By Jeremy Julian @FAITHFULMANTIS
This week sees a major game release from the 2k studios published “Mafia 3.” This game is the third entry in the long-running open world crime series that has been around since 2002.
I have played through both entries of the franchise and loved how they incorporate gritty, realistic storytelling while also having strong gameplay features.
This entry in the series is the most different and interesting to me because it incorporates a black protagonist in a Civil Rights era 1968.
The main character of this game is a War veteran named Lincoln Clay and it takes place in a fictional New Orleans.
It is surely a game that is not for the faint-of-heart because it tells a much darker story than what we’ve come to expect from other open world video games such as “Grand Theft Auto” or “Saints Row.”
Lincoln Clay becomes the leader of the black mafia in this town and the game incorporates a gritty and violent story around him and his cohorts.
The game can be compared to others such as the “Grand theft Auto” series.
The game takes a unique turn on the Mobster genre because it isn’t just about the Italian mob.
What interests me the most about this game is that it incorporates the Black mafia that existed in that time and how it’s something that is looked over in most pop culture.
The game’s setting is it’s most important aspect because it is about a Black man in a position of power in an era where we were otherwise powerless.
2K allowed various youtubers and gaming journalists play a large chunk of the game and it’s all positive from what I have read.
What the developers of this game are doing is giving players a glimpse into what the Segregation era might have been like and it’s also from the perspective of someone that was being oppressed by it.
From what I’ve seen of it so far it seems to capture the vibe of what New Orleans was like during that time.
It also captures how characters from different perspectives lived in that environment during that era.
The game is set to be released on October 7 for Playstation 4, Xbox One and PC.
It is a game that many people including myself have been very excited about.
It tackles a somewhat traditional mobster lifestyle that we’ve seen from mobster films and video games before.
But, It adds a fresh twist by having a black protagonist and setting it in an era where racial tension was high.
The game takes risks in it’s approach to setting and characters and I can’t wait to dive into this mobster adventure come Friday.
