CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
Well it should be noted I gave the initial release of Mafia III a 6/10.
http://unitedfederationofcharles.blogspot.com/2016/10/mafia-iii-review.html
Carbon Dated and Proud
Well it should be noted I gave the initial release of Mafia III a 6/10.
http://unitedfederationofcharles.blogspot.com/2016/10/mafia-iii-review.html
Meaning that you gave a game that was literally unfinishable for you and thus fundamentally broken a score better than average.
T
TorontoReign
Guest
That explains a lot actually. So the CT Phipps modifier is whatever score he gives deduct 2 points or more. Now someone needs to round up all of his reviews so we can go over them and take notes. I think his score meter just might be broken. I had a guy come and fix my electric today. I bet he can fix your score meter too.
D
Deleted member 53669
Guest
8/10 is average to your typical metakotakuite.
T
TorontoReign
Guest
I want CT Phipps to review Lollipop Chainsaw.
CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
How else would you rate a game you got 30 hours of good fun out of otherwise?
I got my money's worth and the broken nature of the game destroyed what could have been a much better game.
Some thoughts:
1. There was leaks that the next Mafia game (Mafia IV) will return to the Cosa Nostra and will be set during the 1970s with a distinct CASINO flair. CASINO is one of my all time favorite movies and this is a place that could be the setting for a really awesome mob story. It's also where Donovan could be potentially hunting down more Jack Kennedy conspirators. I don't think you could do the same territory seizures of Mafia III but a more story based linear structure might be good.
2. I'm really looking forward to the remake of MAFIA the original game as I think the game is extremely good. It was the original Mafia fantasy game and had a huge number of features that I hope won't be removed or dumbed down for the re-release. On the plus side, delaying the game until September is a pretty good decision as it gives them some extra time to work out the bugs.
3. I think MAFIA II is a game that they should have considered remaking rather than remastering since it's not remotely improved and the controls are terrible on this one. On the other hand, it is easily the most well-told and mature story of the lot.
Alphons
National Beholder
I fear that they'll drown the original Mafia plot with shitty repetitive missions, just like in Mafia III.
I liked the prologue and final chapter of Mafia III, but everything between them is just a blur of repetitive busywork.
Dealing with drug manufacturers:
interrogate drug dealers and kill/recruit them, kill some named goons, blow up trucks, burn crates with drugs and then confront the guy running the business and kill/recruit him.
Dealing with guys running brothel:
interrogate pimps and kill/recruit them, kill some named goons, blow up cars, burn crates with posters advertising brothel and then confront the guy running the business and kill recruit/him.
Congratulations! You've unlocked the boss of district! Go deal with this guy that had less than 5 minutes of screen time. Congratulations, district is yours! Now do it 7 more times (not counting the tutorial district).
Very repetitive game, with fun gunplay and good soundtrack. I really got bored after beating around 2/3 of the game.
I liked the prologue and final chapter of Mafia III, but everything between them is just a blur of repetitive busywork.
Dealing with drug manufacturers:
interrogate drug dealers and kill/recruit them, kill some named goons, blow up trucks, burn crates with drugs and then confront the guy running the business and kill/recruit him.
Dealing with guys running brothel:
interrogate pimps and kill/recruit them, kill some named goons, blow up cars, burn crates with posters advertising brothel and then confront the guy running the business and kill recruit/him.
Congratulations! You've unlocked the boss of district! Go deal with this guy that had less than 5 minutes of screen time. Congratulations, district is yours! Now do it 7 more times (not counting the tutorial district).
Very repetitive game, with fun gunplay and good soundtrack. I really got bored after beating around 2/3 of the game.
CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
Agreed. There's actually a mod that cuts out 40% of the grinding missions and when you have mods that exists solely to remove content, you've seriously screwed up somewhere. They needed to add a variety of content to the original game and give some other games to liven things up like illegal gambling, boxing, racing or some kind of Saints Row-esque rackets.
I remember Saints Row 1 and 2 had like dozens of things you could do in order to get reputation enough for your next mission like prostitution, rampages, car races, insurance fraud, or the sewage trucks. I'm not saying all of those would have fit into Mafia III but they showed how cheap this felt by comparison.
