Somebody explain to me what Mafia 2 adds to the many Mafia stories... Goodfellas gave me an indepth look in the Mafia during the 60/70 and Casino told a compelling story about the Vegas Mafia ... The Godfather trilogy portrayed the Mafia as a big family venture... a mafia soap opera. How is Mafia 2 important to the narrative history of Mob stories?
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Mafia II |OT| Hey Vito, drive me to the other side of town
- Thread starter sweetvar26
- Start date
Anyone else figure out a way to get past the Chapter 14 loading glitch that doesn't involve replaying the whole chapter? 
What makes it an appealing experience is that one is able to immerse themselves in the world of organized crime rather than simply watching it.
It's not a film.NewBrof said:
What makes it an appealing experience is that one is able to immerse themselves in the world of organized crime rather than simply watching it.
It is not about appealing experiences why Godfather, Casino or Goodfellas are great movies. It is because they have something important and interesting to say about the mob and society... What new has Mafia 2 to say except that living a mob life is exciting...? People in this thread were emphasizing the story, so I wonder what is so good about it?
BobsRevenge
I do not avoid women, GAF, but I do deny them my essence.
In a world where mafiosos run the city, and crime has taken its hold, one man will come back from WW2 to find himself with no other choice but to embrace a life of dirty money, cheap thrills, and senseless violence. In a story of family, friendship, redemption, and revenge Vito. is.NewBrof said:
*gun shots*
Mafia Man.
Aside from briefly trying the demo years ago, I'd never played the original Mafia. After enjoying Mafia 2 so much I figured I'd give it a shot, especially after hearing so many people here say it's the superior game.
I'm only a few hours in, but so far my experience has not been very positive. I obviously didn't expect the visuals to impress, but the gameplay and missions are not particularly enjoyable either. I understand that I can't expect the same experience as those who first played it when it was originally released, but I'm just not feeling it at all.
-Drive (very slowly) all the way out to the countryside, shoot 5 guys, chase last guy in low-speed car chase.
-Drive all the way across the map to pick up race car, watch cinematic. Drive all the way back, being careful to not damage car, watch cinematic. Then drive all the way back out again, watch cinematic.
-Participate in boring, frustrating 6 lap car race.
-Walk girl home, fight thugs.
-Go to hotel to take out a rival, get in clunky shootout with unresponsive guns, no where to hide or take cover, and bullet-sponge enemies.
All of this bookended by stiff, mediocre voice acting that sounds like placeholder. Do the missions and story get better from this point? Again, I recognize that this game is years old, but it's not really holding up in any way. I much prefer Mafia 2.
I'm only a few hours in, but so far my experience has not been very positive. I obviously didn't expect the visuals to impress, but the gameplay and missions are not particularly enjoyable either. I understand that I can't expect the same experience as those who first played it when it was originally released, but I'm just not feeling it at all.
-Drive (very slowly) all the way out to the countryside, shoot 5 guys, chase last guy in low-speed car chase.
-Drive all the way across the map to pick up race car, watch cinematic. Drive all the way back, being careful to not damage car, watch cinematic. Then drive all the way back out again, watch cinematic.
-Participate in boring, frustrating 6 lap car race.
-Walk girl home, fight thugs.
-Go to hotel to take out a rival, get in clunky shootout with unresponsive guns, no where to hide or take cover, and bullet-sponge enemies.
All of this bookended by stiff, mediocre voice acting that sounds like placeholder. Do the missions and story get better from this point? Again, I recognize that this game is years old, but it's not really holding up in any way. I much prefer Mafia 2.
dark10x said:Anyone else figure out a way to get past the Chapter 14 loading glitch that doesn't involve replaying the whole chapter?
Are you caught right below the pavement after leaving the building? Happened to me as well and I had to restart the entire thing. It actually doesn't take very long to make it back there if you skip all the cinemas and rush through the gameplay segments. Regardless, we shouldn't have to pay for the developer's mistake.
BobsRevenge
I do not avoid women, GAF, but I do deny them my essence.
