Mafia: The Old Country Review – Sharp Combat, Weak Story, Stunning World

Mafia: The Old Country sends the long-running series back to the beginning — to the heart of 1900s Sicily. The latest addition, from the developer Hangar 13 and the publisher 2K, reimagines the origin of organized crime in Delta City from Enzo Favara’s perspective as a young man who is struggling to establish himself within the Torrisi crime family.

The game, released in August 2025, has had more than a month to impress players — and the response has been mixed. While it has its supporters who commend its atmosphere, visuals and performances, others criticize the storytelling and pacing as a regression for the franchise.

A Gritty Look at the Birth of the Mafia

Against the brutal Mafia scenes of early 20th century Sicily, The Old Country takes us down a dark path were loyalty and honour are the only way of life, violence dominates, success comes at a bloody price. Enzo’s story — from a laborer in search of freedom to one trapped by the Mafia’s code — becomes the emotional center of the tale.

The tone of the game draws far more from the first Mafia than any entry since, bringing players grounded drama and heavy moral choices. Its cinematographic direction and realistic stage design make you feel like your are part of a historical epic – costumes, buildings and weapons are true to the period.

And yet, strong as its foundation is, the story falters when it comes to originality. It is often described by players as predictable, following a familiar set of Mafia tropes. Allusions to earlier entries provide nostalgia, but they are seldom surprising. It’s a tale you can see coming from miles, competent, at times emotional but never especially gripping.

Combat That Feels Brutal and Satisfying

f the tale falters, the combat is where Mafia: The Old Country finds its rhythm. The combination of intimate knife duels and traditional third-person gunplay reflects the raw and unforgiving nature of 19th century combat.

Players have the option to take down their targets quietly with a knife, to storm the location in a hail of bullets or even to kill properties owners with a lupara shotgun and knock teeth out of threats before they die. All the battles feel hefty and personal, even if the mechanics can be a bit crude.

That said, it begins to wear thin; knife fights appear in nearly every chapter, and though they are cool at the get-go, then become deadweight on the pacing of the story. Certain missions impose linear stealth paths that are more constricting than anything else. It’s cinematic, all right — but sometimes at the expense of fun.

A Sicily Worth Exploring

Where Mafia: The Old Country really stands out is in its world-building. What Hangar 13 has put together in simulating Sicily’s varied and multi-layered landscapes that include decaying ruins, catacombs, bustling town centres, sprawling countryside and so forth is nothing short of impressive.

The environmental detail is breathtaking. Riding horseback through a vineyard, or between narrow cobblestone alleys in an early motorcar, the game feels grounded in a sense of time and place. The lights, the architecture, even the climate effects help create one of the most atmospheric environments the series has ever seen.

Most tend to agree on the game's visuals and atmosphere, with quite a few of them claiming it's the best looking Mafia to date. Even the critics who didn’t care for the story can at least agree that the world design is inspired.

Sound Design and Voice Acting

The sound design on Mafia: The Old Country is up there with the best of modern narrative games. Everything, from the lugubrious orchestral score to the pitch-perfect regionally specific accents, contributes to a sense of authenticity.

Voice acting gives the characters true weight, too; particularly Enzo, Don Torrisi and secondary player Luca and Isabella. The music walks a fine line between tension and melancholy, at times layering on extra pathos without overplaying its hand.

In short: The game sounds as good as it looks.

Performance and System Requirements

Minimum:

• OS: Windows 10 (64-bit)
• CPU: Intel Core i5-9600K / AMD Ryzen 5 3600
• RAM: 16 GB
• GPU: NVIDIA GTX 1660 Ti / AMD RX 5600 XT
• Storage: 70 GB SSD

Recommended:

• OS: Windows 11 (64-bit)
• CPU: Intel Core i7-12700K / AMD Ryzen 7 5800X
• RAM: 32 GB
• GPU: NVIDIA RTX 4070 / AMD RX 7900 XT
• Storage: 70 GB SSD

Mixed Reception from Players

More than a month after release, Mafia: The Old Country has Mixed recent reviews and Mostly Positive overall on Steam.

What Players Liked:

• Gorgeous visuals and authentic atmosphere
• Great soundtrack and voice acting as well
• Engaging combat and cinematic presentation

What Players Criticized:

• Predictable, cliché-heavy story
• Repeated combat and missions dominated by knife duels
• Noticeable performance issues
• Not a lot of playtime for the price ($49.99 US)

Some of the exact feedbacks of players:

“This isn’t about a bad game — it’s an O.K. one. You play it once, you experience the world, and then you’re on to what’s next.”

8/10, REALLY good story, beautiful graphics & I even like the gun play etc. It does have a couple of problems & bugs which I am sure they will resolve. Apart from that, thoroughly enjoyed it. Well, definitely better than mine Mafia 3.

The story was great, but there were only too few pages. I managed to beat the game w/ 60% achievements within a day. With my 19 hours "played" a lot of it was sitting in pause while doing housework. This game is not worth $50.

Graphic are nice

Story was ok.

The game is totally devoid,

Gunplay is boring.

Armament is very limited.

-Not really sure why they let you even buy cars and horses.

Some mechanics are taught and then abandoned.

Zero replayability.

Final Thoughts

Mafia: The Old Country is a contradictory game — beautiful yet safe, rich in emotion but mechanically rocky. It’s a back-to-series-basics storytelling approach, though one that occasionally seems to be tripping over its own sense of nostalgia.

For longtime fans, it’s a nostalgic return to the world of honor, blood and betrayal that made Mafia so iconic. For the newbies, it’s a gorgeous but flawed entry point into the saga.

Final Shot: 7.5/10 – With intense combat and stunning visuals, this somewhat formulaic crime drama is carried on those merits alone.