Not that fresh of a video, but figured this would suffice.

So I've kinda missed the fact that Mafia 3 is already out next week. I blame that mostly on having been focused on playing the Legion as my only game of choice since it launched. While open-world games have kinda become a thing I roll my eyes at nowadays, I'm still somewhat interested in this one because of the world (the year it takes place in, the music 'n all that jazz, fake New Orleans that I haven't seen as a setting since inFamous 2, I think) and the story seeming like it could be a good one.

...I think I also just want something else to play besides Legion, at least for a little while! Don't know if that's the case with others over here, since the last post made on this sub-forum was five months ago! I really enjoyed my time with the first Mafia back on PC (despite the janky gameplay and some of the mechanics being more annyoing than immersive), because it felt like something new and the storytelling was impressive, at least for me. My PC couldn't run Mafia 2 when it first released and I never bothered with it on consoles either, but I mainly remember middling buzzing around that one, so I'll assume that I didn't miss much.

Games are so good, so fucking good at stuffing their "gameplay videos" with pre-rendered cutscene videos that subconsciously sway our opinion because we don't realize that cutscenes are not representative of the game, of what we will be experiencing when we launch the game and play it, which is the gameplay.

Mafia 1 was a great city sandbox shooter that was ripped off and overshadowed by the rise of GTA.

Mafia 2 was a linear story-based shooter with an empty open world that served no purpose.

I dunno why I'd be looking forward to the sequel to that. *watches video* so they've cloned GTA V's aesthetics, added some Hitman Absolution stealth mechanics, with Mafia 1 world feel and Max Payne 3 shooting systems/interior design? I'll give this a shot.

Reading the interview Austin Walker did on Vice makes me feel really hopeful about this game. It doesn't look amazing but it sounds like it has its heart in the right place.

I was a fan of Mafia 1. It had a sense of realism and a slower pace to it that GTA3 didn't have, and that was appealing to me. I never played Mafia 2, but from what I saw the more linear approach to the gameplay wasn't what I was looking for. I'm interested in this game though just for the setting alone. It's not the average Mafia plot. Also read some of Austin's interview with the senior writer and it sounds cool.

You can massacre a KKK rally. That's kind of badass.

I am very excited for this game because the setting and the tone and subject matter seem unique. I also love games where you recruit underbosses and manage organizations and the like.

On the other hand I have no idea, and won't until reviews, if they actually managed to pull it off, so that is preventing me from getting full on hype. If the consensus is that it's great then it's a game I will definitely make time for.

It's also the game I most WANT to be good this holiday. Well, Forza Horizon 3 was actually that, but it turned out amazing, so Mafia 3 inherits the mantle.

Never played a Mafia game, but having seen some gameplay vids of Mafia 3 it just looks like GTA, but more serious. I'll wait for the Quick Look and reviews to hit on this one, because I'm pretty sceptic. I mean... open world games are hard to make (interesting), man.

Please be good.... Really want to test out my soon to be new PC with a new game and this would be perfect

No advanced copies for reviewers yet, or so I've heard. Hold back on pre-ordering. Just wait for reviews.

Also, I know I say this over and over again but I cannot believe the steam forums. I took a tiny peek and it's nothing but complaining about there being a black protagonist. How it doesn't fit with Mafia. How it's PC/SJWs, or a diversity conspiracy. Was it like this for CJ in San Andreas? Are people just so unused to seeing people of different races that it's noticeable when it happens? I never gave CJ a second thought when San Andreas was announced, but then again in the real world my first girlfriend was black and it never occurred to me but was enough to give my mum a 'shock'. I might be unusual.

@alistercat:For one thing, CJ wasn't the first playable black character in the GTA franchise (I'm old enough not to consider GTA III to be the first GTA). But more importantly, and not to justify their attitude, I think it comes down to what Mafia has (in its admittedly short, game wise, lifespan) been about, which is to say it has mostly been about the Italian-American Mafia. Not to mention that the word, though now more broadly applicable, has it's etymological roots in Sicilian organized crime and for some probably evoke mostly that.

For my money, the game looks pretty great and the protagonist and the entire setup seems promising. I'm staying positive on this one.

@alistercat: I remember being on some forums around the time San Andreas was coming out, and yeah, there were a few posts from people saying "I'm not racist, but I'm not going to play this game because the protagonist is black."

@alistercat: Obviously those reactions are exaggerated, but I kinda agree that what we're getting doesn't really fit a game called "Mafia".

Nothing against the way this game is and, if the game's good, I really don't care who the hell I'm playing. Black, white, asian, alien, whatever, I'm fine with it. But as a fan of the first Mafia and a fan of games and movies about Italian mobsters, I was really disappointed when they revealed what Mafia 3 was going to be and really wished this game was called something else so we could also have a Mafia 3 focused on playing a member of the actual mafia.

