Sunday 28 March 2000.
While the Renkonan family are having fun watching Finding Nemo in Japan, in the United States one of the sons of the Giordano family, Mario Giordano, is grinning widely in front of his gaming PC. A moment earlier he had just finished purchasing several games on his Steam account, specifically all of the newest ZAGE titles that were released yesterday. His room is dimly lit by the glow of the monitor, and the excitement on his face is obvious as he prepares to try them out one by one.
Mario was born in 1977 and is now 23 years old. His younger brother Luigi was born in 1978 and is currently 22. The two brothers were coincidentally given the same names as the famous brothers from ZAGE's games, Mario and Luigi. However, this is purely a coincidence, since the Giordano brothers were born long before the ZAGE characters first appeared in 1991. Because of that, people who learn their names often find it amusing, but for the Giordano family it has always just been a funny twist of fate.
Both Mario and Luigi do not hate having the same names as the famous Mario and Luigi from the games. In fact, they actually enjoy it quite a lot. Whenever someone jokes about it or points out the similarity, the two brothers usually laugh about it rather than feel annoyed. For them, it has always been a funny coincidence rather than something embarrassing.
Even before ZAGE existed, both Mario and Luigi already liked video games. When they were younger, they often spent their free time playing on Atari consoles, enjoying simple arcade‑style games together. Back then gaming was just a casual hobby for them, something they played to relax after school or during weekends.
However, things changed after ZAGE appeared and started releasing its games. The creativity, the characters, and the gameplay impressed both brothers so much that they quickly became dedicated fans. What used to be a small pastime slowly turned into a real passion, and from that point on the Giordano brothers began paying close attention to every new game released by ZAGE.
Right now, Luigi is learning how to make video games because he truly enjoys the process of creating them. Recently, he has been spending a lot of time studying programming, game design, and various development tools while slowly trying to build his own gaming studio. The project is still in progress and far from finished, but Luigi is determined to make it work step by step.
Mario, however, is different from his brother. He loves playing games and understanding them from a player's perspective, but he has little interest in learning how to develop them himself. Instead, Mario prefers thinking about business opportunities and potential investments related to the industry.
Despite their different interests, both brothers share the same goal. They want to earn money legally and build their own future outside of the family's Mafia activities. Deep down, they both understand that the Mafia world is not sustainable in the long term, and they would rather create their own legitimate paths while they still have the chance. Their father supports this decision as well, because he knows their reasoning is sound. Even from a financial standpoint, the Mafia lifestyle is not a stable path in the long run.
So right now Mario is investing in several other ventures, since he is more of a businessman compared to his brother. He enjoys looking for opportunities that could grow into something profitable in the future. Still, those matters can wait for another time. At this moment, what he really wants to do is relax and play the new ZAGE game that was just released, a game called Mafia.
"Hehehehe… I wonder what Zaboru put in here," Mario mutters with a grin as he looks at the game on his screen.
Mario knows that Zaboru once had a private executive discussion with his father. During that meeting, Zaboru asked many questions about real Mafia operations and personal experiences from the Giordano family's history. Zaboru's intention was clear from the beginning. He wanted to use some of those stories and experiences as inspiration for the game Mafia so the world inside the game would feel more authentic and believable.
At the same time, Zaboru made an important promise. He assured Don Marco Giordano that the Giordano family itself would never be mentioned directly in the game. Zaboru understood that keeping the family name out of the spotlight was the safer option. After all, the more people who become curious about the Giordano family, the more attention it could bring, and attention is the last thing a powerful Mafia family wants.
Then without further ado, Mario quickly starts the game. Unfortunately, Sendou FTTH is not yet available in the United States, although the installation projects are already underway in several cities. Because of that, downloading the game took him an extremely long time. The game itself is around 4 GB in size, which means Mario had to wait almost the entire night for the download to finish. Still, he did not mind the wait too much. For a new ZAGE game, especially one called Mafia, he felt it was absolutely worth it. Now the download is finally complete, and he is more than ready to jump in and see what the game has to offer.
As he presses start, the familiar ZAGE logo appears on the screen accompanied by the iconic sound effect, "ZAA‑GEE!" The short but energetic intro immediately brings a smile to Mario's face. After that, the logo of Team Tempest appears, surrounded by swirling wind and storm effects that match the studio's name. The animation only lasts a few seconds before the screen fades into the main menu.
The menu is simple but stylish, with several available options: "New Story," "Load Story," and "Options." Mario barely spends a second looking at the menu. With clear excitement, he quickly moves the cursor and selects "New Story."
Leaning slightly closer to the screen, Mario grins as the game begins to load. He has been waiting the entire night for this moment, and now he is finally about to experience the world of the new ZAGE game for himself.
In this ZAGE version of Mafia in this world the graphics are far more impressive than the original Mafia from Zaboru's previous world, and the game is also significantly more optimized. Zaboru intentionally kept the original core story intact because it was already strong, and the central theme actually mirrors how the Giordano family operates. Since the Giordano family hates drugs, the storyline where Tommy eventually betrays Salieri after Salieri becomes greedy and starts dealing with narcotics feels especially satisfying and believable.
However, Zaboru did not stop there. He enhanced the story with many additional scenes inspired by real experiences that Don Marco Giordano once told him during their private conversations. For example, in one mission the player helps dispose of a body in a swamp where the family secretly keeps several large alligators. Don Marco once jokingly mentioned that in the past some old‑school families used animals like that to make problems disappear permanently, and Zaboru found the idea both dark and fascinating, so he added it into the game as a memorable side mission.
