Mafia is a series of action-adventurevideo games developed by 2K Czech with the third installment by Hangar 13, and published by 2K Games. Games in the Mafia series are set in fictional locales modeled after American cities, and usually take place in a historical setting, from Great Depression-era Lost Heaven in the original game, to 1960s New Bordeaux in Mafia III. Gameplay focuses on an open world environment where the player can choose missions to progress an overall story, as well as engaging in side activities, albeit in a more linear manner. The Freeride Extreme game mode in The City of Lost Heaven and expansion packs for Mafia II, however, allow players to trigger missions from the open world. The three games in the Mafia series focus around different protagonists who attempt to rise through the ranks of the criminal underworld, although their motives for doing so vary in each game. The antagonists are commonly characters who have betrayed the protagonist or his organisation, or characters who have the most impact impeding the protagonist's progress. On May 14, 2020, publisher 2K Games announced the Mafia: Trilogy, containing a remaster of the second game, an extended edition of the third one, and a remake of the original one, all three developed by Hangar 13.
Games
Video games
The first game, Mafia was released on 27 August 2002 for Microsoft Windows. Ports of the game for the Xbox and PlayStation 2 were released in April and January 2004 respectively. The second game, Mafia II was released on 24 August 2010 for Microsoft Windows, OS X, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The third game, Mafia III was released on October 7, 2016 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. On 13 May 2020, a teaser trailer for an upcoming collection of all three installments titled Mafia: Trilogy was released with an official announcement revealed on 19 May 2020. On that day, the definitive editions of Mafia II and Mafia III were released. The remake of the first Mafia title is scheduled for release on 25 September 2020.
Throughout 2010, The Betrayal of Jimmy, Jimmy's Vendetta and Joe's Adventures were released as downloadable content expansion packs to Mafia II. The Betrayal of Jimmy was exclusive to PlayStation 3; the other two were released on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. The Betrayal of Jimmy was later released on Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. Downloadable content expansion packs, Faster, Baby!, Stones Unturned and Sign of the Times were released for Mafia III throughout 2017, all 3 are available on Microsoft Windows, OS X, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Common elements
Gameplay
Each game in the Mafia series allows the player to take on the role of a criminal in a large city, typically an individual who plans to rise through the ranks of organised crime. The player character is given various missions by friends and mafia figures in the city underworld which must be completed to progress through the storyline. The use of vehicles in an explorable urban environment provides a basic simulation of a working city, complete with pedestrians who generally obey traffic signals. Further details are used to flesh out an open-ended atmosphere that has been used in several other games. Traffic rules and regulations are stringently and realistically enforced in the games; failure to obey them through speeding or reckless driving are usually met with penalties such as citations, with further violations resulting in efforts by law enforcement to retaliate more aggressively and thus incapacitate the player.
Setting
Games in the Mafia series are set in fictional locales through different time periods. Mafia is set in Lost Heaven in the 1930s. Lost Heaven is loosely based on New York City, Chicago and San Francisco. Mafia II is set in Empire Bay in the 1940s and early 1950s, which is based on New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston and Detroit. Mafia III is set in the late 1960s in New Bordeaux, a fictionalised version of New Orleans.
''Mafia II'' controversy
Sonia Alfano, a member of the European Parliament and president of Italy's association for the families of mafia victims and whose father was murdered by the mafia, called for the game to be banned. Take-Two Interactive responded to the issue, stating that the game's depiction of the American Mafia was no different from organized crime films such as The Godfather. They responded to allegations of racism from Unico National, who claimed that the game portrayed Italian-Americans unfairly and "indoctrinating" youth into violent stereotypes. The game used to hold a record for the most profanity used in a video game, particularly the word "fuck", which is spoken over 200 times, beating previous record holder, , until it was beaten by Grand Theft Auto V, which the word "fuck" is spoken over 1000 times.
Reception
The first two games in the franchise have received generally positive reviews while the third game received mixed reviews. All three installments have been praised for their narratives, with the first installment particularly praised for its realism in its gameplay. However, Mafia II was criticized for its linear open world design and Mafia III was criticized for its repetitive gameplay and technical issues.
