- Publisher: 2K Games
- Release Date: Aug 8, 2025
- Also On: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
- Unscored
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it does take players to a beautiful new locale for a full-fledged Mafia game like any other - and possibly the best one yet. The Old Country makes for a sublime addition to the series.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country continues in the story-driven style of Mafia 1 and 2, but serves as a prequel set in early 1900s Sicily. It follows the rise of Enzo within a local crime family, with a focus on narrative, grounded combat, and atmospheric world-building.
-
Aug 8, 2025Mafia: the Old Country is definitely a return to the series' roots - and it pays off big time. It is a game that focuses on story-telling, one that places gamers firmly in Enzo's shoes with his character developing throughout the course of the story. And although the tight story is linear, I did find myself wandering about the towns from time to time in search of the various collectibles. I particularly enjoyed the nods to previous Mafia titles scattered throughout the game. The gameplay itself works extremely well, with the range of missions ensuring that players don't get continually bogged down in missions of the same type. By focusing on a compelling story, a detailed protagonist, and a gorgeous, immersive world, the game delivers an unforgettable experience that will satisfy longtime fans and newcomers alike. It's a tale of family, betrayal, and ambition, and it stands as a triumphant new chapter in the Mafia legacy.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country tells you a story that you're going to experience firsthand, feeling like one more part of the plot with tense moments, memorable stories, and gameplay that won't make you put down the controller for a single moment. It's a reminder of why we fell in love with video games in the first place: not because of complex systems or impressive graphics, but because of their ability to transport us to other worlds and make us feel part of extraordinary stories. Just play it and enjoy an experience that you won't want to refuse.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is a classic case of ‘more than the sum of its parts’. The individual game elements may not be outstanding, but when taken together and framed by this beautiful ‘faux open world’, they still make for a fantastic game. Yes, it does carry some baggage, but if you're in the mood for great characters, competent gameplay and some spectacular staging (with beautiful landscapes!), you simply owe yourself a trip to Sicily.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country successfully builds on the winning formula of the first two installments in the series. It places its gripping narrative and fantastic characters at the center of an adventure that is exciting from start to finish. With a successful mix of stealth, brutal action, and quiet moments, time flew by for us. We can therefore highly recommend a trip to 1900s Sicily and the beginnings of the honorable family to every Mafia fan.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is an excellent prequel to the Mafia series. There’s so much to like in the 10-15 hour experience, whether it’s the excellent writing, stunning cutscenes or the enjoyable moment to moment gameplay. While it has its flaws, Hangar 13’s latest is a well-crafted love letter to a series I’ve loved for many years.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is a traditional video game, and that’s a good thing. Next to the trend of games as endless online experiences, the narrative of Enzo’s rise through the ranks of a criminal family is small and discrete, like a sawed-off shotgun tucked inside a crate of lemons.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country transports players to early 20th-century Sicily, following Enzo's journey from a sulfur mine worker to a rising figure in the Torrisi crime family. The game excels with its narrative design, filled with memorable characters, and authentic Sicilian soundtrack. However, the gameplay systems are basic, with rigid animations and limited exploration. Despite these drawbacks, the game's cinematic storytelling and dramatic impact make it a must-play for fans of Italian mafia thrillers. A fair price for a compelling narrative-driven experience.
-
Aug 7, 2025Sure, Mafia: The Old Country has guns and cars, but the more important pieces are the awesome story, great performances, and beautiful setting. Cinematic in all the ways that most games only dream of, The Old Country delivers a nuanced and thoughtful story full of thrills. I couldn't tear myself away from it.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is a strong contender for one of 2025's best narrative titles. At one moment, it can feel like a cheesy Italian soap opera where Enzo and Isabella's on-screen forbidden affair is adorable enough to make you kick your feet in the air. But on the other hand, it's a ruthless crime spectacle that excellently portrays the origins of the Mafia with the Torisi Family's rise and fall, with character performances reminiscent of an A24 movie. Throughout its 14-chapter duration, it maintains a tight pacing, particularly in its exposition and gameplay sequences, with the latter feeling like a breath of fresh air thanks to the different weapons, variable firefight sequences, and intense knife duels. Considering the ending and the fan-service elements that cater to long-time fans, this is not only the best Mafia game to date, but also one of the best modern linear action-adventure titles.