I am glad that they did do some modification to the game, though. If you play the DLC inbetween the rackets then it feels slightly less repetitive. They also added some level of character customization, vehicle customization, and racing missions.
Pro
Negative
It's a broken game and thus a 0 with the potential to be a much better game, but at the current state it's a 0. There. Not that hard. If something is fundamentally broken, it is not above average. It is broken and gets a failing grade until fixed.
CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
Eh, you do you. I'd rather play Mafia III broken than a shit ton of other games where I'm not a Rambo versus the Mob. Mind you, I'm not fond of numbers systems. If you want to know what I think of a game, read the rest of the review.
CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
Mafia II is one of my picks for all-time best story of any video game ever. The other picks are well-known ones like Red Dead Redemption, Deus Ex, and Grand Theft Auto IV. Mafia II never achieved those kind of heights but I think it is one of those rare video games that would work every bit as well as a movie as it would as a video game. While there are plenty of those games, Uncharted and Tomb Raider come to mind, they tend to be action-orientated genre pieces. This is the rare game that functions like a gangster movie. Which, given it's called Mafia II, isn't really a surprise.
Vito and Joe's friendship is the best part of the game.
I've played both the original Mafia II and the remake. I played Mafia II on my Xbox 360 and thought it was an excellently told story but incredibly clunky to play. I didn't think the graphics were that bad in the original game and held up pretty well actually. They made ample use of the snowy environments and grainy atmosphere to cover up the limitations of the software. Either way, the biggest draw of the game was the story and people who know me will attest that I often overlook gameplay problems for the sake of a good story.
As I understand, the only changes of the Definitive Edition are to the graphics as well as removing some of the lesser-used physics like clothing as well as fire. So how do the two games stack up? Well, that's a complicated question that I'll get into after I discuss the game as a whole. However, the short version is that I don't think the Definitive Edition improves on Mafia II in any real way. It's still the decent game with a great story it always was.
Empire Bay is a beautiful 1940s New York reproduction.
The premise is Vito Scaletta is a WW2 veteran in the Italian campaign against Mussolini. Vito is injured during his battle against the fascists and sent home in 1943 to Empire Bay. Empire Bay is a barely fictionalized New York City akin to Grand Theft Auto's Liberty City. Vito's family is dirt poor and heavily indebted to the mob with his father having been possibly killed by them. Nevertheless, Vito accepts the offer of his friend, Joe Barbaro, to make some "real" money by stealing cars as well as doing odd jobs for La Cosa Nostra.
Part of what makes the game so effective is the gritty unsympathetic take on mob life. If your typical video game mobster is Michael Corleone or Tony Montana, Vito is closer to being Hank Hill from Goodfellas. He's dirt poor at the start of the game and doesn't ever quite reach the highest aspirations of wealth that he's been promised. Indeed, the game makes it clear that low-level soldiers like Vito are as expendable to the higher-ups as civilians.
The frozen New York City is my favorite part of it.
Vito wants to make a fortune but the game makes it clear that, while crime may pay in the short run, you're more likely to end up paying a horrific price for a few extra bucks. Indeed, "Time Well Spent" is the first time a video game ever showed one of the most realistic consequences of mob life. It eventually all comes together in an ending that I felt was really powerful and worked well for the character (who gets a bit of a denouement in Mafia III).
Gameplay-wise, it's a cover-based shooter and Grand Theft Auto clone. You drive around the city in stolen cars, shoot up bad guys, and occasionally do a bit of stealth or lockpicking. It's not a complicated game and there's nothing in the way of activities here. I remember constantly fleeing cops in the original game but here, they just kind of ignore me and are easy to avoid. This makes the game less frustrating but is rather noticeable. The cars are very easily busted up and health regeneration has to be managed with eating food in-game. Its serviceable but nothing to write home about.
A romance was set up in Mafia II but sadly goes nowhere.
Graphics-wise, I don't think the game has actually improved. Yes, there's some scenes that are much more vivid but the character models actually seem worse. They also didn't replace the reused models in the game so now you're seeing the same hookers from Joe's crew in every crowd scene, sometimes in multiple places. I feel like this is the bare minimum of what qualifies as a "re-master" and it doesn't really succeed at that either.
