Mafia: Definitive Edition may have been recreated from scratch by developer Hangar 13, but the game is as faithful to the source material as a Consigliere to a Don. For fans, the remake is a succession of warm memories, but for everyone it is nice to see the two games side by side. This is what eighteen years of progression looks like!
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The new version of Mafia runs on the same engine as Mafia 3. That may not be the most beautiful game of this generation, but one with a very distinct graphic style. Dramatic lighting and an eye for details, such as materials and fabrics, determine the atmosphere. Moreover, for Mafia: Definitive Edition real actors have entered the motion capture studio. The difference with the original is therefore equally life-size in the very first scene.
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The sunlight outside contrasts brightly with the dark interior of this brown café, and instead of an emotionless passport photo-on-a-wooden-Klaas, a real person sits there. But perhaps even more important for the atmosphere is the half-pulled tie around Tommy’s neck. It is immediately clear: this man has something to say.
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Once on the streets of Lost Heaven, the difference remains impressive. Of course, it should come as no surprise that Mafia: Definitive Edition is more beautiful, with a longer viewing distance and simply more details. Again, the lighting provides a nice picture. Colors splash off the screen without being oversaturated.
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But also pay attention to the other details. The road is wider and there is now a sidewalk in this place, making the street more lively and easier to navigate now that there is more traffic on the road. They are small, but smart adjustments to make the game feel modern.
Ah, the race. What should we say about this now? Well, once again the lighting catches the eye, as well as the glare in the shiny red sports car, but more interesting is that now you only have to drive three laps instead of five. Completing three laps without major accidents is challenging enough!
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Bringing false memories to life
Mafia: Definitive Edition balances very well between new and old. Although everything has been recreated and recorded, some shots have remained almost exactly the same. The game plays with your memories: memories are almost always more beautiful than reality was back then, so Mafia: Definitive Edition is about as beautiful as Mafia in your memories. Do you still understand? No? Then consider the following example.
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This isn’t another shot in the same scene, no, it’s the exact same moment. The camera angle is more cinematic and the attitude of Tommy more natural. To be honest, his pose in the original game looks uncomfortable, but with those legs crossed, he is not ready anyway, regardless of the clipping off his legs. In the Definitive Edition he also looks relaxed and smokes a relaxed cigarette, but he is more ready for when things go wrong – whatever it goes, of course, three seconds after taking the screenshot.
The next scene is also a good example of this. Notice how the four bad guys in the original have exactly the same body posture while firing their weapons without expression. It is just four times the same doll with a different face. Then the four mafiosi in the Definitive Edition: all dressed differently, each with a different attitude and each with their own smug face.
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Mafia: Definitive Edition has certainly succeeded as a reinterpretation. The classic version and the new edition are visibly cut from the same cloth, but Hangar 13 does things in terms of lighting, facial animations and details in body postures and materials that Illusion Softworks simply could not do eighteen years ago. Mafia: Definitive Edition is a total product not perfect, but for those who have fond memories of the original, this is actually an offer you cannot refuse.
The screenshots of Mafia: Definitive Edition were taken on a PS4 Pro with HDR enabled.
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