-
Aug 7, 2025At first, Mafia: The Old Country swept me up straight away. Its stunning world, compelling story, and rich sense of place felt like an Italian holiday. As I played on, the simplicity of its combat and stealth stood out more, but that’s not what I valued most. Not the most inventive action game, but one of the most immersive you’ll play this year. This is a leaner and more focused Mafia game that trades scale for storytelling and worldbuilding, and in doing so, delivers something quietly special.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country harkens back to the old days in more ways than one. While the gameplay is more of a standard third-person action affair, it’s refreshing to play a game that doesn’t require you to wade through padding to find the good stuff. With a stirring narrative that commands your attention and visuals that fully capture your gaze, The Old Country is exactly the place to holiday as the summer comes to a close.
-
Aug 7, 2025A tight and memorable tale chock full of high-quality writing, charismatic characters and exciting story twists. Mafia: The Old Country may not break new ground on the gameplay front, but it succeeds in being one of the best interactive movies I have ever played.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country uses a very conservative approach especially concerning its gameplay. But the stirring, not just visually great presented story and the grippy, varied and well paced action makes it a worthy series' legacy and a story driven gangster game not only the fans will appreciate.
-
Aug 21, 2025Mafia: The Old Country marks a return to its roots for a series that used to be lost, with an incredible setting, several new gameplay features, and a story that is sure to leave a lasting impression.
-
Aug 19, 2025Mafia: The Old Country tells a traditional mob story without pushing the formula further, and that’s perfectly fine. Split into chapters, the tale of the fictional Torrisi crime family is both bleak and heartening. Even though the story lacks any plot twists, it’s serviceable enough to keep the player interested from start to finish. Although it’s been stripped of important gameplay features like character progression system, side quests and other activities, Mafia: The Old Country remains an enjoyable ride for both newcomers and veterans of the series. Despite the fact that it doesn’t bring anything new to the table, Mafia: The Old Country is a valuable entry in the series, mostly thanks to the way the story is told and how it conveys its tropes.
-
Aug 18, 2025Mafia: The Old Country delivers a gripping story, rich character development, intense combat, and emotional twists, making it a worthy and unforgettable addition to the franchise.
-
Aug 14, 2025With Mafia: The Old Country, Hangar 13 aims to please the crowd by returning to the much desired linear Italian drama form. While stunning graphics and a well written - though highly predictable - story raise The Old Country to a level where you can almost smell the lemons and oranges through your screen, performance issues and underwhelming combat stain this fine-threaded Italian shirt. Nevertheless, Mafia: The Old Country has been good to me and offered me an experience I couldn't refuse.
-
Aug 12, 2025The simplicity of the mechanics plays into the ease with which Enzo slips into his role as a trusted mafia soldier, at the expense of everything else worthwhile in life.
-
Aug 10, 2025Mafia: The Old Country has a great story to tell. As it unfolds, it captivates you with the breathtaking beauty of Sicily, never breaking its cinematic flow and staying true to its course. In these days when we long for linear games, it shines like a sun rising over Messina.
-
Aug 8, 2025Hangar 13 delivers a visually stunning and narratively engaging return to the series’ roots, with a well-crafted story set in early 20th-century Sicily, realistic combat, and immersive atmosphere, though its small, constrained open world, basic stealth, and occasional technical hiccups limit its ambition.