The Definitive Edition comes with all of the DLC, which mostly consists of new cars and a handful of costumes. There's also an adventure set where you play as Joe Barbaro that I really enjoyed as he's easily the best character in the game. Really, the most surprising set is "Jimmy's" adventures that have you play as a Ed Harris-looking hitman that slaughters his way through Empire Bay in an adventure that has nothing to do with the main story. I feel like some more crimes for Vito like a bank heist or more content with the Black Mob ("Bombers").
None of these guys can be trusted. Shocking.
In conclusion, Mafia II is a fun game. It is a painfully average one in terms of gameplay, though. Likable characters and atmosphere can make up for a game's flaws, though, and this game has it in spades. Joe Barbaro is one of the best supporting characters in games and a character you'll wish you knew in real life. Vito manages to evoke Ray Liota and Al Pacino both, which is an impressive feat. The story of Mafia II is a tale of ambition, greed, friendship, betrayal, and the perils of organized crime. If my biggest complaint is that Robert "Harvey Bullock" Costanzo voices two major character with the same accent then that's a minor one.
7.5/10
CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
Sweet! Mafia: Definitive Edition just had its gameplay reveal!
Visually it looks pretty great, but, dunno, the devs saying "we wanted to make it feel like life and death" isn't really carried over well in those scenes. The player feels pretty tanky and the AI isn't a very good shot. And I remember the guns in Mafia having much more recoil than that.
Of course they'd make the game- and gunplay much closer to Mafia III than I, but for some reason I had hoped that they wouldn't.
Of course they'd make the game- and gunplay much closer to Mafia III than I, but for some reason I had hoped that they wouldn't.
CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
I admit a lot of people are complaining about the lack of recoil and more fluid combat + badass portrayal of Tommy. I think its meant to make the game more accessible to a wider audience. I admit I'm a casual gamer so it doesn't bother me.
OTOH, apparently you'll be able to do a lot of adjustments to gameplay too.
CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
https://sirusgaming.com/2020/07/22/...e-that-fans-of-the-original-will-surely-love/
We have virtually spoken to Hangar 13’s President and Chief Creative Officer, Haden Blackman, about what hardcore fans of the franchise would expect aside from visual upgrades. Knowing that this is a full-on remake of the original Mafia, most will expect that it’s just an overhaul of its graphics with improvements in its gameplay fluidity.
“We’ve done a lot to make sure that the player base can choose the way they want to play Mafia,” says Haden. “One thing that’s most exciting to me is that because there are so many dedicated veterans from the original – they’ve gone in and made a Classic mode.”
“It has all the settings dialed into what the experience was like if you’ve played the original Mafia. so that’s great for the hardcore fans to experience the game at that level with the same driving controls, the police reacting to your infractions the same way. And then we go all the way to experience the story, you can dial all that stuff back.”
Haden reiterates they don’t want to disservice the fans and that they will not remove any elements from the remake of what Mafia great in its time. He also continued that with this remake, new players who played Mafia 3 or haven’t played the franchise at all will definitely appreciate the story that the team crafted way back in 2002 in current generation standards.
Stay tuned for our full interview with Haden Blackman!
We have virtually spoken to Hangar 13’s President and Chief Creative Officer, Haden Blackman, about what hardcore fans of the franchise would expect aside from visual upgrades. Knowing that this is a full-on remake of the original Mafia, most will expect that it’s just an overhaul of its graphics with improvements in its gameplay fluidity.
“We’ve done a lot to make sure that the player base can choose the way they want to play Mafia,” says Haden. “One thing that’s most exciting to me is that because there are so many dedicated veterans from the original – they’ve gone in and made a Classic mode.”
“It has all the settings dialed into what the experience was like if you’ve played the original Mafia. so that’s great for the hardcore fans to experience the game at that level with the same driving controls, the police reacting to your infractions the same way. And then we go all the way to experience the story, you can dial all that stuff back.”
Haden reiterates they don’t want to disservice the fans and that they will not remove any elements from the remake of what Mafia great in its time. He also continued that with this remake, new players who played Mafia 3 or haven’t played the franchise at all will definitely appreciate the story that the team crafted way back in 2002 in current generation standards.
Stay tuned for our full interview with Haden Blackman!
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Aurelius Of Phoenix
Psued.
