Mafia turned 20 years old this week. That’s a fact that makes me feel quite old. An interview with the developers was recently posted by 2K, going over memories of the early open-world games, the challenges and triumphs that came from their creation, and most exciting of all; the promise of a brand new entry in the Mafia series.
The 20th-anniversary interview was posted on Mafia’s official website and sees the developers take a stroll down memory lane. They discuss their entry points in the series and their own personal highs and lows of development, and what it meant to be given the opportunity to remake the original release.
Former art director, now studio head, Roman Hladík explains the technical aspect of the remake: “On the original Mafia, there were a lot of technical limitations; for example, the draw distance was only a couple hundred meters, so you never got to see grandiose views of the city. With Mafia: Definitive Edition, we had this amazing opportunity to enhance the vision of the first game—suddenly we could create scenic vistas and better express the atmosphere of 1930s cities.”
If you’re a fan of the series, or just gaming history in general, the entire interview is well worth a read, with maybe the most exciting news coming in the very last paragraph:
“I’m happy to confirm we’ve started work on an all-new Mafia project! While it’s a few years away and we can’t share anything more right now, we’re really excited to keep working on this beloved franchise and to entertain our players with new stories.”
In case you missed it, and while you wait for more information on the newest entry into the series, Mafia will be free on Steam to celebrate its anniversary, so pick that up and transport yourself back 20 years. If you already own Mafia, there’s a really neat mod in development that looks to recreate the Titanic. It’s most definitely a work in progress at the moment, but it’s also most definitely worth a look.