Yeah, the story and missions get better after that point in Mafia. The cars also get faster.
Darth Sonik
we need more FPS games
I got sent the Aussie PAL version instead of the Euro PAL version. Is it playable or censored? Should I just return it instead?
eshwaaz said:
Pre-ordered Mafia II on steam, received Mafia free. Installed it asap and two hours later I'm still on the very first mission. Controls are beyond terrible, I really couldn't wrap my head around the awful set up. Going back to the first mission, whenever I managed to kill the car chasing me, I'd crash somewhere and fail the mission. Only way not to crash was to drive at 5MPH and I just don't have the patience for that. Maybe I can watch all the cutscenes on youtube.
NewBrof said:
What relevance does any of that even have to a videogame? Do we expect all of our story-driven games to have something completely new to say in the genre they are depicting? Silly.
Donnie Brasco is an excellent mob movie, but what new aspects of mob life did it show us? That going undercover isn't easy?
It spins a good yarn. That's all that matters.
Also, Goodfellas wasn't about showing us an in-depth look at the Mafia during a certain time period, ala Godfather - it was to show us the Mafia life from the perspective of the soldiers on the ground, rather than the dons and other higher-ups in the families. Mafia 2 essentially does this as well.
DryvBy
Member
AkuMifune said:
I think in a video game though, gameplay comes first. It is a video game. Doesn't mean "goofy" gameplay all the time, like Just Cause 2. But if you want a good story, read a book. Watch an older movie. I've played games I've liked with or without good stories. Books and movies on the otherhand, not so much.
Mafia II is good in terms of story, but with lacking gameplay, how is it a good game? Games are meant to be played. Without the gameplay, you just have a movie.
BobsRevenge
I do not avoid women, GAF, but I do deny them my essence.
You're not supposed to kill that car...burgerdog said:
Zoso
It's been a long time, been a long time, been a long lonely lonely lonely lonely lonely time.
Well I finished the game a second time on hard. I am a big Mafia 1 fan and overall I am quite pleased with this sequel. Here are my impressions:
+Atmosphere is top notch. This has to be the most atmospheric game Ive ever played. I love the large number of little details theyve added to pull you into the experience. I know a lot of gamers think turning lights on/off and opening windows is stupid, but I LOVE IT!
+Empire Bay is great. Something about driving on a wintery night is just magical. They really got the lighting effects from headlights and streetlamps just right. I like the layout of the city too. All of the neighborhoods feel different and there are some truly awesome places to discover if you like to explore. Certainly the best open world city I've seen since GTA4's Liberty City.
+Characters are done extremely well. I cant remember the last game that had this great of a cast. Particularly Joe, Vito, Henry, & Leo are all great characters. The character designs and voice acting fit very well and the writing was always sharp.
+Story was also strong. It feels very gritty and believable. I did not see any of the plot twists coming and they were all shocking because of how emotionally invested I was in the characters.
+Realism and believability. Yeah, its a game where you kill 500 or more people, but I was really impressed by how believable they make it feel. I never felt like a mass murderer like in a lot of games. Everything is framed very well within the characters motivations. It just all feels right.
+Police system is fantastic. Escaping the police is actually great, but the best part is that it actually makes sense! Having a wanted status and then sneaking to the nearest clothing store is really fun. I like that its all based on the cops ability to see you. Im glad they still pull you over for speeding and crashing. It would have been nice if they pulled you over for running red lights too.
+All the gameplay mechanics work well. Cover system worked great and all the guns feel powerful. Melee fighting is fun, but it gets repetitive after a while. I would have liked more than just two basic combos. The context sensitive finishing moves are really sweet though. Stealth works surprisingly well. I would have liked to see more stealth missions, because they were actually some of my favorite parts.
+Simulation mode driving feels perfect. Driving within the law making sure your tires dont spin out upon acceleration or squeal on turns is very satisfying. I like that you can do doughnuts and that your car gets dirty while driving on dirt roads and it gets more covered in snow the longer you leave it outside in the winter. I also liked the garage and how you could own and upgrade your cars throughout the game. I made a connection with my cars and they didn't feel disposable.
