The first chunk of the game takes place in the 1940s.
Mafia 2 is also a rare example of an open-world game where we see two versions of the same city. It's a wonderful piece of scene-setting-something this game is obscenely good at all the way through. We see couples arguing, kids throwing snowballs, and a guy getting a haircut in a warmly-lit barbershop. An inspired use of licensed music.Ī fleet of B-17 bombers roar overhead, reminding us that the war is far from over. Dean Martin's Christmas classic Let It Snow plays as he walks the streets, still in his uniform, suitcase in hand. Our anti-hero returns from World War II on a cold winter's evening in 1945, and finds himself back in the Italian neighbourhood where he grew up.
It didn't take me long to fall in love with Mafia 2.
