Mafia 3 Reviews
The game won't appeal to everyone, particularly those without the patience to slog through its repetitive missions. But a fantastic story, and a refreshingly unique approach to telling that tale, ensure Mafia 3 will have imitators for years to come.
With a fantastic story at its centre, it's such a shame the open world is quiet and unappealing, and the control system struggles in hostile environments.
Mafia III is the type of game that fuels arguments about the lack of artistry and innovation found in today's AAA titles. It's plenty competent, with lots of content and functional game mechanics, but it's safe and repetitive and often feels like it's just going through the motions.
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.
I felt like I was playing Grand Theft Auto III. If I were rating the story and acting, I would put it at a 95 out of 100. But with all of the bugs and flaws in the gameplay, I am rating the entire package at 75 out of 100. I hope my feedback will be useful as a reminder to developers that six months more work on a game can pay off with huge dividends in quality. But I also believe some of the problems here would be very hard to fix with simple updates.
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.
Repetitive, bland, broken, and disappointing. It's so difficult to recommend this game to anybody, even to fans of the previous games. The game feels more like a poor attempt at the first entry in a new open-world series rather than the third main entry in a series that has now been around for 14 years.
I had high hopes for Mafia 3. It was one of my most anticipated games for the rest of 2016, and I'd by lying to you if I said I wasn't slightly disappointed. Certain aspects of the game are still rather enjoyable, especially the storytelling and the way the game is presented to the player. But I'm not sure if that's enough.
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.
Mafia 3 is the definition of a mixed bag. At times it is a great experience with a compelling story, interesting characters and an exciting world to discover. But after a few hours the game falls into a repetitive grind with the same type of mission over and over again. It is still an okay game, but it could have been so much more.
Review in Swedish | Read full review
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 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
franchise from the hands of its original developer and then gave it to a rookie studio with only 22 months to complete, is The result of wrong policies and not listening to the complaints of the fans is something like Mafia 3, an unpleasant and incomplete game with the only purpose of filling its creators pockets with money and wasting our precious tim
Review in Persian | Read full review
Mafia 3 is an unfortunate reminder that a game can truly excel in one area and still wind up disappointing. With confident storytelling and consistently fantastic performances, Mafia 3 effortlessly establishes a narrative that has you engaged from the get-go. Sadly, it's the ho-hum mission design and various technical oddities that will drag you out of the world time and time again.
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.
By weaving history and a biracial lead, Hangar 13 succeeds in delivering a compelling narrative with set pieces that resonate as one of the best this year.
A game of inspired highs diluted with pedestrian lows. Worthy, but achieves less than its true potential.
Mafia III is a game with a great plot, great characters, and great setting, but it's hamstrung by the repetitive nature of its mission structure. Having to go through the same tasks in each territory means a sense of fatigue enters quickly, and there isn't much in the way of distractions within New Bordeaux to break things up. The pieces of a great game are all here, but they just don't quite fit together.
Mafia 3 attempts to do great things with its writing, but the gameplay can't keep up
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.