GameSpy Preview of Godfather 2

A few days ago, EA dropped in to show us the latest of update of The Godfather II. It's important to point out the lack of the word "part" in the title, since it's a real line in the sand for what EA is doing to adapt "The Godfather Part II" into videogame form. Although the first game took some liberties with the source material, this sequel seems to be playing with canon even more. We'll find out if it gets burned for doing so at a later date. For now, here are a few things to look out for...





"Act like a mobster, think like a don." Sure, EA's bandying this phrase about like it's going out of style, but it's actually pretty accurate. The Redwood Shores team has tweaked and refined the content of the first game and addressed some of the complaints lodged against The Godfather.





The Black Hand fighting system has combos now. Sure, you can still use your shoulder buttons to grab someone and beat the everloving snot out of them, but now you'll have the option to wail away on them with taps of the rear shoulder buttons too. We noticed it at work as we terrorized a rival family's strip club in an attempt to take it over. At one point, we picked up some bottles and began heckling patrons with them. It feels like there's more room for inconsequential mayhem than before.












The violence is more brutal and shocking. There were some fairly flinch-worthy moments in The Godfather, such as the gun executions. That said, watching your character jam a Tommy Gun into someone's mouth and pull the trigger ranks high on the scale of gaming brutality; we'd put it somewhere near the first time we saw Marcus Fenix carve a Locust. This one's definitely going to earn its "M" rating with few arguments.





The urban landscape has been streamlined. Yes, the Big Apple has been a little truncated, but it also reduces the tedious driving that was such a put-off in the first game. Based on the hour we played, the destinations and waypoints seem closer than they were in the past. Also, it looks like New York will be smaller because as a Don, you'll be conquering Miami and sections of Cuba as well.





EA Redwood Shores is taking liberties with the plot. Here's where that word "part" comes into play. The Godfather II isn't the gaming version of "The Godfather Part II"; it's a title that takes elements of the film and creates a universe around them. In the first Godfather, you played the equivalent of a character that someone digitally pasted into the background of Coppola's films. As a Mafioso, you worked your way up the ranks of the Corleone family ladder. It appears that as Michael gained power in the films, your character does also. With The Godfather II, it's not so much digital pasting as much as full-blown retcon.











Case in point. Our demo kicked off with a tutorial level that takes place on the eve of the Cuban revolution. The famous scene in which Hyman Roth and several Mafiosi carve up a cake of Cuba is re-enacted, and of course, the scenario in which Michael and Fredo flee Havana is playable. Here's the catch: In the film, this is the point at which Michael smells a rat, and it's his own flesh and blood. In the game, Fredo plays a huge role in the game, so as far as we can tell, Michael's kiss of death doesn't happen. EA said that it's "massaging the plot a bit." Hopefully it won't be so deep of a massage that it turns off "Godfather" purists.





It's crossing over from "RPG-Lite" to "RPG-Medium." Role-playing and strategy elements play a stronger role here than in the previous title. The most noticeably RPG-like element of The Godfather II is the branching dialogue, which looks damn near identical to Mass Effect's chat trees. It's not as in-depth as BioWare's, but the influence is indisputably there. In terms of strategy, The Godfather II looks to fuse the core elements of the last game with the gameplay of the PSP title, 2006's Mob Wars. Wherever you are and whatever you're doing, you'll be managing several rackets. Whether you've got a monopoly on drugs or you've got a few business interests in prostitution, you'll be in constant turmoil with other gangs unless you wipe them out. That's another story altogether.










The Godfather II also gives you a party of Mafia enforcers. You'll pick from paid muscle, safecrackers, demolition experts, arsonists and medics, among other classes. Each character has his own area of expertise and an Achilles' heel, which can range from alcoholism to womanizing to sadism. EA wasn't clear on how each enforcer's weakness will affect your gameplay experience, though. As you work your way through the echelons of the mob, you'll add new members to your party; eventually, you'll get a crew of seven. You can also level-up your made men to capo, which gives them more special abilities.





Although this was our first hands-on with The Godfather II, there's more to come before its release. Details are scarce, but we know that it'll feature some sort of online elements. Given what we've seen, we think that it's beginning to turn into a solid package, but we're still cautious about the liberties that EA seems to be taking with the film canon. We have a slight sinking feeling that the storyline of the game is going to do some excessively wild stuff within the settings of the movie, and until we're proven wrong, it's a valid concern for fans of the movie. Beyond our worries about the story, it's hard not to smile at the notion of sending your demolition man to blow up a rival family's compound.

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