Toxic City: The Brutality of Gaming Culture and Mafia: The old Country
If someone asked me about my top five favorite game series, I would certainly include Mafia. Ever since I watched Mafia II on IGN and then played it myself, I’ve been hooked. I went on to play all the Mafia titles, and recently, I really enjoyed Mafia: The Old Country. But here’s the problem: the internet is a brutal place. Everyone has their own wild opinions, and toxicity in gaming discussions is spreading so much that we’ve forgotten how to appreciate good—sometimes smaller—games. That’s why I felt the need to address this topic. I’m not saying I’m 100% right, but at least I can share my perspective on why we need more games like Mafia: The Old Country.
Open-World Isn’t Everything
Not every game needs to be open-world. These games are extremely difficult to create, and developers often fill them with repetitive tasks just to make them longer. Look at Assassin’s Creed: Shadows—it was overloaded with repetitive missions. A game that could easily finish in 15–20 hours often gets stretched to 40–45 hours unnecessarily. Don’t get me wrong, I love open-world games and the freedom they provide. But executing them properly is very difficult, and not all developers should be expected to make one. Linear story-based games, without filler content or unnecessary side missions, also deserve appreciation. Mafia III tried to go open-world, and many believe it didn’t work out well. So it’s better to focus on doing one thing well, instead of doing everything poorly. That’s why it’s good that Mafia: The Old Country didn’t go open-world.
The Swimming Controversy
Some people mocked the game for not including swimming. But here’s the reality—if the game isn’t open-world and has no swimming-related missions, why waste development time on it? Most players wouldn’t even notice
Besides, in a Mafia game, swimming doesn’t even make sense. Mafia culture has the phrase “sleeping with the fishes,”
which refers to being killed and dumped into the water. So not being able to swim actually fits the theme.