-
Aug 7, 2025Although lacking replay value, The Old Country is well worth your time thanks to its storytelling chops, decent gameplay and excellent production values.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: Terra Madre stands out as a mature and necessary work of interactive storytelling—one that goes beyond entertainment to become a powerful tool for critical reflection. It's an experience that unsettles, engages, and, above all, provokes thought: because to understand the mafia is to confront the deep-rooted forces that sustain it—and this game does so with rare courage and clarity.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: Terra Madre is a compact work, a rarity these days, that makes storytelling its main strength. It's not a revolutionary video game, nor does it claim to be, but it manages to leave its mark despite the flaws of overly formulaic gameplay. The rendering of early twentieth-century Sicily is excellent, thanks to appreciable aesthetic and stylistic research and the presence of full Sicilian dubbing. It's a shame there are a few too many technical issues, which I hope will be resolved as soon as possible.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is a solid entry that takes the franchise to 1900s Sicily to explore the origins of the mafia. It stands out for its emotional and believable narrative, as well as its well-crafted historical setting. Moreover, the story doesn’t overshadow the gameplay, which is varied and thoughtfully designed.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country plays like a memorable mob movie set in early 1900s Sicily, making for one of the better singleplayer experiences in 2025 so far. While the ride may end too quickly for some, this entertaining tale is just as long as it needs to be to deliver a very solid game.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is a conventional but effective return to the linear and tightly story-driven format of the original Mafia and Mafia II, and it boasts a wonderful eye and ear for detail.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia returns with a new classic, story-driven action-adventure. It's a dense and classic take on the series' beginnings and the origins of the mafia. The realistic graphics and authentic sound design bring Sicily to life, making you want to visit the island yourself.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country feels like an old film reel finally unearthed after years in the dark. If all you're looking for is an immersive story about family, faith, and love set in the birthplace of the Mafia, it offers a uniquely resonant experience.
-
Aug 7, 2025The Old Country is definitely old school, but I would never call it stale. It's sheer genre purism: familiar mafia tropes, no experiments - and that's exactly why, fans of classic Cosa Nostra material will immediately feel at home. If you'd rather treat yourself to Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather for the twentieth time than give Barry Levinson's The Alto Knights a chance, you've come to the right place.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is a return to the roots, banking on a strong narrative, believable characters, and the breathtaking atmosphere of Sicily. While the core gameplay doesn’t break new ground and the action sequences occasionally lose momentum, its audiovisual execution, cinematic flair, and storytelling focus make it a standout experience. A solid gangster tale you shouldn’t miss.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country doesn’t stand out for its campaign length, which could have been a bit longer. Still, in its 12-hour runtime, it offers a solid story and charismatic characters that will please fans of mafia-themed stories, even if the plot itself isn't particularly surprising.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is a solid return to the series’ roots. Despite a few minor flaws, it delivers an engaging story that’s well worth experiencing. The game also packs in plenty of fan-service moments that longtime Mafia fans will definitely appreciate.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: Terra Madre doesn't aim for technical perfection or expansive freedom, but delivers a deeply rooted, emotionally charged narrative. It’s a story about survival, legacy, and the cost of loyalty — told through the eyes of a young man seeking redemption in a world built on silence and blood. Hangar 13 crafts a compact yet powerful experience that blends historical accuracy with narrative weight. It may be short in length, but it leaves a lasting mark through its strong direction, emotional pacing, and unwavering commitment to its vision.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is not trying to be a GTA clone, but instead sets a smaller scale and focuses fully on what is most important to the series. An atmospheric, dark and tight story set in a memorable location, together with solid gameplay mechanics and fluid performance, is exactly what the series needed to get back on track.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia returns more beautiful, more cinematic, and more linear than ever, but still suffers from bugs and a structure that loses some of its flavor as the game progresses.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country looks backward, both in its setting and design ethos. Combining gorgeous visuals, strong character work, and scrappy action set pieces, the outcome is a confident, understated crime game that does exactly what it's supposed to.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country returns to the series' roots with a more linear adventure, delivering a solid story (if a cliché-heavy one) and satisfying combat. The character models and environments are stunning to look at, but the latter raises our main issue: as much as we appreciate the focus on a linear story, this wonderfully sculpted Sicily map is begging to be explored more and is sorely underused as a result.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country aims squarely at being a narrative experience, and largely succeeds in that while also providing solid gameplay. It is a bit of a shame that we don't get to truly explore Sicily in this game, but if you're into Mafia narratives, this is among the best you can find in games, and the entry price isn't that high either.
