Set about 10-20 years later than the original, Mafia II places you in the shoes of a war hero Vito Scaletta. After returning from the war, we see Vito growing back into his old life in the lively city of Empire Bay. We see him join up with his old pals, doing dirty work and slowly rising through the tough ranks of the Mafia. The story is absolutley fantastic and is by far one of the best in the gaming medium. The detail, twists and characters that Vito meet along the way are nearly unmatched, making Mafia II a very strange game now days as most modern games are all about the set pieces and online play, and not about the journey of the main character. Because of this love for the brilliant story, Mafia II has a special place in my collection now, it is great to see a modern game with such a brilliant story and a level of detail that is so rare these days.
But what good is a story without a strong set of characters, and man does Mafia II have a fantastic set of characters. The acting and voice work is top notch and the relationships that Vito shares with his colleague really comes across and help convey the feelings between characters. Apart from the main man Vito, Vito's childhood buddy Joe Barbaro takes centre stage. Joe is a rather marmite sort of character, you either love him or you hate him, I personally loved Joe and thought that he made a brilliant contribution to the game and was a major part in the story. Also, Joe is extremely well acted and his mannersims really help establish a believable character. However, all of the people that you encounter in Mafia are awfully stereotypical, its quite embarassing really. I understand that 2K Czech have produced some of the most colourful characters in gaming, but the cast consists of the classic fat drunk friend, (Joe), the big hard boss with the deep voice and then the classic weapons salesman with an eye patch. But, above all that is the frankly disgusting portrayal of the Chinese people in th game, it is cringe worthy. Maybe im exagerrating it, but I felt that if people complained about the Taliban in MOH, then why aren't people complaining about the Chinese in Mafia? It is that bad.
Some people may find me naive and shallow for caring so much on the graphics of a game, but the inconsistent graphics in Mafia sort of hindered the experience a bit. There is no denying that the facial animations and lighting work is amazing, but it is the smaller things like the edges of buildings or tiny details like the buttons on a phone that are a bit sloppy, and it can really destroy the game. I also found that the framerate would drop occasionaly and I would be stuck with a stuttering picture, but luckily this only happened a couple of times. Also, a tiny thing that is irrevelant but still annoying is that the subtitles are tiny, and I mean tiny. I had to squint many times to make out what they were saying, and that was even with my glasses on!
I've already talked about how Mafia II really excels in tis story telling, but another high point is the atmosphere that is created. It is just magical. As you start off in the winter, you can see snow falling, people wrapped up warm and the music playing on the radios is all cheesy 1940 christmas songs. But, the two things that really help create a picture are the untouchable authienticity of the radio and the cars. There is only a choice of 3 radio stations, a bit measley compared to GTA 4 if I dont say myself, but, these radio stations play awesome music that you can even see developing as Vito does in the game. It is a pleasure to listen to the early days of rock 'n' roll and the sweet sound of a 5 part harmony, it is just magical. Also the cars are really good too. Although many of them are a bit slow and sluggish- much like they were back then- the range of cars and choice of custiomisation is fantastic; giving you a real choice to chop and change cars and colours to see what you prefer. Another nice touch is the speed limiter that you can turn on and off when driving. I found this very helpful when driving as the police in Empire Bay are really quite harsh and will chase you for any minor offence, sometimes being a good thing, but also being a burden.
But where is a game without a set of easy controls and a nice range of missions? Well Mafia II is, well, to be honest, a bit mixed here. The controls are extremely simple and are very easy to get used to, but its the weird camera angle that slightly irritated me. Maybe other critics haven't mentioned this as it didn't bother them, but I felt that the actual camera angle could be a bit obtrusive sometimes, which really annoyed me. However, camera angles aside, the actual gun play is great. There is a large array of guns; from Greaser guns to Thompson's and from Magnums to shotguns, your arsenal of weapons is awesome and it gives you great firepower, sometimes a little too much. The cover system is OK, but not perfect as I got attached to a wrong piece of cover several times, but it is still solid enough to not be a massive negative. One other slightly annoying factor is the lack of blind fire, a technique that I would think is a staple idea when constructing a third person shooter. But, its not just the guns and cover system that make the levels good, its the settings. I will warn you now though, at the beginning of the game the missions you are sent on are quite dull and will normally involve you driving from point A to point B, a factor that becomes very tedious. But I also feel that by starting off with the smaller jobs and then gaining momemtum, it helps show how Vito and Joe become more respected and trusted in their mafia famillies. However, after the boring tasks your are thrown into a brilliant range of mission settings that even beat games such as COD or Resident Evil. You will be sent to placs such as a hotel, to a slaughterhouse and then to a planetarium, all of which will consist of intense gun fights. The settings are amazing and help create an interesting array of levels for you to explore.
I like Mafia II, actually, I like it a lot. I think it is great how 2K Czech have concentrated on bringing us a involving story that is fantastic and a colourful range of characters, but I feel that they may of missed with the gameplay and the pacing of the game. I occasionaly found myself in the midst of a gun fights, and then having to drive back home straight away, a complaint that may spoil the game for other people. But I really do like Mafia II, it is a great game with an unmatched story. 2K Czech have produced one of the finest gaming protaginists in gaming in the form of Vito Scaletta and the atmosphere that they have created is fantastic. Mafia II may seem like the game of the Godfather, but trust me, it is not the Godfather of games.
8/10
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