Striking instead of systemic
Today I would not sign everything that I have in our Test on Mafia 2 have noted. Nevertheless, the gangster epic in Empire Bay is still among the best of its kind! Because apart from his own predecessor, no other game puts you in such an atmospheric, open world without using it as a job approach. There are hardly any activities that you can do away from the common thread – which is a shame, but also ensures that you experience a straightforward adventure in a nevertheless credible setting. Credible because the scenario does not change all the time and you can even see in detail how the city is changing. Vito’s career from simple crook to powerful crook lasts from the 1940s to the early 1950s.
A lot is tailored to the current order: you watch passersby in a fight and are on missions that not only consist of driving there and shooting, but also sneaking in, meeting informants, chases and many other situations that are more unique here Moments in a film are reminiscent of systemic open-world action.
The new edition also includes all game extensions on all platforms.
–And speaking of the numerous film scenes, you can see their age, of course, mainly because of the animations that are stiff according to current masts. The screenplay (a bit too much copied from its cinematic role models) and a production that focuses on many little things, including The characters, whose interaction with their environment, camera work and blocking are important, still serve as role models today. When playing, on the other hand, it is noticeable that figures lock their apartment doors instead of just sprinting through them, or that you can crack cars with a lock pick instead of simply smashing the window pane – these are all details that give Mafia 2 a striking life of its own.
Consistently modern?
At its core, Empire Bay is still a lively setting.
-Driving around in one of the numerous cars still feels good, especially with the “Simulation” setting, and of course doesn’t have much in common with an actual simulation. However, the cover shooter is rather badly aged and shooting is common. In any case, the rather mundane shooting is not a highlight, especially since you would like to be able to adjust the control more to modern requirements. Instead, Vito or his weapons feel too light at the latest when playing with a gamepad and the recoil feels oddly arbitrary. Last but not least, I wished that the camera would not return to its starting position so quickly when driving; the leisurely look around without automatic resetting should at least be adjustable. On a PC, you can only change the sensitivity of the mouse, but not that of the analog stick.
Old vs new
If only it were these oversights … free. But unfortunately the “spa” is just beginning there. Depending on which platform you are on, you may experience technical problems, some of which washed, and where you seriously wonder how such a faulty game could ever be published. After all, the remaster got additional effects such as volumetric light and fog as well as higher-resolution textures and additional details on roads and paths, with which Empire Bay appears a little more plastic. The faces have also been redesigned, which makes them look more natural.
I use “An Idea” and “Something” consciously, because when I play the PC version at that time I hardly notice that I have a relatively old game in front of me. Only in a direct comparison do the rather cautious innovations emerge clearly. This only applies to the comparison of the PC version with the Definitive Edition; the difference between Xbox 360 and Xbox One or PS3 and PS4 is a lot bigger.
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