It's also interesting that they kept the animations from Mafia 3, seeing as a taxi driver shouldn't be as proficient as Lincoln in combat. I hope there is plenty of things to in in the city now.
CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
Oddly, one thing that is complained about is one thing that wasn't a bug. They talked at length about how the Tommy Guns had less recoil and that it was "unrealistic." It turned out that the Czecs got numerous complaints because, in RL, Tommy Guns were used so much because they had....very little recoil.
The Tommy Gun had substantial recoil, but certain models had a muzzle break (the Cutts compensator) that vented muzzle gases up and back to press the muzzle down while firing. The recoil on the Tommy Gun seems fine with that, but the pistols are just a bit too weightless. I mean, the hitting animations are fine, but it feels a bit too quick with them. Tommy twirling the 1911, reloading a revolver in about a second... It's fine, especially if there's a classic mode, just pointing out that from that gameplay it seems much closer to Mafia III than Mafia I, which, to me, felt more dangerous due to Tommy's lack of agility (although he could roll, I think?) and slow reloads. Just a bit more primitive and gangster-like.
Still, looking good. Mafia I got the love it deserved (inb4 it's unplayably buggy and everything is shite).
Still, looking good. Mafia I got the love it deserved (inb4 it's unplayably buggy and everything is shite).
CT Phipps
Carbon Dated and Proud
http://unitedfederationofcharles.blogspot.com/2020/10/mafia-definitive-edition-review.html
Mafia: Definitive Edition review
Mafia: City of Lost Heaven was one of the stand-out Grand Theft Auto clones when seemingly every game in the business was trying to immitate the success of GTA III. The idea behind this game was that you would play a mobster, Tommy Angelo, and the game would rid itself of all the more absurd elements. Instead of a hyper-exaggerated version of real life, it would be fairly true to the cinematic mafia movies of Goodfellas, The Godfather, and American Gangster. It would attempt to tell a serious story and see if that was possible with the game mechanics of 2002. It worked very well and was fondly remembered even if some of its choices were a little strange like the cops picking you up for speeding.
The premise is Tommy Angelo is an Italian can driver who is unwittingly pulled into the mob war between Don Morello and Don Salieri in the city of Lost Heaven. Tommy finds himself getting recruited as a driver and later an enforcer for the underdogs in the fight because the money is too good to pass up in the Great Depression. He's also interested in the daughter of the bartender of Salieri's headquarters, Sarah. What follows is an eight year storyline that has Tommy gradually prove himself as a soldier to the Italian mob while also wear away at both his morals as well as friendships. What he decides to do is foreshadowed by the framing device of telling a cop his story but ultimately revealed only at the end.
The Definitive Edition updates the original story of Mafia: City of Lost Heaven with the same technology used to create Mafia III. Tommy Angelo, Don Salieri, Paulie, and others are all recast with new models that reflect their actors' faces. There's also some additional content to make the game's characters more fleshed out, particularly Sarah's role as Tommy's love interest. The game also adds numerous ways of adjusting your playthrough like how the driving is done and even providing the option to skip the lengthy but sometimes boring driving segments. The gunplay and fighting is also much more cinematic but you can choose to play like the original game where it is all too easy to be killed by one shot.
The primary appeal of the game is the storytelling and atmosphere. Tommy is a likable protagonist but you can tell he's making the wrong decision getting involved with Salieri's mob. The little tweaks to the game's story emphasize they're charming but scummy people, like when Paulie threatens to beat their stuttering mechanic for comparing himself to him. Tommy has lines he won't cross but these are increasingly more flexible and the ones he won't get him in huge trouble with his faux affably evil boss.
If you've played Mafia II or Mafia III, this updated game is very similar to both, but improves on them in most ways. Still, this is a game that doesn't actually need the free roam mode that it comes equipped with. You'll almost certainly just play the game from mission to mission with a minimum of driving around for fun. The city is beautiful and I recommend driving through many missions but outside of it? No. The collectibles are nice but nothing that's really necessary. There are no sidequests either.
Gameplay wise, the game consists of shooting, driving, and stealth sections. There's a few brawling bits too but none of this is particularly deep. It's serviceable, though, and that's all that really matters. The game is not free of bugs, however, and I remember when I waited for almost twenty minutes for a car to be destroyed by the beating I was giving it with a bat before I realized that I had a bug that prevented me from using a molotov cocktail on it. Still, aside from that, nothing was game breaking.
