There’s also a lot of problems with debris flickering as well as lights, an issue that existed in the original game but is somehow much worse in the Definitive Edition.Īnd I’m a little annoyed that they didn’t take the time to make flames look remotely like actual fire. The weird thing is if you put on one of the jackets that comes with the included DLC, like Vito’s school jacket, the clothing physics will be turned on for that single item of clothing. It seems by modifying a file in the game’s installation directory cloth physics can be added back into Mafia 2: Definitive Edition, but only at the lowest setting. This feature being missing makes a bigger impact than you might think thanks to everyone’s clothing looking like it’s superglued to their bodies. It kind of killed the drama.Ĭloth physics don’t seem to be working in the main game right, although they are working in the included DLC, so that’s…strange. At one point a character spent a dramatic scene near the end of the game with their eyes rolled all the way to the right, like they were trying to spot an irksome fly. That might not seem like a huge problem but Mafia 2 is very cinematic with its cutscenes, and you spend quite a bit of time watching people conversing. Compared to the original game Vito and his chums will often stare into the distance, look cross-eyed and won’t focus on where they should be. It sounds like such a small thing, but a character’s eyes can play a big role in scenes. Also, character’s eyes no longer move correctly, either just staring straight ahead or only shifting when a character blinks. Likewise, there are many textures in the world that seem to be from the original and are quite prominent, so again it’s rather jarring to see them contrasted against the newer work.

Hands are the same, typically resembling blurry sausages. A lot of the clothing has not been updated either, so you’ll see a detailed face sitting atop a blurry suit with sharply-edged shoulders. However, many of the faces you see in cutscenes haven’t been touched at all and stand out against the improvements.

The color also seems to have been boosted so now everyone looks like they’ve come back from a long holiday on a tropical beach. But the shadows are now softer around the edges, making them look more natural, especially during cutscenes. Shadows appear deeper now, sometimes to a damaging degree. The lighting doesn’t seem to have been changed too much except for ramping up the contrast, which alters the tone of the game. And there’s some great new details in the character models, like Joe’s pockmarked face or Vito’s scars being easier to spot. The new textures have definitely sharpened up the world, so now there’s more definition in walls and even nice touches like footprints in the snow, although these are baked in and aren’t a result of NPCs walking around. The overall visual upgrade is decent but with a few serious issues. I’m going to kick this off by talking about the remaster itself, so if you just want to know about the game scroll downwards. It can often feel like all the love and money has been poured into remake of Mafia, leaving Mafia 2 languishing. But while the recent Saints Row: The Third Remastered was an excellent example of how an older game can be revitalized, Mafia 2: The Definitive Edition is a disappointing touch-up of an otherwise strong game. Unlike Mafia 1, which is getting a full remake in August and is looking amazing, Mafia 2: The Definitive Edition is just a remaster. Sadly console players don’t get the same deal, even if you have Mafia 2 on your account. Before we delve into the review proper, there’s some good news: if you own Mafia 2 on Steam already then you get the Definitive Edition for free! And it comes packing all three chunks of released DLC, regardless of whether you owned them or not.

Mafia 2 definitive edition