One of the best games ever, certainly the best Mafia game.
So what’s the best part about Mafia? It’s the recreation of prohibition-era gangland. Everything is in this game contributes to the atmosphere, which will soon overtake you and make you want to start talking in a New Jersey accent and insert obscenities between every other word when you speak. If you wanted a Mafia game, this is the only game you ever need to play. All the little details of the game are great; driving, sound quality, and combat. The story is also very compelling and will have your heart pumping more than once as you make your way through life as a Mafioso. The primary feature that draws you into the game is the city. Lost Heaven is a complete recreation of a city in the 1920s, complete with traffic, street cars, pedestrians, stop lights, police presence, and an interurban railroad. Most of your missions will require you to drive from your base of operations to some place in the city, and just getting there is half the fun of the game. Driving around in Mafia is a unique experience, because you’ll be dealing with other motorists that do plenty of ill-conceived driving moves, pedestrians that cross the road at the wrong moment, and also police that will attempt to pull you over and fine you for running red lights, speeding, and hitting other vehicles. You have two options when this happens: pull over and pay the fine, or run. If you run and don’t get away, however, the game is over. At any time you can pull to the side of the road and steal somebody else’s car (assuming you’ve been taught how to get into it), or simply carjack them while they’re at a red light. Just make sure you do that while no cops are around.
I remember one time running from the cops (completely outside the plotline), and surviving so long that my car would barely move. I was crossing one of the big bridges in town when I ran into heavy traffic and was surrounded by cop cars, apparently with no escape. I crawled out of my dead car, shot a cop that saw me (hey, it’s what Mafiosos do) using my last bullet, then picked up his gun in anticipation of having a final shootout to the death. I then noticed that I could sneak around amongst the tangled mess of automobiles and I did so, managing to make my way to one of the police cars the cops had just jumped out of. Thankfully it was still running, and I hopped in and drove away as a free man. It’s that kind of action that is possible in the world of Mafia, and that's even before the game gets going.
Missions in Mafia are often exceptionally difficult, so you'll find yourself quick saving and quick loading often, depending on what mission you're doing. You can also screw yourself over if you waste too much ammunition early on, so passing missions in Mafia takes a measure of restraint. The game is very deep, including a racing mini-game early on in the plotline (which was so hard they had to patch it to make it easier) and the "Free Ride" and "Free Ride Extreme" features which are unlocked as you play the game. The Free Ride Extreme is where the game gets pure fun as you run around trying to unlock hot rods, limousines, and tanks.
A game such as this sadly does not come along very often, combining non-linear gameplay with a linear but compelling and action-packed plotline. A sequel has always been cried for, but has never and quite possibly will never be forthcoming. That being said, Mafia is a game which every gamer should play to its entirety.