‘Mafia: The Old Country’ is “classic” addition to the beloved series, say reviews

Mafia: The Old Country is out today (August 8) and, according to reviewers, it’s a “classic” addition to the beloved series.

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The original Mafia game was released in 2002 and praised for its complex narrative and realism. Set in the 1930s, the story follows taxi driver Tommy Angelo and his journey through the criminal underworld of fictional U.S. city, Lost Heaven. A sequel followed in 2010 with Mafia 3 released in 2016.

Developers Hangar 13 remastered the original Mafia game in 2020 and today, the studio has released Mafia: The Old Country. A prequel that allows players to “uncover the origins of organised crime”, Mafia: The Old Country is “a gritty mob story set in the brutal underworld of 1900s Sicily. Fight to survive as Enzo Favara and prove your worth to the Family in this immersive third-person action-adventure,” continues the game’s description.

Mafia: The Old Country is out now for Xbox, PlayStation, PC and has a “generally favourable” review score from aggregate site Metacritic.

“Sure, 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,” reads the Gaming Nexus review. 

“Mafia: 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,” say PCGamesN in their four-star review. 

 However other players have criticised the length of the game. Mafia: The Old Country’s main narrative should take between 12 and 15 hours to complete, with not much else to explore beyond that. “ 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,” wrote VGC.

Thank you from @Hangar13Games #MafiaTheOldCountry pic.twitter.com/4JdF76q3rI

— Mafia Game (@mafiagame) August 7, 2025

“We believe there’s still a meaningful place for cinematic, narrative-driven experiences in our industry. Mafia: The Old Country represents a bold and intentional return to the franchise’s roots. It’s a linear, cinematic experience driven by character and story. It’s a mob movie you can step into and play out. And at £44.99 we really don’t think there’s a better deal out there,” said a statement from Hangar13 shortly before the game launched. 

“Glad to see this game mostly reviewing strongly. I think Hangar 13 are a prime example of why it bums me out so much that a studio is just killed the minute they launch a disappointing game. Giving them the chance to grow and learn from those mistakes can result in something truly special, and I really hope this is a success so Hanger 13 can keep growing,” one fan wrote.

“Seems to be comparable to the Mafia 1 remake which is good because I really enjoyed that game so I’ll probably enjoy this one,” added another. 

In other news, it looks like Hollow Knight: Silksong will definitely be released at some point in the next nine weeks after the launch date for the handheld Xbox ROG Ally was leaked.

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