+I wasn't sure about the playboy collectibles when they were announced, but I actually think they work quite well in the game. The only thing I don't like is that some of them are located directly in the middle of these really tense moments where it's just not fitting at all. I also think the wanted posters are a fun little concept.
+Soundtrack is unbelievably good. So many fantastic tunes that make driving around an absolute joy. The orchestral score is quite good too, but it's honestly not very noticeable a lot of times.
-Some of the characters couldve been built up more. Im talking specifically about something revealed halfway through chapter 14. I liked the twist, but it would have been much more meaningful if we spent more time with these characters.
-This game really could have used some side missions. Its obvious from playing the game and from watching old gameplay videos that they had them in. Oftentimes the story keeps moving forward at a fast pace and it gives the player little incentive to explore or do other things. Side missions would have allowed us to explore the characters more and showed us more of Empire Bay.
-Inconsistent pacing. The first half of the game is pretty slow, which I love. But the last 5 missions seem to happen way too fast. Theres just so much happening you almost dont have enough time to react to it all. I would have preferred it to be more evenly paced.
Really I loved Mafia 2 though. Its definitely my favorite game this year and possibly this generation. It's strange that a game based entirely off of Mafia clichés can feel so original.
And now on to the big question is it better than Mafia 1?
I find that hard to answer. Theyre both very different games and they both have different strengths and flaws. Mafia was a highly romanticized tale whereas Mafia 2 takes a much darker look at this business. I will say that Mafia 1 has a very unique feel to it that is missing in the sequel. The actual gameplay of Mafia 1 feels entirely unique. I dont know of any other game that plays like that, whereas Mafia 2 feels a little too similar to every other cover-based third person shooter with regenerating health. The actual mechanics feel a lot more polished in Mafia 2 though.
I personally prefer the story/characters of Mafia 2 much more. Mafia 1 had a decent story, but the main hook was Tommy Angelos character development. Tommy and Frank were the only two characters that I actually cared for in the first game. Salieri, Paulie, Sam, & Morello were not very interesting to me. Mafia 2 had much more interesting characters. Perhaps what impressed me most was that all the leads not only had good character development, but they managed to feel original and realistic. Vito was not a particularly likable character (certainly less so than Tom), but I found his development much more fascinating.
As far as the city goes I think theyre almost even. I like the actual city of Empire Bay much more than Lost Heaven, but Mafia 1 had that humongous countryside that was really fun to explore. Mafia 2 has nothing like that. Mafia 1 also had usable trolleys and elevated trains.
If theres one thing I feel the first game did a lot better than the 2nd it would be the large amount of memorable missions. There were so many great missions such as the hotel/rooftop shootout, barnyard investigation, steamboat assassination, prison tower assassination, and the art museum final showdown. Mafia 2 has a few standout missions, but for the most part it doesnt match up. I also prefer how many of Mafia 1s missions were completely open ended. They would dump you at this humongous airport and you had to find your way to your objective. In Mafia 2 everything is laid out for you in nice linear paths.
So overall I remain undecided. The only thing I can conclude for certain is that I like them both for different reasons.
+Atmosphere is top notch. This has to be the most atmospheric game Ive ever played. I love the large number of little details theyve added to pull you into the experience. I know a lot of gamers think turning lights on/off and opening windows is stupid, but I LOVE IT!
+Empire Bay is great. Something about driving on a wintery night is just magical. They really got the lighting effects from headlights and streetlamps just right. I like the layout of the city too. All of the neighborhoods feel different and there are some truly awesome places to discover if you like to explore. Certainly the best open world city I've seen since GTA4's Liberty City.
+Characters are done extremely well. I cant remember the last game that had this great of a cast. Particularly Joe, Vito, Henry, & Leo are all great characters. The character designs and voice acting fit very well and the writing was always sharp.