Another sequence added into the game shows a tense sit‑down between several Mafia families inside a dim Italian restaurant late at night. The scene is filled with quiet threats, careful words, and the constant tension that someone might pull a gun at any moment. This moment was inspired by real stories Don Marco told about negotiations between families when conflicts started getting out of control.
There is also a large story arc involving a brutal street war between Tommy's family and another criminal organization that begins secretly selling drugs to increase their profits. In the game this leads to drive‑by shootings, warehouse raids, and even a dramatic mission where Tommy and several Salierri soldiers storm a dockyard at night to stop a massive drug shipment from entering the city.
Another memorable mission has Tommy protecting a family member during a funeral because rival families might attempt an assassination. The player must watch rooftops, suspicious cars, and hidden snipers while the ceremony takes place, creating a slow but extremely tense gameplay moment.
All of these additions were inspired by the kinds of real stories Don Marco shared with Zaboru about how organized crime families actually handled conflicts, loyalty, and betrayal. Because of those inspirations, the world of the game feels far more alive and authentic, making the overall experience significantly richer and more immersive.
Gameplay‑wise, Zaboru significantly enhanced many aspects of the game. In his previous life the first Mafia game already had an excellent atmosphere and a strong story, but the gameplay itself could sometimes feel repetitive. Because of that, Zaboru expanded the systems to give players far more freedom and variety. Players can now buy different clothes for Tommy, changing how he looks depending on the situation. There are also several gun shops scattered across the city where players can purchase pistols, shotguns, rifles, and even rare absurd weapons that unlock later in the story.
Gun combat has been greatly improved as well. Weapons feel heavier and more realistic, enemies react more dynamically to gunfire, and cover mechanics allow players to fight more tactically during shootouts. Some missions even encourage stealth approaches, where Tommy can quietly infiltrate locations instead of simply shooting his way through every problem.
Beyond the main story missions, Zaboru also added a large number of side activities and mini‑games throughout the city. Players can participate in racing events, enter local boxing matches, play poker in smoky back‑room gambling halls, place bets on horse races, or even challenge other characters to arm‑wrestling competitions inside bars and clubs. These activities help make the city feel more alive and give players many ways to spend time outside the main storyline.
In many ways, Zaboru designed these features to resemble the kind of rich side content found in the Yakuza games from his previous life, though in a slightly more grounded and realistic way that still fits the serious tone of the Mafia world.
The hand‑to‑hand combat system was also improved. Tommy can throw punches, block attacks, and counter opponents during fights, especially in boxing matches or street brawls. However, Zaboru made sure the system remained believable. Tommy Vercetti is not a martial artist or a trained fighter, so while the combat is improved, it still feels rough and practical rather than overly flashy.
Overall this game is great.
Back to Mario. As he continues playing, he becomes increasingly impressed by the story of Tommy Vercetti. Starting out as nothing more than a simple cab driver who accidentally helps the Salieri family, Tommy slowly gets pulled deeper into the Mafia world. Mario finds this progression extremely interesting. Watching how an ordinary man becomes entangled in organized crime step by step feels surprisingly realistic to him.
As Mario drives through the detailed 1930s city with old jazz and swing songs playing from the in‑game radio, he cannot help but admire the atmosphere. The streets are filled with vintage cars, dim street lamps, and pedestrians dressed in old‑fashioned clothing. Every corner of the city feels alive. "Damn… this atmosphere is amazing," Mario mutters to himself while steering Tommy's car through the rain‑soaked streets.
Instead of rushing through the main missions, Mario decides to explore the city for a while. He drives around aimlessly just to see the environment, occasionally stopping at random locations. At one point he notices a boxing club and immediately decides to try it out. "Heh, why not?" he says with a grin.
Inside the club he participates in several boxing mini‑games, throwing punches and dodging attacks from other fighters. After winning a few matches he laughs loudly. "This is actually really fun!"
After that he heads to a betting track and decides to gamble on horse racing. Unfortunately luck is not on his side. When his chosen horse loses, Mario throws his hands up in frustration. "Ah damn! I lost! But still… this game is really a blast!"
Even after losing some money in the game, his excitement does not fade. He continues exploring the city, occasionally stopping at shops, bars, and other locations just to see what kind of activities are available. The more he plays, the more impressed he becomes by how much detail ZAGE puts into the world.
He also starts gathering money and buying clothes from different shops, since each store sells various types of outfits such as hats, coats, suits, and even glasses.
Eventually Mario leans back slightly in his chair and stretches his arms. "Alright… time to continue the main story." He pauses for a moment and chuckles. "But seriously, this game rocks. I need to tell Dad about this. He'll definitely appreciate how accurate some of these Mafia scenes feel."
With renewed excitement, Mario grips the mouse and keyboard again and returns to the story missions. This time he is fully focused, eager to see how Tommy's journey through the dangerous Mafia world will unfold next.
Other players who try the game also love the story. The graphics impress many people, the 1930s atmosphere feels unique, and the narrative quickly becomes one of the most talked-about aspects of the game. Overall, Mafia receives very positive reactions from players. At the same time, however, other games such as Castle of Wolvenstein and Fallout 2 are starting to stir up new discussions and controversies among "experts" again.
To be continue
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