-
Aug 7, 2025Hangar 13 didn't reinvent the wheel with Mafia: The Old Country. Instead it goes back to the roots of the franchise and of the mafia, with a cinematic adventure in Sicily. The story and gameplay all feel familiar, but the execution is strong, partly due to the strong cast and memorable characters. The game does suffer from some glitches, but that doesn't ruin the fun. The Old Country feels like an 11-hour long mobster movie, with excellent pacing.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country successfully returns to the series' roots and tells a great story without any major surprises.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country feels like a return to the original Mafia titles, and that’s exactly what I was hoping for. A linear experience with excellent presentation, exceptional acting, and a solid story. Unfortunately, the combat and stealth are mediocre, but sufficient to keep the story moving. Fans of the series will definitely enjoy it. With the relatively low entry price, I hope potential fans will be tempted — and that this won’t be the last we see of the Mafia franchise.
-
Aug 19, 2025A traditional third-person cinematic shooter that combines an immersive story and beautiful cutscenes with rather average gameplay. Even so, it still won me over.
-
Aug 13, 2025Mafia: Old Country captures the spirit of the series, offering a decent storyline that immerses you in its narrative rather than keeping you occupied with time-wasting activities like opening towers or assassinating hundreds of NPCs. While it has some great ideas, the execution generally falls between average and good. It’s definitely not a bad game, but it’s not as amazing as a Mafia game should be.
-
Aug 12, 2025Mafia: The Old Country suffers from the same problems as its predecessors. It's halfway between a narrative game and an open-world action-stealth game, but without the means to achieve its ambitions. We end up with uninteresting stealth sequences and implausible combat that undermines the credibility of the story. The world map serves only as a tourist attraction devoid of any activity. It's a shame, since the plot and characters are interesting, even if they don't escape the clichés typical of the genre. Nevertheless, it remains a beautiful glimpse into Sicilian society at the beginning of the last century, with high-quality production values.
-
Aug 7, 2025The risks within this industry are being calculated more carefully than ever. Major publishers are simply no longer willing to lose millions of dollars in favor of innovation, which, of course, will have a significant impact when it comes to creativity and proposition, terms that will likely become exclusive to the indie scene. Proof of all this are games like Mafia: The Old Country, which was created to be commercially successful rather than to propel the series it belongs to toward greater and better things. 2K Games and Hangar 13 laid out a checklist of what could cause them problems and what was sure to fall flat, resulting in a game that overall feels good, but which I feel will be completely forgotten in a very short period of time.
-
Aug 7, 2025A fascinating voyage in 1900 Sicily, marred by a very formulaic story that can be guessed almost from the very start. Some gameplay elements are quite bizarre too, such as giving the player the option to buy and customize equipment, and then giving default guns in more or less half the fights. A shame.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is neither a grand coup nor a misstep. It's a return to its roots, understated and controlled, choosing linearity to better tell a story of men, blood, and loyalty. Enzo Favara's rise within the nascent mafia lays the foundations for a dense, intelligently written story, driven by elegant artistic direction. But this narrative ambition sometimes comes up against overly tame execution. The lack of boldness in the level design and sound prevents the game from truly taking off, from taking the epic leap it deserves. We sense the attention to detail, the rigor of the staging, but also a certain restraint where it should have been more daring. Mafia: The Old Country is a good vintage, a classic but polished mafia tale, which will delight fans of strong storytelling and old-school games. However, it lacks that spark that would have made it legendary.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: Terra Madre is a clear return to the roots of the series, crafted by the skilled and inventive hands of the team at Hangar 13. It’s a linear action-adventure, built on open-world foundations that aim to strike the best possible balance in every aspect of its gameplay and technical performance. There's nothing truly innovative in its mechanics, nor anything particularly original in its mafia story, which leans heavily on cinematic overtones and is enriched by the classic clichés of the genre. That said, there’s no doubt the full package works: it offers exactly what one would expect from a production of this type, especially when you consider its production values and, most of all, the price it's being sold at. You run, you shoot, you hide, and you experience a solid, parabolic tale of a poor miner who climbs the ranks of a Cosa Nostra family over a dozen intense, enjoyable, and ultimately fun hours—even if never truly memorable.
