If you’re a fan of the riveting mobster game Mafia: The Definitive Edition – a remake of the classic 2002 hit – you’re definitely in the right place. This article will guide you on a thrilling journey through 10 other games resembling Mafia, from Grand Theft Auto 5 to The Yakuza Series. Each game delivers its spin on the mobster genre, from strategy and turn-based gameplay to open-world exploration.
You’ll find a comprehensive discussion about each game, enriched with crucial highlights such as the release dates, genres, available platforms, and unique features aligning with the beloved Mafia series. So strap in for the adventurous ride through the captivating realm of the criminal underworld these games spectacularly reveal.
1. Grand Theft Auto 5
Release Date and Platforms
“Grand Theft Auto 5,” popularly known as GTA 5, was released on September 17, 2013. You can appreciate this action-adventure game on various platforms like PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows.
Game Genre
Broadly, GTA 5 is categorized as an action-adventure game with a touch of the open world, racing, and shooter mechanics. It revolves around three criminals and their efforts to perform under pressure from a government agency.
Similarities with Mafia
GTA 5 shares the underworld theme with the Mafia, showcasing a wide range of criminal activities, intriguing equipment, and a vast, detailed city to explore. The storyline, characters, and mission structure strongly resemble the Mafia series.
2. Saints Row: The Third Remastered
Release Date and Platforms
Saints Row: The Third Remastered was released on May 22, 2020. It’s available on platforms like PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, and Nintendo Switch.
Game Genre
This action-adventure game with an open-world theme focuses on the Third Street Saints, a gang that has risen to power and is now challenged.
Similarities with Mafia
Like Mafia, Saints Row: The Third Remastered is centered on a gang’s rise to power. This game’s plot and characters’ arc are similar to the Mafia series. The characters are well-developed, and so are the in-game cities.
3. Empire Of Sin
Release Date and Platforms
Empire of Sin was released on December 1, 2020. You can enjoy this game on macOS, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
Game Genre
This game can be classified under the strategy game genre. It’s about a player who aims to become the kingpin of organized crime in Chicago during the Prohibition era.
Similarities with Mafia
Matching Mafia’s theme, Empire of Sin also spins around organized crime and gangs in a specific timeframe. The strategy-based gameplay and the historical context bear similarities with the Mafia series.
4. Grand Theft Auto 4: Episodes From Liberty City
Release Date and Platforms
Grand Theft Auto 4: Episodes From Liberty City was launched on October 29, 2009. It’s accessible on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Microsoft Windows.
Game Genre
It falls under the action-adventure genre. The game unfolds in the fictional city of Liberty City, where you navigate through different stories and characters.
Similarities with Mafia
Episodes from Liberty City deliver a narrative heavily influenced by organized crime rings and personal motives, much like the Mafia series. The city’s detailed representation and its gameplay mechanics show a resemblance to the Mafia games.
5. Omerta: City Of Gangsters
Release Date and Platforms
Omerta: City Of Gangsters was released on May 31, 2013. This game is available on macOS, Xbox 360, and Microsoft Windows platforms.
Game Genre
Omerta: City Of Gangsters is a strategy game that revolves around the life of a gangster during the prohibition period in the United States.
Similarities with Mafia
Like the Mafia series, Omerta focuses on the mob empire during prohibition. The game’s narrative drives it to mix city building and gangster life simulation, making it feel quite similar to the Mafia series.
6. The Getaway
Release Date and Platforms
The Getaway was released on December 11, 2002. You can play this game on PlayStation 2.
Game Genre
This action-adventure game allows you to explore a realistic recreation of London while navigating through a narrative-driven experience.
Similarities with Mafia
The Getaway and Mafia series share impressive realism in their respective game worlds. The characters, gritty storylines, and high-stakes capers are reminders of the Mafia’s unique nature.
7. Scarface: The World is Yours
Release Date and Platforms
Scarface: The World is Yours was launched on July 25, 2006. It’s playable on PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Microsoft Windows.
Game Genre
Situated in the action-adventure genre, this game is more like a ‘what if’ scenario where Tony Montana, the protagonist, survives the final scene from the movie.
Similarities with Mafia
Both the Mafia games and Scarface offer narratives centered around powerful lead characters in the criminal underworld. Their actions and consequences bear a striking resemblance, even though Scarface: The World is Yours takes a different approach to its storytelling.
8. The Godfather
Release Date and Platforms
The Godfather was released on March 21, 2006. The game is available on PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, Wii, PSP, and Nintendo DS.
Game Genre
This action-adventure game allows you to live the life of a budding mobster set in a meticulously replicated New York City.
Similarities with Mafia
The Godfather, like the Mafia series, is about organized crime. The story, characters, and setting mirror Mafia’s thematic and narrative style.
9. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Release Date and Platforms
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City was launched on October 29, 2002. It can be played on PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows, Xbox, macOS, iOS, Android, and Fire OS.
Game Genre
This action-adventure game is set in the 1980s, in Vice City, based in Miami, where you rise through the ranks of the criminal underworld.
Similarities with Mafia
Vice City, like Mafia, puts you in a period setting and explores the rise of a single character in the sea of organized crime. The game’s focus on the main character’s evolution and the impressive detail of the city is much like the Mafia series.
10. Sleeping Dogs
Release Date and Platforms
Sleeping Dogs was released on August 14, 2012. It is available on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, and macOS.
Game Genre
This action-adventure game revolves around an undercover agent infiltrating the Hong Kong Triad.
Similarities with Mafia
Steeped in the underworld theme, Sleeping Dogs shares similarities with Mafia in structuring its main narrative, character development, and balance between mission focus and open-world exploration.
