6. Mafia III
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gG0dhynQkk One of the most underrated franchises of all time, 2K's Mafia series started out on very rocky ground, but with part two had something of a landmark success, albeit in a fairly sleeper-hit sort of way. For Mafia 3 it's kinda like The Witcher 3 back in May, where years of people championing both the developer and general feel of the game led to quite the wave of hype descending on the newest instalment at release. Essentially a more story-heavy GTA in terms of overall feel, it's a more dedicated third-person shooter at its core, presenting a sense of high-paced gunplay that's more involving and consistently rewarding than some of GTA's more humour-focussed missions. In a progressive move you'll once again be playing as a new character - the thoroughly badass-sounding Lincoln Clay - but this time round he's a Vietnam vet returning to find how organised crime syndicates have ravaged his hometown and friends' lives. Unlike Mafia 2's Vito Scaletta, this should mean he's more capable in the field, as although certain gameplay rumblings across various forums are alluding to more 'GTA-like' explosion-filled missions and mechanics, 2K aren't about to lose the series' increasingly iconic overtones and brilliantly nuanced character portrayals. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xc2l4HElNzA Think L.A. Noire's gritty realism and GTA's genre-bending compilation of gameplay styles, Mafia has always been that perfect meld of the two, and this looks to be the best execution on that concept yet.