Review: Mafia: The Old Country – A Visually Stunning Return with Limited Depth
CyberBoxTV 2 min read
Mafia: The Old Country marks the long-awaited return of the franchise after nearly a decade, presenting a story-driven experience. This new installment shines primarily for its visual presentation, masterfully recreating early 1900s Sicily with an impressive level of authenticity. Built on Unreal Engine 5, the game’s visuals and animations are top-notch character faces, lighting, and environmental details are truly breathtaking.
The map is quite large and open for exploration, inviting players to discover every corner of this richly detailed world. The story follows Enzo Favara, an ordinary young man who becomes entangled in the culture of the first Italian mafia. Throughout the game, players serve Don Torissi, who assigns Enzo the dirtiest tasks of the family business. The narrative structure is solid, featuring several memorable action sequences.
Gameplay-wise, the combat delivers what you’d expect from a third-person shooter with a cover system, enhanced by well-designed stealth sections that keep the tension high. One standout innovation is the cinematic knife fights are brutal, intense, and often delivering the most dramatic outcomes in key missions.
However, Mafia: The Old Country stumbles in several areas. Despite having an open world, it’s only accessible through a separate mode that lacks meaningful content, aside from admiring the scenery or hunting for collectibles. There are no side missions, meaningful NPC interactions, or engaging activities, making the open world feel completely unnecessary.
Narratively, the game starts strong but falls into clichés halfway through, when a forbidden romance introduces predictable drama for the protagonist. The enemy AI is also weak, often lining up to be shot or reloading while walking toward you, making them easy targets. Missions are strictly linear, offering no room for deviation, and the campaign lasts around eight hours.
In summary, Mafia: The Old Country is a decent game that visually impresses and delivers a competent narrative experience, but it suffers from stereotypical plot twists, poor AI, and an empty open world. The core mechanics are solid, yet the lack of post-campaign content makes its long-term value questionable.
Final Score: 3/5
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