10 Reasons Mafia 3 Is The Best Open-World Game In Years

3. The Racial 'Staging' Of The World Is Very Effective

Regardless of whether you think Mafia III's overall brutish nature effects some of the messages it's trying to tell in regards to the treatment of minorities, you have to admire Hangar 13 for attempting such a thing in the first place.

The last time an open-world game had a podium to pass comment on anything remotely current was GTA V's torture segment, and that ended up being a monstrous endorsement that felt more like a campaign ad for pulling teeth and waterboarding. By contrast, you'll notice things like the police responding far slower in poorer, 'blacker' neighbourhoods, catch on that some white NPCs will cross the street to get away from you, or notice enemy dialogue being incredibly racially offensive.

Hangar 13 even include a statement at the beginning of the game to state how affronting hearing this language and witnessing this behaviour may be to some people, but that it's an important part of our shared history, to address it in such a manner.

Whether they've achieved anything in doing so is totally up to you, but for what it's worth, I think this brings an element to Mafia III's entire feel and tone, that lets it stand proudly alongside the other titans of the genre.