
In my other reviews of games based off of movies, I have always noted that I did not particularly care to play a game often times meant to promote the movie than be a stand alone game. Well in the case of The Godfather, which has been released by EA, you have to look at this a bit differently. About 34 years ago, Francis Ford Coppola released his epic Mafia film and the movie has easily stood the test of time with a great story and wonderful acting (with the exception of the dreadful Godfather 3). So there was no need to promote anything here and you have to question EA taking on such a loved story. If they butcher it, they look like Fredo after Michael lets him know that he knows it was him that tried to have him killed.We fortunately for us all, EA has pulled it off and made one of the best games of the year. This is by far the best mafia game I have ever played and also the best game that I have played based on a movie. In the game you play the role of a young New York street thug whose father was loosely affiliated with the Corleone family several years ago and was killed due to the “family business”. The game itself opens with this story and then forwards to the future on the famous wedding day sequence from the first Godfather film. Your mother approaches Don Corleone and asks him to help you and guide you. The Don assigns his ultra loyal enforcer, Luca Brasi to find you and teach you the “trade”. From there, the game takes off and never looks back.
The third person shooter is has layers of missions that make up for quite a long game as you slowly progress in your career as a member of the Corleone family. You goal is to eventually to become the Don of New York City which in itself is quite an ambitious goal. One of the great parts of the game it that is follows the storyline of the original movie but places your character in the periphery of the classic movie scenes. It will be you that drives and then witnesses the “rub out” of Luca Brasi, which will then begin a mission to get back to Little Italy without getting iced yourself by the rival gang or the police so that you can tell the family what happened. It is really clever the way that the movie is used and really makes for a cool story as you feel like you are truly taking part. Aside from the major missions where you interact with the main characters from the film, you will also partake in side missions that will build your wealth and respect. Most of these involve some sort of extortion with small business or taking over some illegal operations all for the glory and financial benefit of the Corleones.
The game play itself is fairly easy to pick up and the game does a good job of introducing the tutorials within the game without making them too long and tedious. Luca Brasi is a wonderful teacher in these small segments. The really expansive maps of 1940’s New York let you explore and interact in many different areas. You will be able to take your gangster ways all the way from Little Italy, to Midtown, Hell’s Kitchen, Brooklyn, and even New Jersey. The graphics of the game are solid. Before you begin you can make your character and are offered a wide variety of features. As you progress through the game, you can purchase clothing items and other things that will change the look of your character. The detail is done well and really adds to the game. The NYC look is also done well with the exception that you will get a bit of the repetitive areas because of such a large map. Don’t worry though, that reality is easy to get past. The sound was excellent with really good voice acting. Most all of the characters sound exactly as they did in the film which was pretty cool.
Overall, I strongly recommend at least a rental for this top level game. I do believe that EA has raised the bar for movie based games. So go ahead and get that Tommy gun loaded and ready as you start your journey to be the Don Corleone.






