i remember liking this when i was 14 when it came out. nowadays it's kinda bad. i don't think it's unplayable but it's really annoying to play. mafia feels like the most C+ game series. the soundtrack is really good at least. the gameplay loop is simple but the pull here is that you're going from segment to segment for a piece of the story, and the story isn't good. it's like "mob movie greatest hits" without the stuff that actually makes those things iconic, like good performances and direction and characters. everyone here sucks, but maybe that's the point they were trying to make. it's sort of admirable that they were trying to portray the humdrum life of a criminal but they don't really nail it, like trying to split the difference between an action blockbuster with setpieces and faux life-sim stuff. also i have no idea what kind of remastering they did here cause it's not good looking. part of that is due to the huge amount of visual bugs, shit pops in and glitches out an awful lot. though i do dig the changing of seasons here, not a lot of open world games have a snowy segment that isn't like a limited-time multiplayer thing or a part of the map.

it was nice to come back to rapture and see what it was like in it's (sorta) prime, even if it was just a glimpse. the art direction still holds up very well, gorgeous city. i don't really get what the story is at this point, maybe it'll all be answered in part 2 but i do like the noir vibe they were playing with here. all the snarky hardboiled dialogue serviced well by the voice acting. gameplay is bioshock infinite as usual. nothing really different to talk about here. shocking splicers in water is still satisfying though. the hook is so much less satisfying than the wrench still.