Mafia: Definitive Edition is a gorgeous remake of the original game
Mafia: Definitive Edition puts players in the shoes of Tommy Angelo, a taxi driver climbing the ranks of the Salieri crime family.
Mafia: Definitive Edition is developed by Hangar 13 and published by 2K Games.
2020 is the year of remakes, it seems.
Mafia: Definitive Edition is a remake of the 2002 videogame of the same name, developed by Mafia 3 developers Hangar 13. Back then, it was one of the first games to adapt the GTA formula and actually take its story seriously. Thankfully, not much of that has changed in this remake, which serves up the same level of storytelling with completely redone visuals, voice acting and music.
This game gave me something I didn’t know I wanted: a Scorsese-like gangster story set in the 1930s, with flashy graphics and great gameplay. It’s no Goodfellas, but it’s the closest this franchise has come to serving up a great crime story with robust visuals. If you’re aching to play through a period piece about organised crime - this might be your only option, but it’s a damn fine one too.
Welcome to Chicago - I mean, Lost Heaven
Lost Heaven has been gorgeously remade, but there's not much reason to explore it. There is a Free Ride mode where you can drive around the open world however, with a couple of interesting - and well-hidden - secrets.
Mafia: Definitive Edition’s story begins in 1930. In the final years of America’s Prohibition era, taxi driver Tommy Angelo gets held at gunpoint by two members of the Salieri crime family - Paulie and Sam. After being forced to drive them to safety, members of the rival Morello family assault Tommy, which leads him back to Salieri for revenge. Salieri promises him payback, and once the taxi driver gets the smallest taste of what this crime family can give him - he’s in.
It’s a classic mafia story. The lead enters a crime family with nothing but big dreams, and after working his way up the ladder - becomes one of the most valuable members of the organisation. Of course, these stories never end with the whole family riding off into the sunset with bags of money. The Great Depression might have forced him into the mafia, but once a war between two rival crime families kicks up - Tommy might not have a way out.
It’s been 18 years since this story was first told, and it hasn’t aged well enough to set it apart from its contemporaries. I wound up not feeling invested in much of the main cast besides Tommy’s wife Sarah - who has an expanded role in this remake. Part of that is due to some truly generic voice acting. Tommy’s cohorts Paulie and Sam both sound strangely similar, but Paulie’s VO is especially grating in a performance akin to Chris Griffin from Family Guy. It’s really, really difficult to get attached to a gun-toting mobster who sounds like he’s jumped out of a Looney Tunes cartoon.
Sarah and Tommy could've stolen the show here, but Mafia's story has a habit of cutting interesting things short.
None of the characters get the development they deserve here, and that’s because the story is told over a series of vignettes, as an older Tommy Angelo spills his life story to a cop. Some of the flashbacks you play through are more interesting than others, such as a chaotic assassination mission atop a riverboat cruise. Others are decidedly less interesting, like a stealth mission where you’re tasked with taking out guards walking around a housing compound.
The first half of Mafia: Definitive Edition takes far too long to get going, and you’ll find yourself doing a whole lot of dull busywork as Tommy ingratiates himself with the mafia. The second half is much more eventful by comparison, but lacks impact due to weak characters and lukewarm plot twists. Honestly, it’s not the story that makes Mafia: Definitive Edition special - it’s the way it’s brought to life.
Putting on a new suit
This game is undoubtedly good-looking, and makes me excited for whatever Hangar 13 cooks up next.
Mafia: Definitive Edition’s story might be nothing special, but its atmosphere is everything. The Chicago-esque city of Lost Heaven is jaw-droppingly realised in this game, miles ahead of what Illusion Softworks attempted in Mafia (2002). It’s a truly gorgeous throwback to the 30s, with old-timey cars, radios blaring baseball commentaries, newspaper hawkers and endless gentrification.
Tommy Angelo’s story is set against this beautiful backdrop, although you’ll hardly see much of it unless you’re driving from place to place. Unlike GTA V’s Los Santos, Lost Heaven isn’t full of lively NPCs and sidequests. It’s a sprawling environment filled with beautiful vistas and landmark locations... but that's it. Without collectibles, sidequests or random events, there really isn’t much to do here besides drive from point A to point B. It’s a beautiful drive, though.
What the story lacks in punch, the game makes up for in visual splendour. Textures and resolution have clearly been given a huge upgrade from Mafia 3, and the result of this work can be seen everywhere - from the polished sheen of Tommy’s cars to the fabric of his suit. Facial animation is ultimately inconsistent, but character animation is really great - so the former ends up feeling like more of a nitpick than an egregious flaw.
It's not all guns and fists in Mafia: Definitive Edition. Tommy's often just on official Salieri business - collecting money or racing cars.
I’m in awe at what Hangar 13 has achieved with this game’s lighting, as well. One mission in particular had Tommy walk into an ambush at the edge of the city, in a barn during thunderous rain. Lightning flashed, reflected on the muddy puddles under Tommy’s shoes. A beaten-down truck’s headlights shone through pouring rain in the night, resulting in some incredibly tense mise-en-scène. It’s all utterly, utterly beautiful.
These visuals bring an otherwise unremarkable story campaign to life. So much of this game stayed with me not because of the writing, but the way it’s all put together visually.
Combat
The strangest thing is that the game lets you use grenades and other throwables, but rarely ever gives you access to them. Combat isn't fun or interesting here - it's just a whole lot of diving behind cover and using the same weaponry over and over again.
One last thing I’d like to touch on is that this game’s combat is really…bad. It reminds me a lot of Red Dead Redemption 2, another game that had astonishing visuals, a cinematic story and an outrageous number of shooting galleries. While Mafia: Definitive Edition doesn’t have as much combat, it did start wearing me down around the halfway point.
Gunplay is extremely unsatisfying, and the game constantly has you running out of ammo a little too quickly. You go into most missions armed with a simple pistol, which feels idiotic considering that the crime family has its own armoury. Why can’t I equip my own weapon loadout before missions? Melee combat is even worse. All you have to do is hit the counter button when you’re prompted, button-mash the melee button and you’re good to go. Until the next bad guy arrives, and you have to do the same thing again. It’s brainless.
Verdict
Despite my qualms with the game, it really is worth playing. Especially if you're hankering for a good gangster story.
Mafia: Definitive Edition might not be as well-rounded as I wanted it to be, but it’s still one of my favourite games of 2020. It’s an absolute visual feast, with a fantastic level of atmosphere accompanying every single mission you play through. Even just driving around as a taxi driver taking fares in Lost Heaven feels great, when old-timey music plays on the radio and passengers complain about the Great Depression. It’s the small things that this game does very, very well.
I only wish that it had a tighter story, less abrupt ending and better combat. But hey, I’ll take those hopes into Mafia 4 - whenever that gets made. This remake was clearly made with a lot of love, and fans of the original are bound to appreciate what Hangar 13 has done here. For newer fans like myself however, cruising through Lost Heaven alone seems worth the price of purchase.
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