This misbegotten sequel crams Francis Ford Coppola’s classic family drama into something barely worthy of a Playstation 2 and a budget price tag.
Heh. A harsh one. I finished it yesterday.
A mediocre game, Yes. A bad game, not really.
While most points stated by Tom stand, they are not that bad in terms of magnitude.
It really depends on what are you looking for. If you like the idea of being a Don, bullying owners and executing people in creative ways. The game can satisfy you, but do not ask for anything more. If you are looking for the depth of Godfather the book/movie, then you will be disappointed. Once again, a game that is haunted by its own IP.
I would say rent it if you want some mindless fun, or just wait for Mafia 2.
p.s. Have you tried the online part, Tom?
I didn’t hate it as much as Tom, but everything in his review is true and correct. Especially #4 and #1. The strategy layer to the game is completely meaningless, and it doesn’t even have any kind of time sensitivity. Your guys go there instantly, and no matter where you have them guarding, you can always just zap them to the next place that gets attacked, even if it’s in another city. There’s almost no way to lose territory in the game.
#1 is a heartbreaker, too. Some areas really are PS2 level detail. My “favorite” visual element is the way the shadows on the ground don’t move smoothly as the sun transits overhead, they jump about a foot at a time, like giant tree-shaped second hands. This is especially amusing when there are shadows on your character in outdoor cutscenes.
I really like what they were trying to do in the game, but none of it works or comes together well. Seriously disappointing, and I’m actually kind of annoyed that I lost $15 buying it and then reselling it to the store when I was done. It’s a rental through and through. You can knock this one out in two days, easy.
Well crap. I really liked the first one (on the Wii), so I was looking forward to a solid iteration in GF2. Oh well, my money will go yo a different game.
Sucks to hear all the negative press on it… I plopped down my $60 on this one months ago, just from being a fan of the first game. Oh well, I’m sure I’ll get a good 10+ hours out of it and then ebay it off.
-Chris
This is the most disturbing portion of the review for me. I love upgrading. I’m a little compulsive about it. See my obsession with Wheelman side missions. I’m really bummed to hear that none of the available upgrades in Godfather II have any discernible effect and are essentially unnecessary. This is something Saints Row 2 did so well. The upgrades always felt useful and I loved pushing on to the next reward, so much so that I did as many poop spraying missions as it took to get one.
Eurogamer seems to agree. I will never understand how stealth missions weaseled into the first game, let alone the second.
Also, the commentary on the lack of challenge and the unimportance of developing your team is very discouraging. I wasn’t hoping for a Godfather/Fire Emblem hybrid, but some characteristics from that brand of tactical rpg would have been what I expected from adding that dimension to the game. Instead, it sounds like Scarface’s turf control system will look revolutionary by comparison.
Dammit! I’ve been hearing rumors it’s bad, I just didn’t want to believe. This looked like it had so much promise. Do you think it was rushed, or what?
There must be some story here. The previews looked awesome.
Preposterous!
I cling to hope that my ability to wring fun from something I desparately want to be cool is stronger than whatever awful implementation & design the game is suffering from. I’m still picking up my preorder this afternoon, and my expectations are now so low hopefully it will exceed them!
It sounds exactly like the first game but easier. Considering every game ever made has been too hard, this sounds great.
“Classic family drama” – cute double-meaning there… but did Tom just write something complimentary about a film made before 1985?
Now you’re just fucking with us.
I’d be willing to bet he’s not, despite the immediately apparent problems one might face in backing up that statement.
I thought you would appreciate that. But it’s also totally true. Unless the easiest difficulty is god mode + infinite ammo with any semblance of a puzzle stripped out, the game is still too hard.
MGS3 had a nice easy mode going on with the infinite ammo EZ Gun that recharged your health and stamina and gave you a permanent 85% camo rating even while moving, but then they go and take it away from you along with all your stuff when you get captured. Then I had to learn how to play the game.
You really think Bob thinks every game made up to this point has been “too hard”?
Too hard for what?
See? I told you. Enjoy your trip down the rabbit hole.
Too hard to play through without dying or being hindered at any point.
So you don’t want a game, you want a theme park ride.
Sounds like you’re looking for the Movies forum, Bob.