We haven’t heard anything new on the “Mafia 3” front ever since the voice actor for the previous game’s protagonist dropped the hint that the sequel might be announced soon. Many fans have been disappointed by this development, as they were convinced that they would at least get a release date for the game, but this hasn’t happened so far.
However, current rumors indicate that the announcement might be scheduled for this year’s E3, which is going to run between June 16-18. Many companies are expected to come out with their own major announcements, and this would be the perfect time for the developers of “Mafia 3” to also reveal their sequel. Of course, they would be facing some serious competition if they choose E3 specifically, but they probably know how to handle the situation, plus the game they’ll be revealing already enjoys a lot of attention in the first place.
There have been some rumors about the game’s setting, plot and gameplay recently as well. Current claims indicate that the title might be set in Louisiana, but there have also been mentions of Florida, Texas and Tennessee, and we’re not sure if those are different options for the game’s setting that were once considered by its developers, or if it will actually span across different locations. The latter would definitely be a great feature, but we don’t have much reason to believe that this is the case at the moment.
IGN have reported that the game will feature several protagonists – three specifically – much like the recently released “GTA 5”. They will be a trio of Louisiana natives named Franklin, Tony and Mickey, and from the sounds of it they will be stereotypical tough guys drawn into the drama of the underworld.
Franklin will be a resourceful character, able to complete a job at any cost, while Tony will be slightly older and a genius with numbers who is the mastermind of various sports betting operations of varying degrees of legality. Then we also have Mickey, the youngest of the three, who is loud-mothed and works as a hustler on the street. On the other hand, his toughness is mostly manifested in words, as he doesn’t seem to be a very serious fighter according to the previews.
The setting for the game might be a few decades after the originals, possibly around 1960-1970. The game will still keep its characteristic retro style, which has become a staple of the series at this point and it wouldn’t make much sense to see it removed.
Indeed, some fans of the franchise seem to love it because it’s one of the very few games right now that utilize an older time setting as their primary one, as opposed to the majority of shooters that have moved to the near future for their locations. “Mafia 3” could really freshen things up on the scene in that regard.
Of course, it would also have to be a well-designed, polished game for that to work out, but we don’t really have much reason to believe otherwise so far. If they handle its development with as much attention as they did in the first two games, it’s going to be a massive hit among fans of shooters.
It could even benefit from the recent release of “GTA 5” as gamers have been craving similar gameplay lately, and they would definitely jump at the opportunity to play a game like “Mafia 3”, provided of course that it’s done well and doesn’t suffer from any gameplay problems.