When launching the game, we expected to see a warning message appear telling us that the dialogues and situations offered are representative of the 50s, but it is finally the following "disclaimer" that is displayed: "Mafia II Definitive Edition includes the game's narrative content in its original 2010 form. The game includes culturally sensitive themes and content, and is intended for mature audiences only." Should we deduce that in just ten years the public has become extremely sensitive? We prefer to remember that this remaster does not distort the original work, and therefore retains all the violent, sexist and racist elements inherent in the context depicted. It must be said that between the Playboy magazines to be found in the sets, the pin-up posters plastered here and there, the community valves capable of making the Jamel Comedy Club pass for a kindergarten, as well as the murders, betrayals , and other reprisals typical of mafia life, Vito Scaletta's daily life is not really a "safe space".
This is also one of the strong points of the adventure, which is also worth by its credible open world, its detailed decorations, its exceptional soundtrack and, more generally, its atmosphere which truly immerses us in mafia America of the 50s. But we won't go any further on this subject, because our test of August 25, 2010 (oh how time flies!) is still available if you want to learn more about the game original, or if you just want to refresh your memory. Now is the time to look at what allows this "Definitive Edition" to deserve its title. First, it has the merit of integrating all the downloadable content that went on sale after the release of the original adventure. It's obviously the least you can do, but we're sincerely delighted to see that The Betrayal of Jimmy is indeed in the game, whereas in 2010 it was an irritating PS3 exclusive! Naturally, Jimmy's Vendetta and Joe's Adventures also answer the call. If these DLCs are not up to the main adventure (in particular because they are based on a scoring system rather than on a scenario worthy of the name), their presence is always good to take.
THE ITALIAN-AMERICAN CLASS
If we compare the size of the PC versions of 2010 and 2020, we realize that one weighs 6 GB, and the other… almost 45 GB! The presence of DLC can not alone justify this huge difference, we suspect that a real job has been done by the developers. And, fortunately, we can easily observe it in game since most of the textures have been reworked. Their definition is obviously higher, so as not to be a task if the game is played in 4K, but some of them have been completely redone. We can thus observe more varied road surfaces, richer expanses of snow (the snow cover appears thicker and incorporates footprints), walls that abandon their repetitive texture for a beautiful brickwork, posters more legible, or even finer details on certain bodywork. The faces of the main characters are not left out, since their skin appears much more detailed than before. Pores, wrinkles, scars and other warts are now perfectly visible.
...you can easily see it in game since most of the textures have been reworked. Their definition is obviously higher, so as not to be a task if the game is played in 4K, but some of them have been completely redone.
We can still note here and there some errors of taste in certain alterations, like these elderly characters who abandon their graying hair for a mane that is certainly more detailed, but a little too colorful and juvenile. All these details (mostly positive) are not necessarily visible in the heat of the action, but we have plenty of time to observe them during the cutscenes. Especially since the latter benefit from an additional improvement. More specifically, they now take place in real time, whereas before they were videos made in advance with the game engine and broadcast in full screen. The gain is immediate: we are now rid of dull colors, upscaled fixed resolution, and compression artifacts. The game also features better lighting management, with higher quality ambient occlusion resulting in higher contrast. On the other hand, the physical effects (fragments of walls for example) seem less detailed than at the time when they were managed exclusively by NVIDIA cards. At least they have the merit of being here available to everyone. We can also regret that this remaster does not solve the problem of clones that we come across on every street corner. However, it would have been particularly wise to take advantage of the power of current PCs and consoles to enrich the diversity of passers-by models.
"YOU'RE A BROTHER, A SISTER, LIMIT A GRANDMOTHER"
This re-release is also the occasion for a few retroactive nods, like the jacket of Lincoln Clay (the hero of Mafia III) which now appears in Vito Scaletta's wardrobe. It is however quite strange that the remaster of the second episode comes out a few weeks before the remake of the first. As long as we do, we would have preferred to dive back into the trilogy chronologically. In any case, Mafia 2: Definitive Edition ultimately appears to be a worthy remaster, which not only pushes the resolution but also offers reworked graphics. The difference is not necessarily sufficient to justify a new checkout if you already have the PC version of 2010, because the latter supports the comparison without too many problems. On the other hand, the gap with the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of the time is real. So here is an offer that console players and those who have never touched a Mafia will find it hard to refuse!
