9 Upcoming Video Games Destined To Be The Sleeper Hits Of 2016

2. Mafia III

Mafia 3
2K Games

Although there were plenty of GTA clones that came out in the wake of that series' rise to power in the 2000s, none were quite as interesting as Mafia. The 1930/40s style always provided a rather nice break from the realistic modern day world of your GTAs and your original Saints Rows, yet unfortunately the franchise was never able to fully capitalise on the beauty of its setting.

Mafia II came pretty damn close, but even that was stifled by rather boring shooting and an unimaginative plot. Still, it had some great ideas, and with six years between that release and this new game, it's looking like 2016 could be the year the series truly kicks off.

In handing over development duties to Hangar 13, the focus this time looks to be on refining gameplay that never quite lived up to the potential of the set-up in past instalments. Jumping ahead to 1968 New Orleans (fictionally named New Bordeaux), the world of Mafia III has never looked better, and although people are starting to tire of endless open-world games, Hangar 13's new release might just make you fall in love with the genre all over again.

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Josh has over 11 years of experience as a published writer, having worked nine of those years as a full-time content producer at WhatCulture. In that period he has created hundreds of articles, videos and podcast episodes for multiple WhatCulture channels, specialising in gaming, horror and film & TV. He now primarily works as a senior content producer and presenter on WhatCulture Gaming where he co-hosts the WhatCulture Gaming Podcast, a top 3 UK most listened to gaming podcast that he co-created in 2018. Over the years he has reviewed several high-profile gaming releases, covered industry events with on-site reporting, opined on breaking news, and even kicked off his interviewing career by chatting to childhood hero, Tommy Wiseau.