Mafia 3, the series’ most recent release from studio Hangar 13, hews more closely to the likes of Rockstar with a focus on side activities and a story centered around a war veteran trying to escape the demons of his past (Niko Bellic, anyone?). These games come across as more grounded than the GTA series and its ilk, but you can easily see the echoes of titles like San Andreas and Grand Theft Auto 4 shining through their design. There is yet to exist a Grand Theft Auto game which doesn’t include a run-in with the Mafia in some measure, which naturally leaves 2K’s Mafia series as a good starting point for open-world enthusiasts with a taste for organized crime.
