“Make him
an offer he can’t refuse …”
When Don
Corleone comes to your rescue, in the form of Luca Brasi, and you are taken
under the wing of the Corleone family, life can be more than merely (and
officially) being part of the importing and exporting business.
Ok, if
you’ve read the review for the 360 version of the game, you have the basic gist
of the latest release of The Godfather. EA has put out a new edition titled The
Godfather The Don’s Edition.
At its core,
this is the same game as the one reviewed back in September of 2006 (Xbox
360 Review).
Hmm, you are wondering, so why should I buy a copy for the PS3? One reason would
be the graphics. They are stunning. Not only do the game characters look and
sound like the actors that portrayed them on the big screen, but the whole
graphical upgrade to the PS3’s 1080 resolution makes the game a much stronger
bit of eye candy. There are times when you will stop and stare. Take, for
example, character customization. A person could get lost in this mode, just
creating the young Italian recruited into the Corleone family.
Another
reason would be the way the SIXAXIS controller is integrated into the game,
allowing gamers to use the motion controls within the context of the game. While it
is not as deep as the Wii version, the SIXAXIS still does an admirable job of
making some of the tough-guy antics fun and physical.
But let’s
backstep and set up the basic game storyline.
The game
essentially takes place in New York between 1945 and 1955. The initial scene
takes place earlier with an “acquaintance” of Don Corleone paying his respects
to the Don, reminding someone that they need to remember to be grateful to the
Don, and then getting blown away by machine guns in an alley. His young son sees
the aftermath, and is not only heartbroken, but rather angry. The Don shows up
and comforts the boy, telling him that his is not the time for revenge, but that
the time will come.
Fast forward
to the wedding of Connie Corleone. Luca Brasi is outside the house while inside,
the mother of that once boy is pleading with the Don to look after her son. He
has taken up with those street thugs and is heading for trouble. The Don agrees
and sends Brasi to find the kid.
It is at that point that
Brasi (bearing the likeness of the movie actor Lenny Montana) takes the kid
(played by the gamer) under his wing … well, Ok, it is a short wing span. Luca
is killed by Virgil “The Turk” Sollozzo and you strike back violently, then have
a driving mission to cross town – with the clock ticking – to a safe house.
But that is
getting a little ahead of ourselves. More things are happening on the screen, in
the background, and there are other side elements that enhance the overall
experience of the game itself. As you gain notoriety, photographers may try to
snag a picture of you going about “family” business. If you don’t react, you
will find that the overall heat on you increases – which is not a good thing.
Bribing is a bigger part of this scenario. You need to work to convince the
photographer to NOT publish the images.
Mob couriers
can be hit, either by you or by your rivals on your couriers. Prostitutes act as
go-betweens in dealings with police, and may even have information on certain
police officials that will enable you to coerce them into siding with you.
The PS3
version also enables different styles of play, as opposed to the run ‘n gun
linear mission pacing. New skill sets are the Enforcer or the Negotiator – two
styles of gameplay that are pretty much what one would expect from the names.
You can arm yourself with the weapon of your choice much easier now, thanks to
the weapon wheel – a popup armory.
The upgrade
system has been given a better focus in that as you allocate points you can
really put some muscle into your skills. Can you say unlimited ammo?
While the
game does have a very strong mission path, players can freelance a bit more
thanks to the game’s ability to interact with the citizens of New York. Yes,
this tracks the same path as the 360, but with the photographers, mob couriers
and prostitutes involved, the whole city seems more alive with opportunity. And
there are rooftop elements and hit squads that do so much more to make the game
feel like it is taking place in a robust city.
The
graphics, as mentioned, are stellar, and the vocal work is certainly amazing.
The music is derived straight from the film, and has that familiar ring that
immediately puts you into the story.
This is one
of the strongest versions of the game, without a doubt, coupling a dynamic
character creation system with deeper gameplay.
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Gameplay:
8.0
A few bumps along
the way, but this game has decent pacing and a lot of gameplay depth.
Graphics:
8.7
The character
customization is deep and well done. The effects are also very well rendered.
Sound:
8.7
Great score and
great voiceovers.
Difficulty: Medium
Concept:
8.0
Nice additions to
a game that has been out for a while.
Overall:
8.2
Not exactly a new
or innovative title, but still the job has been done to create a game with new
elements, while employing the control scheme of the host system. This is a solid
and entertaining game.