-
Aug 7, 2025I'm convinced that when evaluating a game, as with any other piece of entertainment, we should first consider the goals the developers set for themselves during the development process. It's obvious that Hangar 13 spent most of its creative and financial energy on the historical/cultural reconstruction of early twentieth-century Sicily, with praiseworthy results. That period, that place, those traditions, that language: Mafia Terra Madre is a unique experience, and for that alone it should be recognized. The gameplay component, unfortunately, has received a more cursory treatment, largely similar to that of Mafia Definitive Edition in terms of action sequences and the uncertainties of the artificial intelligence. Fortunately, a game is such a multi-layered product that it can't be evaluated "by the pound." What you see below is a number that, in my opinion, serves as a midpoint between a high-quality production and somewhat outdated gameplay, not fully refined. Everyone is obviously free to rate Mafia Terra Madre up or down based on what they want to find within the adventure. As long as they're aware of it being an honorable undertaking.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country offers a remarkable narrative and atmospheric mob drama, hampered by uneven technical skills. While its gameplay is a bit simplistic, it should satisfy those looking for a straightforward, fast-paced, and enjoyable game.
-
Aug 13, 2025Mafia: Old Country delivers a richly cinematic narrative set in early 1900s Sicily, blending mafia intrigue with a tragic love story and stunning Unreal Engine 5 visuals. While its historical setting and film-like presentation are captivating, the gameplay remains linear and lacks depth, offering limited freedom and post-game content.
-
Edge MagazineSep 4, 2025If you can forgive those insecurities, perhaps the result of trying to balance a mainstream genre game with more experimental narrative ambitions, The Old Country has an enormous amount of heart. [Issue#415, p.88]
-
Aug 22, 2025Mafia: The Old Country isn’t just another game about the mafia—it’s a full-fledged journey into a cultural layer of history and cinema, filled with references to The Godfather and similar classics that seamlessly blend into the story and atmosphere. The game isn’t perfect, but it’s stylish, focused, and cinematic. If you’ve been missing that very kind of 12–14 hour “film-like” experience, enjoy such narratives, and don’t mind a few technical rough edges, this one is worth picking up—titles like this are a rarity nowadays.
-
Aug 20, 2025Mafia The Old Country was meant to revive the franchise after the failure of Mafia 3. Its strengths lie in a gripping story, charismatic characters, and a beautifully realized Sicilian setting. The cinematic presentation and soundtrack add real flair. But the gameplay falls flat: gunfights lack punch, stealth feels dated, knife duels repeat themselves, and stiff animations break immersion. The game also over-assists the player, undermining its own realism. In the end, it’s a visually stunning but mechanically outdated entry, worth it for the story but disappointing for anyone seeking engaging gameplay.
-
Aug 20, 2025Mafia: The Old Country isn’t a bad game, and it shines in its artistic and graphical aspects. At times, it reaches photorealism and captivates with its cinematic approach—its lighting, camera work, landscapes, music, and historical setting are all top-notch. However, on the narrative and gameplay front, it shows inconsistencies that prevent it from fully taking off. Even so, if you’re a fan of mafia stories, this is definitely something you’ll want to play.
-
Aug 12, 2025A mafia adventure that is often rather mediocre in gameplay terms, but is still entertaining with charismatic characters and a competent, if hardly surprising, story.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country isn't a AAA title, so it should be judged by slightly different standards - but still, more was expected from Hangar 13. Sure, the first and second Mafia games didn’t have outstanding gameplay either, but they made up for it with atmosphere, charismatic characters, sharp dialogue, and the chemistry between the protagonists - especially Vito and Joe. That’s what helped players overlook the gameplay flaws. The Old Country, unfortunately, lacks that spark. That said, it’s still worth playing - if only for the stunning vistas, impressive world design, and well-directed cutscenes.
