Mafia II Reviews

I’ve owned a PlayStation 3 going on two years now and have, subsequently, had to put up with some inexcusably shoddy ports. Sega's over-the-top action game Bayonetta, released earlier this year, is a prime example of how not to port a game over to the notoriously complex PS3 hardware. Developers have often slighted Sony’s powerful console by releasing multi-platform games that were first coded for Microsoft’s Xbox 360 then sloppily transferred over to the PS3, resulting in a version far inferior to its current-gen counterpart. There have, however, been rare occasions where developers chose the PS3 as its lead platform but these instances are few and far between.

With that said, in comes Mafia II. I had been waiting for this game with baited breath since it was officially unveiled at 2008's E3 conference. I’m a huge fan of the first Mafia and expected much the same from its sequel. One of the most compelling things about Mafia II’s development process is that 2K Games stated that they handled the PS3 version separate the PC and Xbox 360. What 2K didn't tell us was that the PS3 version was, instead, quickly outsourced to the development team over at Massive Bear Studios with orders to optimize the game to the best of their abilities.

It’s very telling of the quality of a product when the main developer can’t be bothered to work the kinks out of their own game. As the above information soon spread across the internet like wild fire, there was further debate over the graphical definicies first displayed in the PS3 demo, as well as its terrible frame rate, copious amounts of screen tearing, and noticeable lack of some visual flourishes present on the other platforms (such as three-dimensional grass, pools of blood forming under your defeated enemies or splattering on the walls behind them during gunfights, as well as PhysX-enabled cloth movement, among other things.) PS3 owners questioned whether or not this demo was simply an older build of the game or if it was in fact the final build. Some gamers still clung to the notion that maybe it wasn't indicative of the full game. Sadly enough, that wasn't the case.

But even with these sometimes vexing issues present, and even though the full game does very closely resemble the demo as far as visuals are concerned, the game's performance has been increased dramatically. It’s still rather upsetting to be driving through the fictional city of Empire Bay and notice a flat-textured lawn instead of the 3D grass that the other two gaming platforms had been given, but at least the framerate wasn't dipping into the teens as was the case with the demo. Even with these graphical flaws present, a great game is still a great game through and through, and Mafia II is no exception.

Quite true that it was incredibly disheartening for this gamer to learn that the PS3, as powerful as it, couldn't render these FX without a serious decrease in performance. Massive Bear probably could have, however, optimized the coding to allow for these particular details, but decided to "fix" the problem by completely removing them instead. What’s even more disheartening is that seemingly everyone and their grandmother has been comparing Mafia II to the Grand Theft Auto franchise. Why? As far as I can tell simply because it's yet another crime shooter set in an expansive open-world. The GTA series no doubt popularized the sandbox genre, but therein lies the misconception; Mafia II isn’t a sandbox game.

It seems to me that more people are upset at what this title isn’t instead of appreciating it for what it is. The first Mafia was also unfairly compared to GTA upon its release for this very same reason. Apart from the open-world angle, these two series’ couldn’t be more different. Mafia II is very linear in its structure and story. There is usually one way and one way only to complete a given set of tasks. The game also tells its story in chapters as opposed to GTA-styled missions. There are 15 chapters in all with each one of them starting and ending the same way; main protagonist Vito Scaletta wakes up, runs his errands, then proceeds to call it a night; lather, rinse, repeat.

The jobs Vito carries out are, for the most part, varied and unique enough to keep repitition to a minimum. Some of the more interesting aspects of the game are the subtle nuances that really make Mafia II stand out from the glut of open-world games we’ve been swamped with over the past five years. For example, driving and smashing into an oncoming car will result in a police officer – if he’s witness to it – pulling you over and attempting to arrest you for a hit and run. At this point you can either bribe him if you have the cash to do so, or resist arrest by running off and quickly changing your clothes at the nearest department store. Other violations, such as being seen with a weapon, killing a police officer or pedestrian, or speeding will have varying consequences.

About two hours into the game, though, I came to the startling realization that Mafia II wasn't the generic shooter the demo seemed to want players to think it was. There are a few spots during the course of the game that rely heavily on cover system-assisted gunfights, but most of your time will be spent pulling jobs for the handful of crime bosses inhabiting Empire Bay as Vito and his childhood friend, Joe Barbarro, get closer and closer to becoming made men. And what's interesting to note is this doesn't take place until much later in the game.

On that same token, Mafia II really gives off this innate feeling of progression as the story deepens, but I do have some issues regarding that. Empire Bay is immediately open to you, as is most of the game’s luxury items (like high-class suits and other assorted apparel) right from the beginning. I would have preferred the quality and availability of clothing, apartments/houses, and weapon selection to increase as Vito takes on bigger and better jobs to indicate his rapid ascenion up the ranks. I was also disappointed by the lack of clothing available for purchase. When shuffling through Vito’s closet after an outfit is bought, gamers may change the color of it by selecting from existing presets only. Wear options are not included, and I think it would have better suited the game if players were allowed to mix and match their own outfits however they saw fit. The same can be said for car customization which is a nice touch, but a feature a little too hollow to warrant further examination.

I’ve already discussed the PS3 version’s various visual flaws, but I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the game still looks fantastic regardless. Taking into consideration that this is an open-world game, it’s amazing the amount of detail 2K managed to squeeze in. Character models look great and are all highly detailed. The whole of Empire Bay also looks absolutely spectacular due in no small part to fantastic lighting and shading, as well as the vast amount of pedestrians and cars allowed on screen at once. I also loved the fluidity of the well mo-capped character animations and the nifty physics technology allowing for the destruction of certain parts of the environment during shootouts and spectacular damage models for wrecked cars. There are, however, a few minor adjustments that could have been made (some very low-res textures and robotic lip-sync could have been far more polished, for instance), but overall, considering how butchered this particular port is graphically, Mafia II still looks amazing despite.

The biggest gripe fans have had up to this point is that after the main story is completed, there's really no reason to replay it. There are various collectibles scattered throughout the city (such as Playboy magazines, and I'm not making that up) but those don't really amount to much game play-wise. The story is involving enough to warrant more than one playthrough, but once you've completed the game you've seen just about all that it has to offer. The money you accumulate can be spent on, as mentioned above, clothing, cars, weapons, and even liquor from local bars, but none of that is especially noteworthy. Having a healthy selection of side missions to choose from would have been nice, but I'd gladly take a concise and satisfying single-player experience over that of a pretentious and drawn-out sandbox game anyday.

Despite its flaws, I could go on and on about how impressed I was with Mafia II, but I’ll spare you. Some have complained that the game is too short despite clocking in at 10-12 hours of game play time when most games this generation are lucky to hit six. I can’t outright recommend the PS3 version to those who own a powerful enough PC or Xbox 360 to play it on, but the pot is sweetened by 2K having handed over exclusive DLC to the PS3. Taking into account its various graphical deficiencies, rest assured that Mafia II is still a beautiful game. What's more, I love that at a time when so many developers are placing multi-player first and single-player as an afterthought, 2K forgoes the multi-player route in favor of crafting an excellent single-player game chock full of interesting characters, plot twists, and an immaculate attention to detail. Lacking visuals or not, this is still one hell of a game and anyone looking to sink their teeth into something with a beautifully told story intermittently layered with gunfights, excellent dialogue, and an overall unique approach to its subject matter, Mafia II shouldn't be missed.