shop, to stop the cops from identifying me.

Driving around the city was made easy by a red thread showing where to go on the minimap. Other than that, it was the exact same driving mechanics as in the first Mafia game, or even the Grand Theft Auto games. It was winter time and the streets had a fair bit of snow.

The last mission I tried was where I had to break into a building, stealth around the guards, and break into a safe to get some gas stamps. Even though I tried to sneak around carefully, the guards still detected me. I did manage to get the stamps and get out before the cops had a chance to grab me, but my contact still lowered the fee for not ghosting it.

I must say the Definitive Edition looked fantastic, and the gameplay worked well too. Driving was okay, shooting and fighting felt well balanced, and the tutorial tips were spot on. If anything, I thought it was too cutscene heavy. Sometimes it felt like I was playing for just a fraction of the story being told.

Abandoned after 2.2 hours.

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