10 Times Publishers Sabotaged Their Own Video Games
3. The Mafia Series Gets Overshadowed By Rockstar - Take-Two Interactive
After near enough two decades on store shelves, it's probably fair to say that the Mafia series is underrated.
Initially developed by 2K Czech before being passed to Hangar 13, Mafia has had to deal with being the 'nearly' game. That is, to say, that it's always been overshadowed by two of its parent company's biggest titles - Grand Theft Auto, and Red Dead Redemption, both developed by Rockstar.
Mafia II was by no means as good as Red Dead Redemption, but it released just a couple of months after that game and, as another open-world crime title set in the past, it invariably suffered; just as its predecessor did, when it released in the wake of Grand Theft Auto III.
Pitting two similar games against each other seems like something straight out of the EA playbook, but even still it appears as though Take-Two (and by extension 2K) are finding new ways to mess with Mafia. Hangar 13 has been chopped and changed since the promising release of Mafia III, and as long as things continue that way, it seems doubtful the series will ever reach its full potential.