+Story was also strong. It feels very gritty and believable. I did not see any of the plot twists coming and they were all shocking because of how emotionally invested I was in the characters.
+Realism and believability. Yeah, its a game where you kill 500 or more people, but I was really impressed by how believable they make it feel. I never felt like a mass murderer like in a lot of games. Everything is framed very well within the characters motivations. It just all feels right.
+Police system is fantastic. Escaping the police is actually great, but the best part is that it actually makes sense! Having a wanted status and then sneaking to the nearest clothing store is really fun. I like that its all based on the cops ability to see you. Im glad they still pull you over for speeding and crashing. It would have been nice if they pulled you over for running red lights too.
+All the gameplay mechanics work well. Cover system worked great and all the guns feel powerful. Melee fighting is fun, but it gets repetitive after a while. I would have liked more than just two basic combos. The context sensitive finishing moves are really sweet though. Stealth works surprisingly well. I would have liked to see more stealth missions, because they were actually some of my favorite parts.
+Simulation mode driving feels perfect. Driving within the law making sure your tires dont spin out upon acceleration or squeal on turns is very satisfying. I like that you can do doughnuts and that your car gets dirty while driving on dirt roads and it gets more covered in snow the longer you leave it outside in the winter. I also liked the garage and how you could own and upgrade your cars throughout the game. I made a connection with my cars and they didn't feel disposable.
+I wasn't sure about the playboy collectibles when they were announced, but I actually think they work quite well in the game. The only thing I don't like is that some of them are located directly in the middle of these really tense moments where it's just not fitting at all. I also think the wanted posters are a fun little concept.
+Soundtrack is unbelievably good. So many fantastic tunes that make driving around an absolute joy. The orchestral score is quite good too, but it's honestly not very noticeable a lot of times.
-Some of the characters couldve been built up more. Im talking specifically about something revealed halfway through chapter 14. I liked the twist, but it would have been much more meaningful if we spent more time with these characters.
-This game really could have used some side missions. Its obvious from playing the game and from watching old gameplay videos that they had them in. Oftentimes the story keeps moving forward at a fast pace and it gives the player little incentive to explore or do other things. Side missions would have allowed us to explore the characters more and showed us more of Empire Bay.
-Inconsistent pacing. The first half of the game is pretty slow, which I love. But the last 5 missions seem to happen way too fast. Theres just so much happening you almost dont have enough time to react to it all. I would have preferred it to be more evenly paced.
Really I loved Mafia 2 though. Its definitely my favorite game this year and possibly this generation. It's strange that a game based entirely off of Mafia clichés can feel so original.
And now on to the big question is it better than Mafia 1?
I find that hard to answer. Theyre both very different games and they both have different strengths and flaws. Mafia was a highly romanticized tale whereas Mafia 2 takes a much darker look at this business. I will say that Mafia 1 has a very unique feel to it that is missing in the sequel. The actual gameplay of Mafia 1 feels entirely unique. I dont know of any other game that plays like that, whereas Mafia 2 feels a little too similar to every other cover-based third person shooter with regenerating health. The actual mechanics feel a lot more polished in Mafia 2 though.
I personally prefer the story/characters of Mafia 2 much more. Mafia 1 had a decent story, but the main hook was Tommy Angelos character development. Tommy and Frank were the only two characters that I actually cared for in the first game. Salieri, Paulie, Sam, & Morello were not very interesting to me. Mafia 2 had much more interesting characters. Perhaps what impressed me most was that all the leads not only had good character development, but they managed to feel original and realistic. Vito was not a particularly likable character (certainly less so than Tom), but I found his development much more fascinating.
As far as the city goes I think theyre almost even. I like the actual city of Empire Bay much more than Lost Heaven, but Mafia 1 had that humongous countryside that was really fun to explore. Mafia 2 has nothing like that. Mafia 1 also had usable trolleys and elevated trains.
