Mafia 3 Review
Let me begin by simply stating for the record that Mafia 3 is not a terrible game at all—it’s actually quite fun and terrible addictive—but the unfortunate truth is that the developer, Hangar 13, got…
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Let me begin by simply stating for the record that Mafia 3 is not a terrible game at all—it’s actually quite fun and terrible addictive—but the unfortunate truth is that the developer, Hangar 13, got more wrong than they got right. To put it into perspective, there is a lot more that I like about the game than dislike—because I’m able to appreciate it for what it is, not what it should have been—but that does not discount the rather significant low points of the experience that would have served better as a spin-off title than a sequel to a highly regarded franchise that raised the bar. In the countless hours that I’ve pumped into the game in the last three days, I’ve managed to really be taken aback by such mature and concise storytelling paired with consistent and structured gameplay that the frustrations I’d previously held have simmered down to mere annoyances. However, I am well aware that not everyone is able to do so and some gamers might find themselves waiting for Mafia 3 to hit the bargain bin. In all honesty, depending on how a majority of the community receives the experience, it won’t be long.
Mafia 3 tells a story of acceptance, family and loyalty initially and in a surprising instant, turns into a tale of bloody revenge. It was, essentially, the first thing I noticed, that Hangar 13 managed to craft and structure a narrative that unfolds at a near perfect pace and is so captivating, I found myself enthralled with it and yearning to learn what happened next. Hangar 13 managed to avoid the classic revenge clichés and really sprung an original and fantastic story forward, doing so in a mature and real way, crafting dynamic and believable characters that I really developed feelings for, both positively and negatively. The only downside is the execution of the story-driven gameplay and that is merely because of a familiar case of redundancy. It’s not an inherently negative thing, as I am unable to name a single game that wasn’t repetitive in one way or another, but as mildly annoying as it is, it makes sense and somehow works. Lincoln Clay, who’s out for vengeance against the Italian mob for a brutal betrayal, must destroy the foundation that his enemies are standing on. Lincoln must work his way up from businesses and rackets to their lieutenants and their capos before going after the head honcho himself, Sal Marcano. In lieu of this, you’ll find a lot of similar missions involving murder and sabotage to cripple and weaken the men in charge before taking them out. It’s understandably structured, so most players will be able to forgive the redundancy for the sake of the plot—including the fact that there is enough variety to keep things interesting. It would prove to be a substantial negative checkmark if Hangar 13 didn’t execute this structure in such a tactful way.
New Bordeaux, which is a reimagining of New Orleans, is a well-crafted character in itself with multiple personalities, depending on which district you’re riding through. These districts will be under your control to distribute to any one of your three underbosses once you’ve stolen them from under the feet of the Marcano crime family. Each district has its own personality, from the swampy beauty of the bayou to the heart and soul of the French Ward, to the affluent and dangerously racist Frisco Fields, where the infamous Southern Union members are in abundance. New Bordeaux is a rather beautiful representation of New Orleans and truly feels so authentic that I could be convinced I’ve time travelled fifty years back, with the diverse architecture and vibes. A noteworthy mention is the fact that you’ll find as much authenticity in the location as you will in its heavy historical themes, as Mafia 3 is not shy in regard to dealing with racism and white privilege. Lincoln will often find himself shunned from white-only restaurants and stores, with the owner or employees threatening to call the police—and actually will—as well as the difference in law enforcement response time in affluent, white neighborhoods compared to more run-down or ghetto areas. It’s moderately disturbing in context, but it’s real and it is true American history. Not to mention the positively outstanding soundtrack the game boasts, which really helps set the theme and tone for New Bordeaux.
However, despite being infatuated with the richness of the setting, primarily in terms of the narrative, the open-world of New Bordeaux itself is utterly barren and depressing. Locations are minimally populated with foot traffic and aren’t very diverse aside from landscape; even with the architecture and theme, there aren’t really any landmarks or points of interest to discover or explore. Interiors are present, but identifying them is hit-or-miss as there are no indicators to inform you of which shops or buildings are accessible. It’s a tragic flaw that a lot of open-world games manage to incorporate; there’s nothing worse than an open-world experience that feels on-the-whole empty.
