Summary
- Mafia: The Old Country brings traditional Mafia storytelling back to the franchise after diverse gameplay in Mafia 3.
- The game focuses on creating an authentic open world set in early 1900s Sicily, embracing linear storytelling.
- Hangar 13 aims to explore the origins of the Mafia in a standalone experience, staying true to the franchise's roots.
The opening night of Gamescom introduced fans to a wide range of upcoming projects across the gaming industry, with Mafia: The Old Country being one of the most surprising. Not counting remakes, this upcoming project will be the first new experience to come to the franchise in close to a decade, and it seems that 2K and Hangar 13 are paying a lot of respect to the foundations of the series in the development of the game.
It is no secret that the Mafia franchise has struggled to keep a consistent identity across its mainline games, with 2016's Mafia 3 famously adopting a more open approach with a branching narrative as opposed to the more tight-knit and linear stories of past entries. While Mafia 3 had its strong points, some fans were disappointed at the core thematic and gameplay-related changes that the release brought to the IP, and it seems that The Old Country has heard these criticisms loud and clear.
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Mafia: The Old Country Is About As Traditional As the Franchise Can Get
Mafia: The Old Country's announcement at Gamescom was a clear statement of intent by Hangar 13, painting a fruitful future for a franchise that has not received a fresh experience since the release of Mafia: Definitive Edition in 2020, which itself was a remake of the IP's first title. While this announcement only consisted of a brief cinematic trailer, it is known that The Old Country will be set during the early 1900s, taking place primarily in Sicily, Italy.
Hangar 13 has also stressed how Mafia: The Old Country will have a particular focus on "authentic realism and rich storytelling," painting a picture of a more close-knit open world with a focus on linear set-pieces and gameplay sequences. An early 1900s setting also makes The Old Country the earliest-set Mafia title, with the original game taking place during the 1930s, meaning the game cannot hide behind the pomp and excess of modern luxuries in its portrayal of turn-of-the-century Sicily.
Mafia 3 stands out quite starkly from its two predecessors in the themes and core narrative it explores, telling the fascinating story of Vietnam War veteran Lincoln Clay during the late 1960s. While different Mafia families do play prominent roles in the story of Mafia 3, they largely exist as antagonist organizations, with Lincoln being entirely removed from them. Some fans felt this went against the Goodfellas-esque drama and intrigue of past franchise entries, and this is something that The Old Country is seemingly going to be much more in line with.
Mafia: The Old Country Explores the Origins of What Makes the Franchise Tick
The Old Country is aiming to go to the roots of the Mafia as a concept, with Sicily being the founding location of the first Mafia organizations, otherwise known as the Cosa Nostra. Even from the brief trailer for the game, it seems clear that the game is going to great lengths to portray the original traditions and practices of these early Mafia organizations, with this attention to detail potentially exceeding what fans saw in the first Mafia and Mafia 2.
Of course, The Old Country could still potentially tie itself to other games in the franchise by showing the origins of the Mafia families that exist in past games, but its major shift in location seems indicative of a gritty standalone experience. While the ambitious gameplay and story changes that Mafia 3 featured were still well received, there will always be demand for a more traditional Mafia experience, and The Old Country has clearly been developed with this tradition in mind.