-
Aug 7, 2025Some small annoyances aside, Mafia: The Old Country is a great entry to the long-running series, and it’s done a fine job at adapting the formula to a brand new historical context. It does run the risk of alienating long-time fans, as the jump back in time makes it quite an adjustment. However, if you just let it tell the story it wants to, you’ll find it can match the quality you've come to expect from this series.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia the Old Country is an enjoyable cinematic game with great characters and story, but gameplay feels to as old as the Old Country.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country tells a superb story with a colorful cast of mafiosos. Even though the plot is classic, we can’t help but get drawn in, as the atmosphere is perfectly set and the Sicilian scenery is sublime. The immersion is such that we’re even willing to forgive gameplay which, without being fundamentally bad, remains stuck two decades in the past in its design and archaic AI. Even if we can still feel that the game is aimed at an already convinced audience of the franchise, it remains a very pleasant narrative experience.
-
Aug 11, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is the textbook definition of fine, which is a shame because the first game was such a stark contrast to anything that had come out at the time and had so many unique ideas. For this sequel to come out and do little else than push the boundaries of visual hardware is genuinely disappointing. Like I said, the story is definitely worth experiencing, but the game isn’t going to be remembered.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is narrative-driven, short, and linear. That was exactly what I needed at the time, and it’s nice that the atmosphere, setting, and story are up to the standard you expect from a Mafia game. Unfortunately, the shooting mechanics are mediocre and become very repetitive in the end. Fighting, racing, and sneaking are rarely genuinely enjoyable either. At times, I really enjoyed this game, but I was just as often bored.
-
Nov 17, 2025Mafia: The Old Country fails to engage in any way. Even if you love knives. This is a 10-15 hour linear action with a predictable storyline that is incredibly boring.
-
Sep 9, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is an ambitious action-adventure game that portrays the Sicilian Mafia of the early 20th Century through a realistic lens. However, its excessive fixation on realism results in tedious gameplay and a story that lacks excitement, ultimately alienating a broader audience. As a consequence, the game will likely only resonate with a niche group of players who have a strong interest in the lives of the Mafia at that time.
-
Aug 19, 2025Sitting somewhere between the gritty world of Red Dead Redemption 2 and the grounded adventure of Indiana Jones And The Great Circle, Mafia: The Old Country is a focused crime drama that plays out like a slick HBO miniseries. Stealth and combat do start to get repetitive as you delve deeper into the Italian underworld but a twisting story and a truly gorgeous setting will keep you coming back for more.
-
Aug 16, 2025Mafia The Old Country paints an evocative 1902 Sicily with stellar art direction, strong performances, and competent cover shooting. Frequent performance drops, constrained mission design despite a broad map, dated stealth, and repetitive knife encounters erode the momentum, and a finale that fails to deliver undercuts the narrative. A beautiful, ambitious entry that too often frustrates, worth it for the setting, better at a discount.
-
Aug 15, 2025It’s hard to make the case that its knife fights and shootouts are anything more than functional, and its missions feel slightly too straightforward to befit a franchise once known for its sublime changes of pace. But even with those caveats in mind, it’s still absolutely worth playing for the richness of its setting, and the infectious enthusiasm it has for its grim subject matter.
-
Aug 12, 20252K did the right thing by launching it at a relatively budget price, and the release date means there’s little for it to compete with so I’m sure it’ll do well. Still, there’s something here. It’s a solid B game. It’ll keep you pushing through for its short runtime and then you’ll turn it off and you’ll fuhgeddaboudit pretty quickly.
-
Aug 11, 2025Mafia: The Old Country offers a compelling mob story, complete with great voice acting and beautiful cinematics, that’s undermined by some bizarre mechanics. Shoddy stealth segments, familiar set-pieces, and vanishingly few opportunities to explore its stunning world make for an entry that’s far from the worst in the series, but falls short of the best.
-
Aug 8, 2025In spite of all of this, I have enjoyed my time with Mafia: The Old Country. In an age of open-world games with a billion things to do, it’s nice to be guided along a handcrafted linear story. I just so desperately wish the gameplay better held a candle to the direction and cinematic flair of the cutscenes, whose luxurious quality and intimacy are the real standout of the show.