Naturally, Mafia 3 has drawn some comparisons to similar experiences like Grand Theft Auto, but the two games couldn’t be more different. While Mafia 3 gets some things right like architecture and an overall feel of Louisiana, it completely misses the mark on specific features that make open-world games what they should be; something its predecessor managed to get right that, unfortunately, was not carried over to this installment. For example, the aforementioned lack of interactivity within the open-world itself and a scarcity of shops and businesses. With Mafia 2, you were able to walk into a shop and purchase weapons and clothing for the player-character, Vito Scaletta. You were able to rob stores and take off, only to return and find police doing an investigation of the crime and being identified by the shop owner if you got close enough. While I miss the menial tasks of driving to a store to resupply, the indisputable convenience of being able to phone in a contact and have a vehicle brought to you or a weapons van to meet you at your location is brilliant. These favors can be called in once certain underbosses have enough revenue flowing in to afford to provide you with these services.
One of the weaker aspects of Mafia 3 is its visual presentation. In cutscenes, the game is absolutely beautiful with detailed, high resolution textures and realistic animations. In-game, however, the game suffers from low resolution textures, blurriness, poor lighting dynamics and shadows, and a skydome that looks like someone applied a brushstroke filter to it. It looks even worse when it’s raining. It’s rather embarrassing that a game today has less detail, sharpness, and clarity than its six-year-old predecessor. With minimal exaggeration, I mean it when I say that Mafia 2 looks like Until Dawn by comparison, and that is unacceptable. With some strong disappointments on that front, it does not take away from the overall experience, but it does hinder players from being able to truly appreciate the beauty of New Bordeaux and its colorful characters, thus defeating Hangar 13’s intentions to craft a visual marvel that is New Orleans. Hangar 13 would be wise to release an update or free DLC that includes HD textures to overwrite the 512×512 pixel textures currently in-game.
On the topic of negative points, the AI in Mafia 3 leaves much to be desired. The poorly programmed NPCs often make the experience ridiculously easy, even on the most difficult settings, but also hinder you in other ways as well. You can silently eliminate enemies in clear view of their comrades and they’ll only raise an eyebrow when the dead body is within their direct field of vision, such as 8 feet away or less. Early on, the game brings up a heap of prompts every now and then to raise awareness to game mechanics and one of them is in regard to local law enforcement. The prompt about the police tells players that they would do well to obey traffic laws and whatnot while in view of the police, but this weighs little when you can barrel through red-light-intersections at top speed and the police act like you’re invisible. Essentially, the game lies to you in that regard. In my experience, I was able to do everything but run someone over in front of the police without illiciting any kind of response, which is the complete opposite end of the spectrum when compared to Mafia 2, where the police would come after you for speeding alone. Speaking of the police, there isn’t much in the way of a wanted system like there was in Mafia 2; in the last game, police would take notice of the vehicle and license plate as well as the player themselves, which could be erased by changing clothes or getting a new license plate or paintjob. Just as well, depending on the severity of the crime, players could simply bribe officers when they’re pulled over for traffic violations, unless there’s an active deadly force authorization on you. In Mafia 3, deadly force is always authorized, regardless of whether you’ve stolen a car or committed a homicide.
In a nutshell, I wouldn’t say that the overall experience with Mafia 3 is a negative one. It tells a brilliant story of revenge in a mature and believable manner and executes its gameplay in an addictive and fun, albeit redundant and repetitive way. When you compare it to its predecessors, it’s difficult to not be completely disappointed and pray for a true follow up sequel next time. However, if you’re able to get past its shortcomings, as blatant as they are, I think you’ll find Mafia 3 to be a good run all-in-all. With that being said, I can’t honestly say that it is a must-have title at the moment—especially with the rather horrid visual presentation—and unless you absolutely cannot hold patience with this game, I would wait for it to inevitably hit the bargain bin.
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