@alistercat: its like that with damn near everything, just look up posts about the new spiderman movie casting smh.

And there was a black mafia, probably more than one actually and the character is half italian so ther is that. Cj pissed me off because the one time we get a black MC in a major AAA game hes a criminal and they say the n word more than a Tarantino movie.

And as for this game i saw some gameplay and it looks like more open world ubisoft type stuff, not that interesting from what ive seen.

I think this has the ability to be a great game in its own right but I honestly don't really see much "Mafia" in it anymore. The entire allure of these games was in the pinstripe suits, tommy guns and the whole crime family mentality and the hierarchy that goes with it. It's an interesting twist to be the new generation killing off these old mafia guys and making room for new age "gangsters" but I think the charm of the past games is kind of absent.

Mafia 2 had a poor story that didn't really go anywhere but man despite clunky gameplay Mafia 1 had the perfect story that depicts the rise to power in the mob. I don't know what the full arch of the Mafia 3 plot is at this point, but from everything I've seen it's a more general GTA-esque coming-up tale than what you'd typically expect from something with "Mafia" in the title. As I wrote in the Dishonored 2 Quick Look - it's a tough balancing act to simultaneously stay fresh but not steer too far away from the source material, and just like in the case of Dishonored where the sequel appears to be going full tilt on the scales towards more of the same, Mafia 3 appears to be tipping almost all the way in the other direction and losing a lot of it's core identity along the way.

I remember people saying "I'm not going to play this game because the protagonist is a 'gangsta'" more than "I'm not going to play this game because the protagonist is black."

I'm sure certainly some of that WAS because of racism, but others just didn't like the gangsta rap type theme. In the same vein, I don't like modern country music, and I wouldn't want to play an "outlaw country" themed GTA.

Thankfully, I love early 90s rap music, and I loved GTA: SA.

I read Austin's piece on Vice and I have a renewed hope for the game's narrative direction. This might be my most anticipated release for this Fall, there's just something to Mafia II's approach to narrative and dialogue that I'm hoping will be capitalized on in this title.

I must admit that everything I have seen of this game has made it look pretty good, but I really did not like Mafia II so I am definitely waiting on reviews/a quicklook.

@spaceinsomniac: Now that you mention it, you're right, it was more about playing as a 'gangsta' than playing as a black person.

Now I just wanna play San Andreas. That game is so good.

@humanity: it weirdly feels as though the premise is an allegory to how the studio is taking over the franchise and putting their own spin on the genre with a new questioning perspective. Maybe it's too early to say but I think it's more interesting that this is called Mafia III than if it is its own game, because it's showing its legacy as part of its identity.

The code is 0451 (at 7:17 in the video). Funny. Anyways, I don't know. The game doesn't look terrible, and I love the talk about the setting being a character; for me, many great games have that be the case, but I'd be a lot more excited if I had actually gone through the first two games, and it doesn't matter how connected this is or not. I played a bit of both, but couldn't get into either. The original Xbox version I played and it felt too archaic (I would have much rather played the PC version), and I got to the '50s area of the second, but with the amount of driving there was, I just lost interest. The things you have to do weren't interesting enough, so I stopped. I kind of want to go through them now. Also, Gears of War 4 comes out the same day I guess, and I'm more inclined to get that (if I had to choose).

I have positive hopes but will wait for reviews

which I hope are good because I have long weekend to play it

I love the whole Blaxploitation wrapper but much like Austin Walker I am a bit concerned about how it will deal with the Civil Rights movement. This shit about not wanting a black protagonist is just plain old fashioned racism. Who cares if the game is good? Also the Mob was not relegated to just the Italians and what I've seen of the game it looks like Lincoln Clay is not just getting revenge but also setting up his own crime empire in the process.

Mafia does and has connoted the Italian/Sicilian mob. But it has also become a more flexible term. For example, I consider Russia presently ruled by a Mafia. It's stretching the term, but it also gets it's point across. Other organized crime groups have been termed Mafia, and not Italian at all.. And finally, I am very tired of the Italian theme, it doesn't fit modern times. All sorts of players, maybe a point of this game. The 60's may have been the period of disintegration for the strict interpretation of the term.

Also I loved Mafia 1. I bought Mafia 2 and lost interest. What helps me for this game is the time period.

I am so fucking stoked for this game; I know nearly nothing about it because I just know I am going to enjoy it and I want a pure blind experience.

Even if Mafia 2 was a bit of a disappointment it was still enjoyable as hell, so I'm very much looking forward a new entry in the series. I really dig the setting, even though I still crave more 30's era mobsters, I can get into what I've seen of this setting so far.

I can't wait to feed people to gators in this game.

I really want it to be good and its a low bar to climb to be better than Mafia 2. I think Lincoln's revenge tale works as a valid reason to cause mayhem in a time period we almost never see video game settings. That being said, I won't be getting it at launch because the bare minimum spec for the game is a GTX 660 and I can't upgrade for another few months.

