Mafia - Review

Added June 19th, 2004 by MVisuals

Introduction:

As fat Tony, the Xbox gang-lord passed me my game pad I prepared for a long two nights of hardcore gaming. Mafia was a game of which I hoped would make me a very happy gamer, unfortunately this hope had been placed into a mechanical mincer and ground into a fine meaty substance. From the looks of the game by the cover and by the screen shots it fires an icy blast of the “tomb raider” gameplay model into your brain, and you think “hell yeah a decent action / adventure game to get stuck right into”. But don’t get your food and drink supplies for the next two nights. I’m afraid you will be throwing the game onto the scrapheap along with your old Nike shox trainers, and you’re Nintendo Gamecube.

The game Mafia in a very strong way represents the way the movies portray the lifestyles of the Mafia (group) and also individuals within the collective. Respect is traded mutually, as well as the occasional envelope full of dirty hundred dollar bills. As much as you would like to see, I hate to disappoint you by telling you that Al Pacino, does NOT play a part in this game. I know, I cried too – but things can only get better if that’s the case…right? Well yes that’s right, in some ways. But in others it lacks any type of addicting gameplay; don’t be startled by this brief introduction, read on through the review before making the wallet weight loss program the definite choice for your weekend.

Gameplay:

Oh look, it’s Grand Theft Auto all over again. The average gamer wouldn’t realise that the posh new models and the amazing new artwork are just covers for a very old ‘GTA’ style plot. My first impression after completing the first mission was simply this. Someone had had an idea to use an already existing type of gameplay, re-brand it with a popular new name (something sure to attract interest and money bearing gamers), add a few snazzy new models and loading screen graphics and BAM. A definite hit. Well all of this to the average gamer is a “hell no”, but to people as experienced as the Talk Xbox crew, this was a definite flop for a game somewhat full of ‘hour on end’ potential.

As you begin the game you have to do your ‘induction mission’ where you prove yourself to the big guys. This seems quite fun and new to you, well it did to me at least. All until the next mission and the games statement became a little clearer. Looking through foggy glass, I was…as Master Yoda would say, I believe my words were less polite and my action was to almost (yes, not quite) damage my Xbox and screen. I had been skanked into believing this game was revolutionary, something to break the industry boundaries….when in fact it was a shoddy remake of an already chart smashing hit title.

Much alike Grand Theft Auto, features such as stepping out of your vehicle, driving various vehicles, picking people up (although no adult activity will occur in the back of the car, this isn’t how Fat Tony works I’m afraid…Apologies are on their way out to all who are disappointed.) and throwing your standard Molotov cocktails at cars and ofcourse people. This is where you see nothing new but a pretty face and a snazzy suit, something more presentable than the Hawaiian shirt worn by the main star of the GTA series.

Yes, Ok….I am comparing it to Grand Theft Auto a little too much, you say it’s a Mafia review, you’re right, you say you’re sick of hearing about GTA, you’re right….you say why Mr Review man? I say play the game and find out for yourself Mr Avid Gamer.

The dialogue used is well matched up with the movement of the characters, as well as the timing of the FMV sequences which are very impressive. The quality of the gameplay is very good, great in fact…if you’re new to the whole steal and smash gaming genre.

Parts of the game appear tricky and hard to complete the first time, the vehicles don’t exactly drive very well, nor accelerate with haste until quite late on in the game, however if you’re up for some fun outside the story mode, hop in one of your freshly unlocked cars and hit the streets for a free ride. Pick up a customer, drop them off and get paid – or cruise around the city admiring the view of the river, buildings and cars all the same to yours.

A good asset to the game is the main menu screen, set out in a similar way to the smash hit Medal of Honour game series. From here you can choose from game types such as story mode and free ride. The story mode is for those gamers who sit down for hours on hours (well, all of you then) and play with intention to blow apart (complete for those non gaming gurus).

Graphics:

Graphically Mafia is something to get over-excited about. The visually smooth FMV sequences and in actual fact gameplay also is something to die for. Other new titles such as Van Helsing and the Chronicles of Riddick demo fall into the same category. I believe this was one of the main things keeping my fingers firmly on the controller for the time that I played; the gameplay is nowhere near as gripping or addicting as the sexually slick visual elements, Mafia has to offer.

If you’re worried about any jagged edges or materials / renders not merging well together then scrap those worries away right now before I call the Talk Xbox gaming squad, to come around and jam a can of “oh my god you suck” up your bottom. From the start you can notice how eye blisteringly untarnished the graphics and renders are in the game, from the moment I saw the facial features move on the character models I was struck by the effort involved in creating the game. For the creators, a definite plus sign.

Camera angles are a little awkward at times but the sharp quality remains consistent throughout the game, at all angles – something to look out for, most games don’t offer this standard of quality at such a same-rate level.

Audio:

The games’ dialogue is shockingly accurate, and quite funny to listen to at times. With the same tone as taken out of the old school mafia movies, you can’t go wrong in this sense. For the fullest performance from the games audio it is wise to plug into your TV, with a surround sound amplifier and centre speaker, and wowzers batman, you have sound with dimension. Imagine sitting at home, in your gaming seat / comfy chair and hearing cars chasing you from behind, bliss. Entertainment at its finest. While the sounds are accurate, crisp and very very cool, sometimes they fail to comply with the movements of the mouths of the characters, and it appears a little out of sync, this could be better, and improves gameplay a considerable amount more.

Controls:

In all honesty, while playing Mafia I found the controls to be rather sluggish and unresponsive. Especially while steering the vehicles and trying to run around a corner. It is easy to say that the controls aren’t really meant for the Xbox gaming controller, they would better suit that of the rivalled PS2. Something with a more simple interface.

•Left thumb stick walk or run or steer
•Right thumb stick aim or look left, right and back
•A-button action or accelerate
•B-button handbrake
•X-button reload or brake
•Y-button enter or exit cars or pick lock
•white-button turn to next enemy or speed limiter
•black-button turn to next enemy
•left trigger jump and climb
•Right-trigger fire or recover car or sniper scope
•Start or pause-button menu or show objectives
•Back-button map

Replay:

After throttling Mafia on your Xbox after a while, you will be fairly pleased that you actually gave it a test run, but disappointingly bored at how similar to GTA the game on the whole is. Even though the GTA type genre is great for you thrash and run loving gamers out there, Mafia has the slight edge over it. This is definitely a game to return to if you feel like a quick free ride. I wouldn’t suggest playing it if you have friends around however, the bore factor would be massively high, and you could risk losing your sense of hearing due to being yelled at to turn the god damn game off. You may ask yourself why the game doesn’t come with complimentary ear plugs.

Summary:

Overall the game Mafia is a “got to play” game, only due to the factor of the game title making all of you game hungry hermits eager to see what lies beyond the Xbox power button while this beast is in the DVD drive. The similarity to other games lets it down in the long run, but the naughty yet angelic visuals make up for that doubt that you have in your sticky little heads, that this game is nothing but a pile of garbage. Try it out and see for yourself, you’ll be glad you did.