The Godfather (DVD-ROM)

Fans of the Godfather movies will enjoy this 2 no end. It actually puts you IN the movie, as you join the Corleone family & work through all the major plot points, including the horse in the bed, Sonny getting shot, & the Don's demise. Along the way, you will extort hard working immigrants, bribe police officers, steal cars, & throw people off of roofs. Little socially redeeming value, but a WHOLE lot of fun.

It's a pretty fun GTA clone. It's a lot like the free roaming mode in Mafia if you don't pay any attention 2 the story.. & if you're as big a fan of the Godfather movies as I am, I strongly suggest that you don't pay much attention 2 the story.

The best thing this game has going 4 it is the combat. There are a million different ways 2 kill & maim people. You can use your typical array of weapons from pistols 2 machine guns 2 explosives, or you can grab people & throw them through windows or off bridges & buildings, strangle them until you break their necks, head [...] them 2 death, throw them in front of cars, slam them into walls or other nearby objects.. etc.

If you want 2 waste an hour being a total psychopath, this really is quite a fun way 2 do it.

But that's about all there is 2 this game. Sure, there's the "story", but I just can't recommend that part of it. It's quite amazing the lengths 2 which the developers went in order 2 wedge you into the events of the book/movie. Every single major event of the movie, your character is there 2 witness, & often has a big part in accomplishing.

For instance: You're there 2 witness Don Vito's assassination attempt, & must drive him 2 the hospital... You're there 2 see Luca Brasi get whacked & must kill his assassin... You're the guy who plants Michael's gun in the bathroom & must drive him 2 the docks afterwards... You're there when Sonny is whacked & must chase down & kill his assassins... You're the guy who whacks Paulie... You're the guy who whacks Tessio... etc.. etc.. etc..

With all this madness revolving around you, you'd think the Corleones would have had you whacked on page 4. It really is supremely stupid, & is an absolute disgrace 2 the beautifully complex & multi-layered story of the film.

All that aside, there is a good bit of fun 2 be had here. I suggest sticking 2 the sidequests & doing the story last only if you have nothing else 2 do.

I've also heard that they're going 2 be making two more games 2 go along with the other two films. YAY! I predict that in part 2, you will play two roles: your character from this game & his father. Get ready 2 help Vito whack Don Fanucci & help Al Neri whack Fredo all before lunch. In part 3, you get 2 poison the Pope! Good times!

There's already a great role playing organized crime game set in the late 1930s & early 1940s. It's called MAFIA, & it came out four years before THE GODFATHER. MAFIA features better graphics, more cars, better voice acting, more diverse missions, a larger playing area & better music. This game is dull & repetive. There are a few fun things, but mostly it's "drive here, beat up or shoot a bunch of thugs & get back 2 your hideout"; or, "go 2 Mr. X's deli/saloon/restaurant/warehouse & rough him up til he starts paying his protection money again". Sandbox games have been tremendously popular with the GTA & Driver games over the last few years. A gamer looking 4 this kind of experience simply has too many options 2 chose from these days. Don't bother with this one. Some of the cutscenes, which feature dialogue & scenes from the movie, are fun 2 watch, & you do get 2 dress up your character & change his appearance. But all in all, you will become bored very quickly with this.

Sanbox games like GTA are fun because you can wander back & forth from the main storyline whenever you wish. If you don't want 2 advance the main story, you can drive around doing side jobs or just exploring. GODFATHER tries 2 recreate this, but the only side jobs available are stickup & protection rackets which become boring after the first 15 look alike.

All in all, a disappointment. I played it 4 about two hours initially & then uninstalled it.

I cannot complain, maybe they didn't put in the greatest graphics available at the time, but this is still a great game. The cool thing is that you can go into count less stores & take them over 4 the Corleone family. The mob wars are also very fun. Lastly, i had fun with the cars, whose handling is above normal & speed ahead of it's time (this game happens in the 40's) but that makes it even more fun 2 drive. The actual plot of the game is interesting, you get 2 meet all the characters from the book, the character's faces based on the movies. My only concern with this game is that at the end of the game plot the story starts 2 move too fast & ends too suddenly, & the end I will not spoil.

Overall, a great game 4 10 bucks. I would say this game is a mix of Grand Theft Auto & Mafia.