Fingers crossed for a Vinny and Alex Quicklook :)

Mafia 1 is a personal farvorite of mine.

After watching the video, I can definitely see why the guys on the Beastcast said it was kind of similar to Sleeping Dogs in terms of polish. I'm not 100% sure of this game. I hope it is great! I haven't played a great open world game in a couple of months and with no Assassin's Creed this year, I need something to fill that void.

Being from the area of both games, I look forward to the compare and contrast between Mafia 3 and Master P's game. I'm sure neither will be hilariously over-stylized and make relevant, intelligent talking points without perpetuating popular stereotypes. Video games.

Didn't realize Mafia 2 was so unpopular. I thought it was all right.

The gameplay demos of the gambling boat and hotel missions kind of left me unimpressed, I'm worried this might just fit the Mafia reputation of "Generic GTA clone" even if I do like the premise.

@veektarius: it gets a really bad rep just because it didn't have a bunch of filler missions that people complain about these days. I thought it was pretty good as a game - mechanically speaking - but it had a really poor story that didn't go anywhere.

@humanity: I thought it was well received with good reviews?I might remember that wrong but at least i remember liking it a lot.

@humanity: Is that a fair criticism? The story was basically Goodfellas - your star is rising with the mob when you start letting it get to your head and try and cut in line by striking out on your own. But shit goes sideways and you end up with the family turned against you and your back against a wall. And there's a prison section too, which also was in Goodfellas.

Will the fact that 2K isnt sending out review copies to the press sway anyone from purchasing? I do not care about the reviews one iota, but after reading some absolute ridiculous claims on other sites that people are canceling pre-orders because 2K isn't allowing reviews before the game comes out, seems to have people worried. Doom was in the same boat and it turned out fine( I didn't like it, but seems the general consensus is most people dug it) I do find it curious that 2K, with that insane marketing on this, isn't snedin out review copies.

People often confuse La Cosa Nostra aka Mafia with general mobsters. Yes they are one in the same, but the Mafia is generally Italian/Sicilian, whereas Mobs/gangs have no distinct ethnicity. Also, the 60s-mid 80's was the prime of the Mafia, so it very much fits this time period.

Not for me personally, but I understand where other people are coming from. I've been burned by some games in the past. This is a game I want to check out no matter what though, because of the story they're going for. Good or bad, I want to see how they handle it. There's also a bunch of gameplay footage on Youtube so I already have a general idea of this being a game I'll at least enjoy playing, if nothing else.

@veektarius: I don't really remember Goodfellas all that well so I can't comment on the connection but for me personally the game lacked a cohesive and interesting arch. In the first game you move through different time periods detailing very disparate slices of life for the main protagonist. What is essential is that not only were you constantly moving forward but you got to experience the multifaceted mob hierarchy from the inside. You start by chance as a simple hired goon, become an enforcer, a made man and so forth. Mafia 2 lacked that progression for me which played such a key role in my enjoyment of the first game. In the sequel you're basically a low level foot soldier from beginning to end. Just as things are starting to look interesting the action as you put it goes sideways and I didn't think that part of the game was all that great. The ending left me hanging and they might have tied it up in DLC but I never bought it so I don't know and a full price game should never rely on addition content to wrap up the story.

I guess I just like the feeling of being in the mob. I like being a gangster that has worked their way up from the bottom to a cozy position within the family. I like everything that goes along with that lifestyle - protecting business, rivarly with other families, skirting the law, feeling like a million bucks and the respect people show you both out of respect and fear. Now I haven't played the game yet but Mafia 3 doesn't really appear to have all that stuff that I find interesting and unique in a "mob" setting. You're essentially playing out a revenge story that isn't all that different from other open world games that have you take over territory and eliminate mini bosses one by one, simultaneously building your own empire, until the final showdown with the big bad. That sort of game is still a lot of fun but it lacks the depth of working within a family, helping it grow, before the inevitable third act turn.

I have high hopes for this game but I haven't watched any gameplay stuff besides a few gifs of alligators eating people and whatever's made its way to to trailers, and I'm not familiar with the previous games at all, so I'm not going to pre-order and wait for first impressions from the sites I read and early adopters before I get it. If they get this right, I don't think it's hyperbole to say Mafia III would be one of the most culturally significant games released in years, but I'm not sure the odds that they do are better than 50/50. The atmosphere of the game could be a spectacular mess of misguided ambitions with mediocre/derivative gameplay backing it up, or the complete opposite. I'm very, very excited to find out which it is.

I wish Austin had time to drop in and do the Quick Look at GB East with Alex and Vinny, I'd love to hear them talk that game out. That new podcast with Patrick got on its feet at just the right time at least.

