Mafia II exposed!

It's been six years since it won the hearts of PC gamers (and alienated the console crowd with inferior ports), but cult 1930s crime epic Mafia is finally getting a sequel. Set in a new era - the '40s and early '50s - Mafia II will follow the rags-to-riches story of Vito Scaletta, a young hood trying to make it as a mobster in a New York-inspired city lorded over by three rival crime families.

The May issue of our sister mag PlayStation: The Official Magazine has the full story, with a detailed, five-page world exclusive on what to expect from Mafia's explosive sequel. It's due to hit newsstands tomorrow, but in the meantime, you can take a look what's been made public so far at the game's official site - and keep checking GamesRadar, because we've got a full week of exclusive coverage lined up and ready to go. We'll kick off  the criminality starting tomorrow, with a barrage of fresh screens filled with old-school mob crime.

Delivering a shotgun blast of new screens, the May 2008 issue of P:TOM (pictured below) also packs in reams of detail on Mafia II's tighter script, deeper city, faster cars and freer, more action-focused gameplay. It's also got a ton of new information on a raft of cool gameplay additions that put Mafia II light-years ahead of the original in terms of depth and realism; some of these are original, while others are eerily similar to things we've seen in Grand Theft Auto IV (no real surprise there, seeing as the games are published by the same parent company). Be sure to check it out - and then come back here when you're ready for more.

Apr 7, 2008