-
Aug 7, 2025What matters in short games like Mafia The Old Country are memorable scenes, plot twists, and good ideas. There has to be something that sticks in your memory. In this case, what we'll remember is the unusual setting, some endearing characters, and the last third, which may be a little all over the place, but which shows us that Hanger 13 has resources and knows how to keep us on the edge of our seats with palpable narrative tension that grabs you by the gut and fast-paced gameplay. So why isn't this the case for the whole game? Mafia The Old Country isn't bad, it's good but just too conventional to stand out and will struggle to be remembered, unlike its predecessors. Nevertheless, it remains a very cinematic experience that will undoubtedly delight fans of the series.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is at its best when things slow down, letting you take in all the sights and sounds of Sicily. Like previous Mafia games, it nails the look and feel of its real-world counterpart by investing heavily in the details. Unfortunately, generic gameplay and dated mission design hold Mafia: The Old Country back, making it feel like a relic of the early 2010s.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is a game at war with itself. None of the pieces it puts down fit together to form a unified picture. It lacks any standout gameplay system to build around, nor a strong character with clear motivations to give the game a distinct identity. It is a game that feels torn between multiple different directions, with the only piece left unscathed being the strong performances, an authentic historical setting, and the writing of the supporting cast. However, that can't hold up a barebones gameplay experience and narrative hook that takes way too long to take hold. This is one offer you can safely refuse.
-
Aug 7, 2025Though it’s a beautiful game, with an excellent Sicilian dub to boot, [Mafia: The Old Country] unfortunately leaves a lot on the Don’s table, failing to rise to the promise of its premise.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country is a perfectly decent action game. It's clear that the ambition was to offer some kind of hybrid between linear and open world gameplay. The developers wanted to tighten up the experience to make it engaging, well-directed, and grandiose, but even though I personally worship open worlds, I would have preferred to see them lean even more towards streamlining this. In an action game of this kind, which is also quite short, I simply think that there should have been more variety and a significantly higher tempo to make it feel more engaging in the end.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country plays it regrettably safe, while still delivering a serviceable crime story prequel.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia: The Old Country isn't a bad game, just a tepid one. Its gameplay is flaccid and restrictive, its narrative is dull and predictable, and its world has no more charm or presence than an Unreal Engine tech demo. It nails the bare minimum, but a game like this, from a franchise as beloved as Mafia, should have gone beyond that.
-
Aug 7, 2025Mafia The Old Country, visually, is a stunning success. Unfortunately… gameplay is best described as mediocre; serviceable, if not particularly enjoyable. Its story is a tragedy -- dull, linear, and so full of tropes that nothing feels new or fresh. Characters are flat cliches, generic representations of genre stereotypes, and nothing more.
-
Aug 12, 2025A decent but cliched mob story and bland, frustrating gameplay make this the weakest Mafia yet.
| This publication does not provide a score for their reviews. | |
| This publication has not posted a final review score yet. | |
| These unscored reviews do not factor into the Metascore calculation. | |
-
Aug 7, 2025I would have liked to see Mafia: The Old Country give me more to sink my teeth into. This is not about length, which comes in at around 12–15 hours to complete, but more about having some meat on the bone. If it's about giving me a cinematic drama to play before me, then really give it to me instead of a very typical love story up until the last hour or so. My hopes were high for Mafia: The Old Country, and the game didn't satisfy.
-
Aug 7, 2025The Old Country impresses with its classic mafia drama, but remains in the shadow of the original.
-
Aug 7, 2025It’s not just about the mafia, nor is it about Italy in the early 1900s. Mafia: The Old Country is a sobering reminder that tough times still create a breeding ground for exploitation today, just as they did in Sicily. When the money is tight and our backs are against the walls, our options narrow as survival becomes a necessity. There are plenty of ways that we end up carrying out someone else’s dirty work that don’t involve pulling a trigger at a don’s behest. The Old Country doesn’t expect you to agree with Enzo’s choices, but it does ask you to understand the societal forces that drove him to them.
-
Aug 13, 2025I respect Hangar 13 for not feeling like they had to join in today’s arms race of ever-balooning open world/action things and sticking to their stated principles in doing so. Though, I think the manner in which they’ve executed that vision has its eyes too firmly glued to the rear view mirror. This isn't a game that pulls the best bits from how things were done back in the day and melds that with positive innovations developed since that point to create a middle ground that could represent a better way forwards. The Old Country feels stuck in the past.