I should have probably been more enthusiastic about Mafia: Definitive Edition. Hold on, that’s not as revealing as you may think. I’m just saying, a full remake of one of my favourite games from my adolescent days probably should have been more of a priority for me. I bought it around release, but never pushed far into it. Probably because I was at the lowest points I’d even been in my life, and it was hard for me to connect with anything.

I’ve circled back to it a few times since its release in 2020, but every time, I’d make it a few missions in before I’d just abruptly stop. I always enjoyed those few missions, but, for reasons I’m not sure I understand myself, I’ve never followed through.

I’ve finally managed it, alternating between Definitive Edition and the original 2002 release as a way of directly comparing the two games. It’s been a trip.

THE LIFE

While “Definitive Edition” implies that it is the final version of the original game – like, say, the graphics have been upgraded or all the DLC is integrated along with a QOL patch – Mafia: Definitive Edition is a tits-to-toes remake. None of the original’s bones can be found beneath its skin. I wouldn’t go as far as calling it a re-imagining, though. It still follows the same dance steps, it’s just changed everything else about the production.

Once again, it starts with cabby turned mobster Thomas Angelo telling his story to a police officer. Only this time, it’s much prettier. All the voice actors have changed (in the English version), and the script has been redone. However, the story plays out in the same way, so you can generally expect all the same narrative beats, twists, and wrinkles.

And while the script has been redone, it’s not just characters saying the same stuff in a different way. In my review of the original Mafia, I pointed out a few ways that it was awkward. It was very much a product of its time, a time when games were flailing to tell bigger stories that better resembled movies. There wasn’t a tonne of depth, and it would often pull things from left field and barely explain them. It also doesn’t do a great job of tying it all together, but you might not notice until you’ve played Mafia: Definitive Edition alongside it.

THE STOOGES

All the characters have been given a lot more depth. Tommy isn’t just some affable, unshakeable protagonist guy, Sarah isn’t just some damsel to be saved, Don Salieri isn’t just a cool, even-headed boss, and Polly and Sam aren’t just two more stooges to round out the trio. Their hopes, fears, and motivations are all better explained; the consequences of their actions more impactful. It’s like a new draft of the same story.

But the story goes through all the same turns. Every level is accounted for (except two got combined into one just because it made sense to). However, every mission has been redone. The rigid, out-dated third-person shooter mechanics have been upgraded to the typical cover-based model that has been standard since Gears of War. If there are two things I hate, it’s change and things that are popular, but the changes are all for the better. In the original Mafia, combat basically boiled down to squatting and trying not to miss. Mafia: Definitive Edition brings a lot more action with its modernized movement system.

The level design has been changed to suit. Areas are denser and more detailed. Oddly placed crates and chest-high walls litter the floors. If there’s one place where Definitive Edition loses something, it’s in how much more linear the missions are. However, that’s not entirely solid across the game. In the first mission at the airport, I almost exclusively snuck by enemies to get to the objective, which wasn’t the only way to do it. Still, it is more linear, but the original Mafia wasn’t exactly an immersive sim. Overall, it’s an improvement.

It also looks better, obviously. The facial animations are pretty impressive without crossing into uncanny valley territory. Most of all, I enjoyed how colourful it is, with cars having vibrant paint jobs. On the other hand, it has the sort of modern blurriness where the overall picture looks really good as long as you don’t look at one thing for too long. I think this era of high-end video game graphical technology is going to age like yogurt. Right now, though, it’s fine, but the attention to detail is where it shines the most.

THE STREETS

The Mafia series kind of lost its way over time. The second game subscribes to the model of the first, in that it’s open-world but completely narrative-focused. Mafia 3, I haven’t played (I’ll get around to it), and that’s mainly because I heard that it is very much an open-world game filled with a lot of shallow, repetitive activities. Apparently the goal of Hangar 13 remaking the original is a practice run at recapturing what makes the original game special, which can be summed up as its commitment to realism and historical placement.