In conclusion, I think Mafia: Definitive Edition is probably the best of the three Mafia games and definitely manages to avoid the missteps of the others. Tommy Angelo's journey has a lot more emotional punch than Vito's or Lincoln Clay's, even though I liked both of them. It also ends on a great moment that has stuck with gamers for close to two decades. I should probably not give it a perfect score given the bugs and simplicity of gameplay but I'm an overly generous reviewer.
10/10
Mafia: Definitive Edition review
Mafia: City of Lost Heaven was one of the stand-out Grand Theft Auto clones when seemingly every game in the business was trying to immitate the success of GTA III. The idea behind this game was that you would play a mobster, Tommy Angelo, and the game would rid itself of all the more absurd elements. Instead of a hyper-exaggerated version of real life, it would be fairly true to the cinematic mafia movies of Goodfellas, The Godfather, and American Gangster. It would attempt to tell a serious story and see if that was possible with the game mechanics of 2002. It worked very well and was fondly remembered even if some of its choices were a little strange like the cops picking you up for speeding.
The premise is Tommy Angelo is an Italian can driver who is unwittingly pulled into the mob war between Don Morello and Don Salieri in the city of Lost Heaven. Tommy finds himself getting recruited as a driver and later an enforcer for the underdogs in the fight because the money is too good to pass up in the Great Depression. He's also interested in the daughter of the bartender of Salieri's headquarters, Sarah. What follows is an eight year storyline that has Tommy gradually prove himself as a soldier to the Italian mob while also wear away at both his morals as well as friendships. What he decides to do is foreshadowed by the framing device of telling a cop his story but ultimately revealed only at the end.
The Definitive Edition updates the original story of Mafia: City of Lost Heaven with the same technology used to create Mafia III. Tommy Angelo, Don Salieri, Paulie, and others are all recast with new models that reflect their actors' faces. There's also some additional content to make the game's characters more fleshed out, particularly Sarah's role as Tommy's love interest. The game also adds numerous ways of adjusting your playthrough like how the driving is done and even providing the option to skip the lengthy but sometimes boring driving segments. The gunplay and fighting is also much more cinematic but you can choose to play like the original game where it is all too easy to be killed by one shot.
The primary appeal of the game is the storytelling and atmosphere. Tommy is a likable protagonist but you can tell he's making the wrong decision getting involved with Salieri's mob. The little tweaks to the game's story emphasize they're charming but scummy people, like when Paulie threatens to beat their stuttering mechanic for comparing himself to him. Tommy has lines he won't cross but these are increasingly more flexible and the ones he won't get him in huge trouble with his faux affably evil boss.
If you've played Mafia II or Mafia III, this updated game is very similar to both, but improves on them in most ways. Still, this is a game that doesn't actually need the free roam mode that it comes equipped with. You'll almost certainly just play the game from mission to mission with a minimum of driving around for fun. The city is beautiful and I recommend driving through many missions but outside of it? No. The collectibles are nice but nothing that's really necessary. There are no sidequests either.
Gameplay wise, the game consists of shooting, driving, and stealth sections. There's a few brawling bits too but none of this is particularly deep. It's serviceable, though, and that's all that really matters. The game is not free of bugs, however, and I remember when I waited for almost twenty minutes for a car to be destroyed by the beating I was giving it with a bat before I realized that I had a bug that prevented me from using a molotov cocktail on it. Still, aside from that, nothing was game breaking.
In conclusion, I think Mafia: Definitive Edition is probably the best of the three Mafia games and definitely manages to avoid the missteps of the others. Tommy Angelo's journey has a lot more emotional punch than Vito's or Lincoln Clay's, even though I liked both of them. It also ends on a great moment that has stuck with gamers for close to two decades. I should probably not give it a perfect score given the bugs and simplicity of gameplay but I'm an overly generous reviewer.
10/10
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That does sound promising, I'll keep an eye on it. I really liked Mafia, and a graphical update seems like a good idea. If the combat and general gameplay can be kept in the classic way, perfect. Driving around and dying to a single shot was half the fun 