Mafia 3 Reviews
Mafia 3 is the biggest disappointment of the year. It's a game with masses of potential, but unfortunately that potential is wasted on by-the-numbers open-world game design. [OpenCritic note: This review scores Mafia 3 at 2/5 stars. Because Kirk McKeand has already published other scored reviews for Mafia 3, the score has not been recorded]
Mafia 3 is a title that should be tried to the end to be appreciated. The story of Lincoln Clay is worth to be played, because too often the narrative plot is put aside in favor of high resolution textures and stunning special effects.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Mafia 3 will divide the audience; it's forced to live halfway between the technical problems and the excellence of a truly overwhelming narrative.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Mafia 3 is a great step forward for storytelling in games that is dragged down by its consistently unpolished and poorly executed mechanics.
Frigid racism, heated mob violence, and tepid gameplay make for an interesting, but fairly mediocre, entry in the Mafia series.
Mafia 3 is a game of real gravitas in terms of its story, which tackles some serious subject matter. However, the efforts and intentions of Hangar 13 here are let down by repetitive gameplay, a lack of side missions, and some embarrassing glitches that sadly leave the whole experience lacking.
Now I know why 2K decided to hold review copies of Mafia III until launch. The game -- which could've and should've been great, given the quality of those before it -- is a buggy, repetitive and downright boring mess. It saddens me to say it, but it's true.
In the end, my vengeance did little more than beget more pain in the city I made mine. Mafia III took me through a grand tale of loss and, in the end, after all of my macho escapades, I was left more empty, realizing no amount of killing could change what was done. For that reason, Mafia III is not a game to be missed by anyone.
There's a lot to like in Mafia III, the presentation is very impressive and the discussion of race is brought up appropriately. The story unfolds well and doesn't disappoint, but the mission structure brings about a host of disappointments. Missions rarely give the opportunity to let side characters develop, and the main story consists of doing the exact same objectives over and over until the credits roll. Unfortunately, Mafia III is as disappointing as it is impressive.
While it could have used some better side quests and maybe a bit more graphical polish, Mafia III's narratives is one of my favorites in 2016 so far.
Mafia 3 occasionally shows off the fantastic game it could've been, but most of the time, it just leaves you with an impression of - and a longing for - the game that it isn't.
An enthralling open-world crime drama tarnished only by a few largely inoffensive bugs, Mafia 3 succeeds in delivering an involving story with great shooting and stealth gameplay. Repetitive missions and a lack of polish mar the experience, but you'll still have a ton of fun playing Mafia 3.
I would say it's best to enjoy this game as a slow burn. It's presented as a documentary and I think it's best to be enjoyed as a documentary series where you take control of the action and play for a few hours here and there. The message that it has to say about blackness, revenge, and racial tension in America is a nice change of pace from the bloated landscape of other open-world games, and a vital one in 2016.
Mafia III is consistently inconsistent. An engrossing and mature narrative told between repetitive and boring missions, satisfying gun play against moronic AI enemies all taking place in a beautifully designed city that's ruined with shitty lighting effects.
Mafia III is a case study in why open world does not always make things better. What begins as something really tight and interesting quickly spirals away from that strong core and ultimately ends up as little more than yet another sandbox game this generation.
Mafia III's ambitions are large and its narrative vital, but ultimately this satisfying revenge yarn is hampered by dated mechanics and progression systems that belong in a 2007 GTA knock-off.
Hugely disappointing after such a strong start, Mafia III is too much of a grind to fall in love with.
It's a diamond in the rough, though, and this jankiness is a mild distraction at worst. The appeal of Mafia III is the stories it tells – both the textual narrative, and the multitude of emergent ones that come from simply existing in a place as rich and complex as New Bordeaux. It certainly has its flaws, but in balancing the over-the-top action of a crime game with a pointed look at real-life racism, and in its fantastic re-creation of the '60s American South, Mafia III has achieved something special.
Mafia III is an ambitious game that tackles serious, relevant themes. Unfortunately, it lacks technical polish, and the mechanics aren't much better than anything on the market, let alone offer anything new. Still, it's a good game that's worth your time for at least one serious play-through. Whether you replay it depends on how enthralled you are by the adventure and if you can tolerate the repetition.