If theres one thing I feel the first game did a lot better than the 2nd it would be the large amount of memorable missions. There were so many great missions such as the hotel/rooftop shootout, barnyard investigation, steamboat assassination, prison tower assassination, and the art museum final showdown. Mafia 2 has a few standout missions, but for the most part it doesnt match up. I also prefer how many of Mafia 1s missions were completely open ended. They would dump you at this humongous airport and you had to find your way to your objective. In Mafia 2 everything is laid out for you in nice linear paths.
So overall I remain undecided. The only thing I can conclude for certain is that I like them both for different reasons.
EatChildren
Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
Darth Sonik said:
As far as I'm aware there's no word on censorship of the Australian version, so I'm going to assume nothing was cut. While the Classifications Board here is indeed strict sometimes, its important to remember that they're also ridiculously inconsistent. Sometimes a game will be banned here for content that another game allowed excells at.
Anyway, I think I'm pretty far into the game this point, as I just did the mission where
Vito and Joey get revenge on the Irish for burning down Vito's house
When the game hits high notes its song is beautiful. The music, the phenominal art and graphics (on PC here), atmosphere, all coupled with an interesting mission makes for some of the most enjoyable gaming I've done in a long time. Missions like the one where
Vito and Joey disguise themselves as cleaners to plant the bomb
However, when the game hits a low, its makes me literally quit. Some of the driving missions are pretty terrible (which is unfortunate as I love the way cars handle), and anything with a time limit can fuck off an die. Some missions are extremely slow and uneventful, and some have choppy pacing with a poor construct of characters, writing, and balance between cutscenes and gameplay.
Yet whenever I'm feeling pissed off at some awful aspect of the game, it doesn't take too long to again be swept up in the world. At its best, Mafia II is a big middle finger to everything Rockstar did wrong with GTA IV's attempt at seriousness, and the city and world itself really is second to none in believability and atmosphere. Yet at its worst I quit in frustration and wonder what the hell was going through the designer's mind.
I haven't finished though, but its really disheartening to hear the ending is awful, especially considering the ending of Mafia capped things off perfectly. But I'm not really surprised. The little stories and missions can be really great in Mafia II, and the dialogue is among the best written in the medium, but the overarching plot isn't convincing or engaging at all. It really feels like scattered adventures and exploits of Vito Scaletta, and nothing more.
bee
Member
good game but not great, however chapter 12 and the shoot out was one of the most immersive experiences i've ever had in gaming, i'm always seeing physx and 3D vision being referred to as gimmicks but believe me that sequence was incredible with both turned on, it certainly lost its impact when i tried later with both turned off
BanShunsaku
Member
Finished this last night, total play time of about 11.5 hours.
As much as I enjoyed the game as a whole, I was a little disappointed with the ending. Considering how cinematic and well presented the game is, I was expecting a little more from the finale and
It just felt a bit too abrupt to me.
This may have been discussed before, but considering that
Either way, a pretty enjoyable game with fantastic presentation and atmosphere. Could have been better but still a decent experience.
As much as I enjoyed the game as a whole, I was a little disappointed with the ending. Considering how cinematic and well presented the game is, I was expecting a little more from the finale and
not just a 30 second cut scene.
This may have been discussed before, but considering that
you don't actually see Joey get killed, has there been talk a a sequel/DLC which continues the story?
Either way, a pretty enjoyable game with fantastic presentation and atmosphere. Could have been better but still a decent experience.
EatChildren
Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
Zel3 said:I'm up chapter 10 and enjoying the game quite a bit but I had something really weird happen in one of the missions.
What's going on in my game? :O Am I the only one who has experienced this?
What the hell? :lol
BobsRevenge
I do not avoid women, GAF, but I do deny them my essence.
It all comes together.EatChildren said:
Square Triangle
Member
Gave it a go, holy shit there major screen tearing on the PS3 version. Other than that I am liking it a lot, the voice work, soundtrack, locale- atmosphere in general is awesome. I gotta say, even though it felt tacked on- the first level was an awesome way to add to the story.