Video mentions one can take a stealthy approach by getting the goon's car. That is all good, but seems rather convenient when upon arriving at the parking garage of the hotel the gate just opens up without the main character having to speak a single word. Then it is described one can avoid a firefight in the lobby if you take this option, but there is a huge firefight and a massacre anyway on the top floors. And I do hope you find a more creative if not at least as convenient a way to get out of the mess when the mission ends, because it just cuts to a bit where another character testifies he wonders how the main character got out. I may be a bit too critical here, but this mission was presented as a showcase and frankly doesn't seem that impressive to me.

@ozzdog12: reviews almost never inform my video game purchases. I'll watch some gameplay and if it looks like something I want to play I'll buy it.

Hopefully the story makes up for what appears to be another boring open-world third-person shooter.

I am so burnt out on open world games, but I will be supporting this one from afar. It's refreshing that this game wants to make a statement on racism and that the devs seem enthusiastic about it. So many games fail to tackle these kinds subjects well or leave them as an aside, so to see a game dev openly talk about it gives me hope. Hopefully they'll do it well, but as a white guy myself, I can't talk about what it's like to be discriminated against due to my race. That means that I can't really say 'they did such and such aspect with care to my situation' because it's not my situation to comment on. I'll comment against racism and overtly racist themes, sure, but I can't say they treated this particular sensitive subject with care even if I did play it. So I'm much more interested to see how PoC and their communities think of this game.

I've been really bad for over-hyping myself for games lately and I've been watching gameplay videos and dev diaries for games I've been excited about. I decided to stop myself from doing that with Mafia III after the initial reveal trailer and I must admit, it is a really nice feeling to be going into this completely blind. I've got a real good deal on the game from Green Man Gaming and I'm just biding my time until release. I'm real excited and that excitement is every bit the better through my complete lack of exposure to media around this game.

Whut?

The 20's to 30's was Mafia primetime, everything after that was.....iffy.

They made a vast majority of their money/fortune off of Prohibition during the 20's. As they got into the 30's and booze became legal again, they turned to rackets/protection, which made ok money, but nowhere near smuggling money. This caused them to start becoming more aggressive and start infiltrating/working the Unions. This was the birth of the Commission, and the switch to a more organized thing.

The 40's/50's though had them torn apart by greed in a lot of ways. Families turned on each other, they tried getting into the Casino business to make up for lost sales and there were only so many Casinos so fights broke out, etc etc. The "honorable/family" mob ideal started to die as infighting took over, and only the strongest groups survived. To make up for the losses from all the infighting, they had to start expanding away from just Italian's as well. The police also started to realize the Mafia existed, and started treating them like a real issue rather then a boogyman.

By the 60's, all the ritual was gone, and the Mafia was just a very well financed gang. They were starting to try legitimizing through business deals/Casinos, but still had a lot of issues to deal with internally. Worse yet, various black gangs started coming into the picture that were financing themselves with drug pushing, and were quickly and efficiently taking over the territory of the Mafia in many major cities.

By the 70's-80's it had all fallen apart for the Mafia. The RICO Act was put into play and suddenly the Feds were knocking on the door. The footsoldiers got pushed out of the game by the significantly more powerful drug based gangs forming up across the country, arrested, or turned state. By the early 90's, only the Families that went legitimate still had any sort of power, everyone else was dead or in jail.

Each Mafia game has been built around a Mafia era. Mafia 1 was about the early days, lots of money/power/respect. Mafia 2 was about the boom/aggression era as the Mafia tried to transition into a more violent/over force while also maintaining it's identity ( and failing, with the ending of the game showcasing the inevitable power struggles/wars that hit the Mafia in that era. ). Mafia 3 from the looks of things seems to show the death of the Mafia, with them getting pushed out by rival/new criminal groups that are modernizing quicker then the Mafia was able.

To me, the abrupt cut felt like they only wanted to show you the main area or at least the first half of a mission (find and kill the target) and to save the getaway for when people actually get their hands on the game. If they do end the mission there then it feels rather anticlimactic.

From that clip, I don't have high hopes for the gameplay. The story might be great, but after seeing the number of repeated animations in just that short clip, and the fact that the last guy looked silly, taking bullets like a Terminator, it seems sub-par. Perhaps it feels better in person than it lets on in video.

This is a very good breakdown, and you are spot on in most respects; the RICO act really hammered the hell out of the mob, as they could no longer hide behind the "I never gave a direct order" defense. One thing to note is that the most powerful families still held onto their turf right up until a mobster by the name of Sammy Gravano turned into a "stoolie" and sold out John Gotti in '91; with one of the highest ranking members in history taking a deal, a huge wave of Mafia members decided to also become federal witnesses in exchange for reduced sentences and protection. With the upper echelon defecting, the mob still operates, but it's a shell of its Prohibition heyday.

@shoguns_decapitator: NICE!

I'm still so stoked for this game