They mostly hit the mark. A lot could have gone wrong in the move to modernize things, but it’s clear that the team took great care. Like the original, they paid great attention to the smaller details, adding things like radio shows that give news flashes on things happening at the time. Some details that were small technical feats to incorporate in the original Mafia aren’t so impressive here, and often get lost in the visual noise, but they’ve been made up for in various ways.

One of the biggest cuts that were made was to the Lucas Bertone missions. If you read my review of the original, you’ll know that I made fun of them because they created dissonance in the narrative tone. However, I also acknowledged that the smaller moments where you’re made to just drive around the city are part of what makes the game special. While Bertone’s missions were taken away, the developers did add additional moments to make up for it. For example, after the race chapter, rather than go to visit Bertone, you drive an off-his-ass drunk Polly home, which gives a smidge of character development while also having you take in the city.

Truly, one thing I miss is how you would have to drive back to Salieri’s Bar at the end of a mission. It was a quiet way to cap things off. To be fair, it maybe didn’t make a whole lot of sense in some parts, but replacing it with, say, driving home at the end of a mission would have been a better compromise.

THE CLASSICS

I appreciate that Hangar 13 added a “Classic” difficulty mode. There are actually a lot of ways you can modify the difficulty, but classic maintains things like wasting the remaining bullets in a clip if you reload early. The only unfortunate downside is that it half uses regenerating health, which is another aspect of modernization. You only regenerate to a certain point, however, which necessitates finding health cupboards to top up, like in the original. However, on classic difficulty, taking a couple of bullets will take you right down to the point it regenerates to, which generally negates the advantage of having health in your pocket. Just don’t get hit, essentially.

This does, however, mean that the difficulty does feel similar to the original. There were moments that I’d die a whole bunch and others where I’d tear through enemies. I had to turn down the difficulty for the race chapter, just as the Gods of Punishment intended. The guns are pretty inaccurate, with their reticles wide enough that you could drive a blimp through them. Generally, if you have a dude’s head dead centre, you can pop them with one bullet, but it’s just inaccurate enough that it’s not a guarantee, and you have to choose your shots carefully. Feels pretty good.

The classic difficulty also relates to the way cars drive. As I said in the review of the original game, I’ve never driven a Ford Model A, so I can’t tell you how accurate the driving model is. They accelerate faster and lose grip easier, so it feels a lot less heavy than the original, and whether that’s more realistic or less, I couldn’t tell you. It does feel better suited for the action of car chases, however. I enjoy it.

Statistically, you haven’t driven a pre-1940s car, either, so I suppose the most important aspect of the vehicle controls is that they feel good to drive, even with mouse and keyboard. The suspension has a satisfying feel to it, making each bump a little special moment, even if I’m not sure how true-to-life it is.

DEFINITELY

The worst part about Mafia: Definitive Edition is knowing how it ends. Because the plot is a bit more dramatic and the characters have more depth, I actually hesitated on the last couple of missions because I knew what kind of climax I was walking into. Having thoroughly braced myself, I got through it, though. I deserve a treat.

A lot could have gone wrong in remaking Mafia with a development team of over 2000 people and, to Hanger 13’s credit, they pulled it off without completely hollowing it out. The only thing that has been lost is the fact that, in 2002, Mafia was a pretty special and impressive game. Mafia: Definitive Edition stands out, if only because it’s not mired in shallow open-world distractions, but… I don’t know how I was going to finish that thought, I don’t think there is a “but.”

Shallow open-world distractions are so pervasive in big budget games these days. Even the Final Fantasy VII remake series is lousy with them. They’re fun if you like to, you know, avoid thinking, but it’s all nutritionless fluff. It’s nice to have an open-world game that doesn’t have them. Something that’s focused on story and atmosphere. If Hangar 13 keeps this up for Mafia: The Old Country, then we might finally have a worthy successor. Unless you count this one as a successor. In that case, we finally have a worthy successor, and it’s a remake.

7/10

This review was conducted on digital Steam version of the game. It was paid for by the author.