There’s this very specific feeling I get when I play a Mafia game. It's the moment after a big, cinematic mission. The smoke has cleared, the dialogue has faded, and I'm left standing on a street corner in a city that is, for all intents and purposes, breathtakingly beautiful. I get in a classic car, the kind that feels like you’re steering a boat, turn on the radio, and just… drive. And for a few minutes, it’s magic. The rain on the cobblestones of Lost Heaven. The neon glow of Empire Bay. The humid, simmering tension of New Bordeaux.
But then, inevitably, the feeling fades. The magic trick is revealed. You realize you’re driving through the most gorgeous, detailed, and atmospheric movie set ever built. It’s a backdrop. A stunning one, mind you, but a backdrop nonetheless. The city is there to ferry you from story beat A to story beat B. And once the story’s over? The set is empty. The actors have gone home.
I’ve made my peace with that over the years. It’s the Mafia contract, right? We trade a living, breathing world for a tightly-scripted, character-driven narrative that few other series can touch. It's a trade I've happily made three times (and a remake). But Hangar 13 is apparently ready to tear up that contract. And I'm both thrilled and terrified.
The Sicilian Promise: Mafia: The Old Country Is Getting A Real Open-World Mode
Let's just get it out there. The news, the rumor that solidified into fact, is that the next game in the series, a prequel titled Mafia: The Old Country, is being built from the ground up to feature a proper, dynamic open world. Not just a city to drive through, but a world to live in.
And my first thought was: finally. My second thought was: oh, no.
Think about it. The very DNA of this series is its linearity. Tommy Angelo’s story was a guided tour of his tragic rise and fall. Vito Scaletta’s was a chapter-by-chapter descent into the life he thought he wanted. Lincoln Clay’s was a methodical, checklist-driven revenge quest across his city. The structure served the story. It kept the pacing tight and the focus squarely on the characters and their drama. It’s what separates Mafia from its more chaotic cousin, Grand Theft Auto.
But what if it doesn't have to be a trade-off anymore? What if we can have both? The developers at Hangar 13 are apparently aiming for just that. We're talking about a world—early 20th-century Sicily, the literal birthplace of the Cosa Nostra—that isn’t just reacting to your presence during a mission. It’s a world with its own routines, its own rival families conducting business, its own emergent opportunities for a young mafioso to make a name for himself. This isn't just a new feature; it's a fundamental reimagining of what a Mafia game can be. It's a huge shift for an established action series.
The potential here is staggering. Imagine shaking down a shopkeeper for protection money, only to find that a rival family has already gotten to him. Or stumbling upon a clandestine meeting in a remote olive grove that kicks off a whole new storyline. The world becomes a co-author of your story, not just the paper it’s written on.
Keeping the Soul of the Family
Here's the thing, though. The tight narrative focus is the soul of this franchise. My biggest fear is that in chasing the "living world" dragon that games like Red Dead Redemption 2 have perfected, Mafia might lose its own identity. It could become a beautiful, sprawling, but ultimately generic open-world crime game.
A world filled with icons and random events can easily dilute a powerful central narrative. I don’t want Don Salieri’s origin story (or whoever our protagonist is) to be interrupted by a repeating “help, my cart has tipped over!” radiant quest every five minutes. The challenge for Hangar 13 is immense: build a world that feels alive and full of opportunity without sacrificing the cinematic, character-first storytelling that defines the series.
It's a delicate, almost impossible balance. Actually, that’s not quite right. It's not impossible, just incredibly difficult. It requires a design philosophy that integrates the open-world activities directly into the narrative and thematic core of the game. For instance, maybe the "side activities" aren't just for making cash, but for building your reputation, gaining respect, or even subtly influencing the main story's direction. The business of crime shouldn't feel separate from the drama of crime.
I keep coming back to the setting. Sicily. This isn't a sprawling American metropolis. It’s a land of ancient traditions, close-knit communities, and brutal, hidden violence. A place where reputation is everything. That, right there, could be the key. If the open world is built around the social fabric of "The Old Country"—managing relationships, upholding honor, and navigating the whispers and rumors of the townsfolk—then it could be something truly special. It could be a world where the gameplay is the story.
The whole situation reminds me of the constant tightrope walk developers face between artistic vision and commercial pressure, a topic that's been in the news lately regarding things like potential monetization manipulation in other titles. You have to build a bigger, more engaging world to attract players, but you can't lose what made people love you in the first place. It's a tough racket.
So, Where Does This Leave Us?
I’m cautiously, deeply optimistic. I have to be. The idea of a Mafia game with the narrative punch of the first game and a world with the emergent possibilities of a modern sandbox is, frankly, the dream. It’s what I’ve been subconsciously wanting every time I’ve taken one of those lonely, atmospheric drives through a gorgeous but empty city.
It’s a massive gamble. Hangar 13 is stepping out of the series' comfortable, linear shadow and into the blinding sun of the true open-world genre. If they pull it off, Mafia: The Old Country could be a masterpiece. If they don't, it could be a beautiful mess. Either way, I'll be there on day one, ready to get in the car, turn on the radio, and see if this time, the world drives back.
A Few Questions I'm Already Asking Myself
So, is this just going to be 'GTA: Sicily Edition'?
I really doubt it. While it's adopting a more open-world structure, the heart of Mafia has always been its serious, cinematic tone and grounded storytelling. Expect less chaotic rampaging and more deliberate, story-driven crime. The goal seems to be making the world feel more alive and interactive, not just turning it into a playground for mayhem. Think more Red Dead Redemption 2's immersive world, less Saints Row.
Will the open world be separate from the main story, like a 'Free Ride' mode?
All signs point to 'no.' The whole point seems to be integrating the open world directly with the narrative. Previous games had "Free Ride" as an unlockable mode after the fact, a clear separation of church and state. Here, the idea is that your actions in the world—the rackets you build, the enemies you make—will be part of the core experience from the start.
What's the risk of this new approach?
The biggest risk is pacing. Mafia's tight, linear stories have incredible pacing. Introducing a massive open world with player freedom can kill that dead. If the main story missions are brilliant but you have to spend hours doing repetitive tasks in between, the game could feel like a grind. It's all about the execution.
Why should I be excited about a prequel set in Sicily?
Because it's the beginning! We're going back to where it all started. This is before the big American gangster boom. It's about the roots of the Mafia, the code of honor, and the old-world traditions. It's a chance to see the Cosa Nostra not as a slick criminal empire, but as a gritty, rural phenomenon. Plus, Sicily is a stunningly beautiful and historically rich setting that's a world away from the American cities we've explored before.
Is this truly confirmed for Mafia: The Old Country Is Getting A Real Open-World Mode?
Yes, while official gameplay is still under wraps, confirmations from developer Hangar 13 and reporting from trusted industry sources like Kotaku have made it clear this is the direction. General Manager Roman Hladík himself stated in an anniversary interview that the team was starting work on an "all-new Mafia project," and subsequent details have fleshed out this ambitious open-world prequel concept.