GillianSeed79
Member
I think the ending wasn't that horrible, but could have been better. These are my suggestions:
The realistic route: Vitto and Joe are whacked on the sidewalk immediately after the observatory. Sad, yes, but there's no reason why they should have let Vitto live. Power fantasy route: After the current ending you get an epilogue where Vitto goes all Tom Hanks in Road to Perdition on the mob bosses. Unrealistic, but satisfying.
MrTroubleMaker
Member
Zel3 said:
Magnificent game.
Do I wish there was more to do and the gameplay was more sandboxy?
Sure I do, open-world sandbox non-linear games are my favorites, but Mafia 2 is such a finely polished open-world game I can forgive the linearity and lack of sandbox.
Mafia 2 wants to create an authentic feeling and classic gangster experience, and it succeeds beautifully.
Do I wish there was more to do and the gameplay was more sandboxy?
Sure I do, open-world sandbox non-linear games are my favorites, but Mafia 2 is such a finely polished open-world game I can forgive the linearity and lack of sandbox.
Mafia 2 wants to create an authentic feeling and classic gangster experience, and it succeeds beautifully.
GillianSeed79
Member
NewBrof said:
It's more of an homage in my opinion. There's definately nods to all the great mob movies like Goodfellas and even A Bronx Tale. Now that you mention Casino, that would be a great setting for a Mafia III if they are lucky enough to make a sequel.
Stallion Free
Cock Encumbered
Jimmy's Vendetta is out on Steam, 355mb.
MrTroubleMaker
Member
thanks
Stallion Free
Cock Encumbered
10$ on all platforms (800 points in MS terms).markot said:
Stallion Free
Cock Encumbered
I should have some impressions up later today when I have some time to sit down with it.markot said:
Caesar III
Member
I'm so weak.BobsRevenge
I do not avoid women, GAF, but I do deny them my essence.
DLC bought. $10 for more Mafia 2 is a no brainer for me.
But now I don't want to go to work.
And I have to do laundry tonight.
And Amnesia comes out tomorrow.
But now I don't want to go to work.
And I have to do laundry tonight.
And Amnesia comes out tomorrow.
Caesar III
Member
Jimmy is a damn cool guy and needs to comment on everything :lol
I was shocked because the FPS and IQ got a deep hit. I checked and the patch added all the APEX files back in. Now with them moved out of the folder again I can play like before. And funnily enough the IQ is better now again as well. WTF
I was shocked because the FPS and IQ got a deep hit. I checked and the patch added all the APEX files back in. Now with them moved out of the folder again I can play like before. And funnily enough the IQ is better now again as well. WTF
PjotrStroganov
Member
Lol, I thought it was free.:lol
Stallion Free
Cock Encumbered
There was a DLC pack for the PS3 that also used this Jimmy character that was free.PjotrStroganov said:
Anyways, I have been enjoying it so far. I'm around 40% through and the timer says I have played for about an hour and a half. The missions unlock 1-3 at a time and they keep a decent amount of variety. There has been a lot of stealing cars, but a solid amount of gunfights and just blowing shit up too. It's kind of nice being free of story and just having raw gameplay, plus I feel like it's taking me to some areas of the city I had hardly been in before. If they released the PS3 Exclusive DLC I would probably pick it up as well.
Caesar III
Member
NIN90 said:
sweetvar26
Member
Any impressions on the DLC?
Btw I don't know if I'm the first to find this but in one mission, (3rd part of the game, where you have to
) after you've dealt with everyone in the bar you can go to the back of the room and walk into a small hallway with 3 doors next to eachother. And if you walk to the left there you can find a pornmag with a high res photo of a chick with some nice looking tits inside. (you have to pick up the magazine to see it)
Can't post the photo here though since it would be nsfw, plus it would also ruin the suprise. :lol
kill a couple of irish guys who burned down your house
Can't post the photo here though since it would be nsfw, plus it would also ruin the suprise. :lol
ThingontheFloor
Member
Mad Max said:
haha, you haven't been looking hard enough if that's the first you've found the entire game. I'm about to go on to the last mission to collect the final 4, so I'm keenly aware of these high res photos you speak of.