When I first bought this game for the PC, I didn't really know what to expect. Knowing it's a Mafia game, and the successor to a flawed game (Mafia) I feared it was going to be in a mindless shoot-em-up with fancy graphics that mocks peoples culture with one of the biggest italian stereotypes that is mafia. Eventually, seen the overwhelmingly positive reviews and comments on the storyline itself, I decided to spend my money on Mafia II.( Without regrets!) In fact, it turned out to be an accurate, emotionally involving plot picturing a real situation which influences not only the Italian peninsula but the whole globe. Mafia. (Queue dramatic music.)
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| "Oh yeah, I like it when you talk dirty to me." *Random half dressed girl walks* <_< |
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| Argh! I left the blender cap off again! |
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| Hey man, why you cuttin' me!? |
Now let's talk about action. There is a good amount of that. Sooner or later, you'll find yourself relying more on your gun rather than in your driving skills. Mafia II decided to follow a semi-realistic approach on this. If you don't keep yourself covered all the time, you most certainly will be killed. It's just a matter of no more than three, four bullets at most. But if you get hit and cover, after a while you'll regain your lost health automatically. The AI is satisfying, and it rarely glitches. The enemy will always look for cover, and while covered, will either try to simply shoot you or to gain advantage by "stealthing" behind your position if it's possible. The environment reacts almost always appropriately to the bullets, and a good portion of it is destructible (so you may want to consider *what* your cover is made of before hiding behind it). The game also includes some stealth mechanics, which are nothing more than a "stealth" stance and a way to kill your enemies silently from behind. You will be needing that badly a couple of times, but stealth is not what the majority of this game revolves around.
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| Trenchcoat Mafia! |
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| These guys don't play around with their guns. The guns play WITH YOU. |
As for the game mechanics itself, I would say it is excellent. I never had FPS problems, and if you have a high-end machine you will be experiencing a surprisingly detailed world, especially when it comes to people and facial expression. Except a couple of visual glitches I experienced during the whole playthrough, everything went nice and smooth when it comes to graphics, not that I had major issues with anything else. To be honest, after years and years of gaming, this is one of the few titles who granted me a fully smooth experience, with no lag, and not even a single crash for the whole time. Amazing.
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| The map is decent size compared to other open world games. |
The sfx, and voice acting were satisfying, and all the radios you'll encounter will be reproducing the most famous tracks from late 40s/50s. There is also a radio on every car with four different channels if you feel like listening to something vintage while travelling, or you can just turn it off. For me, I thought it was a blast from the past. ( I am not that old.) but, it really helped immerse the player in that time period. Plus, it gave me a sense of Bethesda's Apocalyptic Fallout. (Which is not bad, either.) Although, the game is different from Fallout so don't have any ideas that it is similar.
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Story line of Mafia II, is pretty convincing and I applaud it for it's originality as a Mafia game. HOW DOES IT LOOK? Mafia II presents a really good immersive environment of the times. It brings you back to the past where the Mafia was one of the most powerful gangs. The characters and the environment is up to date with the graphics and it's comparable to Red Dead Redemption, or Just Cause 2's graphics. So overall Mafia II does look great. HOW DOES IT SOUND? The Voice actors in the game are perfect, with their accents it adds to the immersive factor in the game. The sound effects are timed perfectly, so every time you shoot the gun it will make a gun sound as well as driving in the game. The radio stations, provide an excellent array of music from the era. From Bo Diddly, to the Andrew Sisters. HOW DOES IT PLAY? The controls, in the game are self explanatory, and not hard to learn. Driving is fun, but still the same as with most open world type games. HOW LONG WILL IT LAST? With all the factors that put into play and collectibles I would say it would last you a good 20+ hours. HOW IS IT PRESENTED?.This masterpiece is bound to be remembered by those who embraced the plot from the start until the end, but do not consider spending your money on this game if what you're looking for is simply raw action. This game was made to entertain mostly through story, and also as a mean to teach what the Mafia is like to those who aren't familiar to it. As an asian dude who doesn't really know anything regarding the Mafia except from the movies I would say it's pretty accurate. It is worth having a try. It adds to your culture. Plus, the gameplay is fun and engaging, the graphics are smooth and detailed, and the atmosphere is immersive. I just can't find any flaws other than the very few glitches I ran into during my playthrough, even if I try and think about it hard. Plus, who doesn't want to say some nudie magz while playing a video games. (ZING.)  |
Final Verdict:
If you like what I have mentioned:
Buy it.
If you don't like what I have said:
Rent it.
Rating: 3 out of 5
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