Sicily in 1904 as if we were there … or almost
We thought the license in deep sleep, buried somewhere under the rubble of the third opus. And yet, Hangar 13 comes back with a master stroke: Mafia: The Old Country. Direction Sicily in 1904, where it all started. Burning sun, sulfur smell and lemon trees under mafia control … Set comfortably, We have a pack of things to say.
The artistic direction did not look for technical escalation.
Let’s talk about the point that leaps them from the first seconds, the visual part! Let’s not turn around the pot, yes, Mafia: The Old Country plays in the court of beautiful narrative games. Sicily of 1904 is recreated with manic care; Arid hills, villages with walls bleached by the sun, lemon fields as far as the eye can see, mines of suffocating sulfur … Each decor breathes authenticity. The work on light is particularly stunning. The rays of the sun filtering between the branches, the shadows carried on the facades, or the orange sunsets on the roofs of the houses give each plane an almost pictorial cachet. The artistic direction did not look for technical escalation, but rather an aesthetic coherence which strengthens immersion.
The characters, themselves, have a very special care. The faces are quite expressive, with looks that tell as much as the dialogues. So certainly, Modeling may not reach the absolute heights of certain AAA productionsbut the overall rendering is much above the average. The outfits, faithful at the time, are teeming with details. Nothing is left to chance. In kinematics, The staging takes full advantage of these visual qualitieswith tight plans that magnify the emotions of the protagonists.
However, everything is not flawless. LE animations sometimes accuse the weight of years. But still? Some movements are a little stiff, and Transitions between two actions may lack fluidity. We feel that the game engine has its limits, especially in the exploration phases or during close combat. Small technical imperfections are not uncommon. As ? And PNJ which teleports slightly, an element of the decor which flashesor this famous post which crosses the hand of a character; A little reminder that even the mafia is no exception to bugs.
The visual effects are also uneven. If the explosions and shots are convincing, some impacts on the sets seem a little dated. Blood, for example, lacks realism and variety in its effects. In addition, if the whole remains very beautiful, some secondary textures suffer from a lack of finesse, especially on certain walls or interactive objects. Nothing dramatic, but these details necessarily come out in the face of the overall beauty of the environments. Damage…
The fact remains that, overall, Mafia: The Old Country shines more than it strokes. The artistic direction transcends the technical limits, and the restitution of Sicily of the period is so successful that it makes you want to get lost … Even without open world To wander freely. It is a game that is so enjoyed as much for its visual atmosphere as for its historyand which recalls that a credible and coherent decor is sometimes better than a gigantic but empty of soul.
