‘Mafia 3’ Tackles Racism And Family In The 1960s

Themes like family and betrayal have always been a part of the “Mafia” series, but “Mafia 3” will also tackle racism and bigotry in 1968, as new protagonist Lincoln Clay,a half-white, half-black war veteran, takes on the Italian mob. After a brief teaser, 2K showed “Mafia 3” to the public during Gamescom 2015, and it seems it will feel completely different from previous “Mafia” games.

One of the first big changes to the game is its setting. Instead of a typical “Mafia” city like Chicago or New York, IGN reported that the game will take place in New Orleans. Since the setting is 1968, gamers can expect racism to be a major factor as Lincoln plans on making his own empire of crime, while also recruiting allies in this crime war.

The themes of family come into play when it’s revealed that Lincoln was an orphan growing up and has been searching for a place where he feels he belongs. He seemingly finds it when he joins the black mob and finds men he loves like brothers. Things don’t end well when the Italian mob betrays them and slaughters most of its members, leaving Clay to pick up the pieces and get revenge.

After the big betrayal, the narrative is left up to the player, as GameSpot stated that the game allows players to forge their own stories with Lincoln. There will be numerous choices for the player to make, including which groups he should ally himself with and whom he should kill to send a message to opposing factions.

Possible allies include Cassandra and her Haitians and Burke and the Irish; even Italians can be allies with Lincoln if he partners with “Mafia 2” protagonist Vito Scaletta. Who Lincoln decides to partner up with and to take on will have repercussions as the game moves along, so players will have to make their decisions accordingly .

“Mafia 3” will be coming to the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC in 2016. The game is being developed by one of 2K’s new studios, Hangar 13, and “Star Wars” game veteran Haden Blackman heads it.