Mafia

Part of 'the family' or 'disposed of', Luke decides...

It's been quite a while since we received our first taste of Illusion Softworks' flawed masterpiece Mafia, which was released on the PC in the autumn of 2002, and it has also been quite a wait for our console friends to endure - the PC version being little more than a passing memory when the PS2 version finally arrived on store shelves, and on my desk, last month. So, the question I guess is how has Take 2's gangland epic matured and improved since the PC days, and how does it compare nearly a year-and-a-half on?

Certainly Illusion Softworks' pedigree is an impressive, if tainted one, the developer having also delivered us the Hidden and Dangerous series which is both adored and loathed in equal measure - representing the kind of design ingenuity and flare for originality so lacking in other games, whilst simultaneously infuriating with some blinding over-sights and odd flaws which sit at-odds with the brilliance of other areas. In short, Illusion Softworks' games can and frequently are a confusing prospect for the reviewer.

Mafia is no exception to this trend, and in fact has changed surprisingly little despite the extra more-than-a-year the developer has had to add and amend, we're still basically presented with the same mission-based driving excursions (22 in total) that were offered in the original, albeit with a few tweaks and improvements to more basic stuff like the controls. Not that this is a bad thing, because the concept itself is simply divine darling, offering us once again an authentic slice of 1930's life, playing the role of Tommy Angelo has his role in the mob progresses during times of Prohibition; our experience tied-together with excellent cut-scenes, historically-inspired missions, and a plot which evolves and shifts as young Tommy's tale unfolds.

Problems the developer have addressed from the previous game begin with the tweaked car-handling, so often an annoyance last time-around, things have been balanced a little better in this PS2 version, with the car's movement proving a little more forgiving and IS also having toned down the chasing cop's almost super-human driving abilities which so often marred the creaking chases of the past title. All these things improve the experience greatly, and make progress slightly easier, though sadly aiming is still a problem with the developer instead making enemies a little easier to kill and also lessening their fire-power somewhat, which at least alleviates some of the more grinding levels which became a pain rather than a pleasure in the PC version. So far so good, then.

A Race mode has been added to the PS2 version (the developer perhaps noting how well their title suits a console controller), though sadly, and inexplicably, they've taken away the free-roaming 'Extreme Free Ride' option, which basically enabled you to have a jolly old time bumping and speeding around the city once unlocked. Indeed, it is such omissions that make you wonder quite what they were thinking, with the popularity of GTA on the PS2 surely making such a mode highly popular and, you might argue, a mandatory inclusion.

However, perhaps the harshest criticism I've heard levied against this console edition is the graphical failings. Whether Illusion Softworks struggled to get to grips with the aging PS2 hardware I don't know, but the quality of the visuals have been eroded, whilst the game still jerks like mad and interrupts any sense of immersion with pop-up scenery and decidedly unimpressive draw distances, and it is this exposition of a weak game engine where Mafia suffers greatest. The PC had its flaws in this respect, but Mafia doesn't even compare well to other PS2 games, and whilst very occasionally you get a nice piece of eye-candy these instances are few and far between, unless you're viewing the cut-scenes.

There are a few other bugs that can frustrate too, and the enemy AI is a real bitch at times, also some of the missions do sometimes seem vague - highlighting just how tough Mafia can be - and whilst you'll certainly have hours-upon-hours of gameplay here, much of that time could well be spent re-playing failed missions and trying to progress, rather than enjoying the new experiences and moments of excellence Mafia also has in abundance.

Of course, like the PC hit before it, Mafia for consoles also makes use of an excellent Jazz soundtrack, which perfectly compliments the 1930's atmosphere the developers have clearly worked so hard to engender, the twisting-turning plot, complete with some fantastic dialogue, also doing a great job of deepening player immersion into this compelling vision of a past-era. Indeed, it is elements like this - which often actually exceed the efforts of less-ambiguously impressive titles - that make the glaring mistakes and problems more troubling, because it could have been a true classic.

At times a work of art, at others a real chore to play, such has become Illusion Softworks' most frequent (just read our Hidden and Dangerous 2 review for further proof of this) criticism. Mafia could have been amazing, but unfortunately pushes us one-step too far (especially on the technical front) to forgive it its sins, though still if you are of a forgiving or patient nature then you might just be able to see the excellence shining through the dense foliage.

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By Luke Guttridge