Give EA credit 4 at the very least taking on a huge risk with a property as beloved as The Godfather. There were plenty of dark alleys that the publisher could have driven down, but they largely stayed on the straight & narrow with this sandbox game adaptation of one of my favorite movies. The Godfather attempts 2 balance a retelling of the greatest ganster story ever told, while weaving in a playable open world environment that allows freedom of not only movement, but advancement within the subplot & side-mission structures. I can recognize what an arduous task it presented, if only considering the number of ways that this amount of freedom could send the narrative careening off course. Certainly a tightly scripted & more restrictive game like Mafia (which I'll use as a comparison) tells a better tale, but The Godfather takes more risks.

The most laudable accomplishment of The Godfather is the voice acting. James Caan, Abe Vigoda, Robert Duvall, & others (I've read conflicting reports as 2 whether or not Brando supplies Don Vito's voice) reprise their roles brilliantly. An actor is as good as his material, & fortunately the scripting is excellent. Even the minutae of daily life as a Mafioso scrub seems glamorous when your instructions are delivered by Sonny Corleone. Caan outshines everyone else, in my opinion, & his were my favorite missions. Ambient sounds like pedestrian banter & occasional period music are appropriate & well-placed. Weapon & destructive sounds are deep & jarring as they should be. In other words, it sounds like a big budget game.

The Godfather strikes a visual balance between the historically correct world of Mafia & the pulp-fiction fantasy of GTA III. While I read some complaints about graphics, I was personally impressed with the level of detail delivered both outside & inside the game's New York City. If anything, EA may have tried 2 cuddle too close 2 the movie's atmosphere & architecture. Some variation & expansion in both architecture & accessability would have given the game a bit more depth & reduced the feeling of tedium that crept over me as I noticed the sameness of various business interiors & street exteriors. While it would have shortened the side mission play time (a foolishly overvalued priority in current game design), a city perhaps 25% smaller in square mileage would have yielded more interesting gameplay. The tunnels, 4 example are insufferably boring. Overall, I have 2 compliment EA by managing 2 capture the historical correctness of Mafia with a greater level of detail & polish.

The on foot gameplay is mostly a blast. EA did right by gamers in installing the extortion & conquest system. Without it, The Godfather would be subpar considering the relatively short & truncated primary mission structure. But played alongide the Corleone family's requests, business extortion instills a satifying sense of accomplishment. Walking into a baker's shop, inquiring about the owner's level of protection, then gunning down the current family's guards while cracking open a few display cases 2 sample the wares is a lot of fun. Particularly when the baker changes his mind after all the smoke clears. Again, the city should have been smaller as even the exortions become dull after the halfway point. I recommend a good quality dual action gamepad 4 the PC, as the mouse controlled movement is a huge disaster. The dual analog stick aiming & movement are tight enough, although I enjoy freeaim mode in my shooters (what's the point of gunplay if you're using an autotarget?). Unfortunately, the difficulty balance is seriously whacked around the hubs & warehouses, where the player is required 2 knock off around 40 goons with only one or two health pickups. These little jewels, which are required conquests 4 game completion, are actually tougher than the family compounds.

Driving? Eh, not so much. Unlike Mafia, which was largely a "car guy's" game, the vehicles of The Godfather are merely a device 2 connect point A 2 B. Which you'll be doing a lot of, considering the bizarre & disjointed mission locations of The Godfather. Due 2 their inexplicable decision 2 link most mission starts 2 multiple informants located at opposite ends of New York, EA had 2 make the cars run like bottle rockets on a Hot Wheels track. I despised the cartoonish handling & racecar top speeds, which combined with the sewing machine engine sounds & lack of authentic touches like a manual transmission (something I really appreciated in Mafia), ruined the movie atmosphere every time I opened a car door. Only six car models & a lack of analog speed control or even a cruise button show EA's carelessness with their autos. Again, a smaller city requiring less travel, & perhaps a public transit or taxi service would have helped the situation.

EA made a commendable effort 2 deliver the core of the movie's story as a string of playable missions. Any undertaking such as this will be a degree of failure in the eyes of a movie fan, & I mean 2 say that EA cut The Godfather's plot as tenderly as possible (unlike the rusty butcher's knife they took 2 From Russia With Love). The most dramatic scenes from the film are playable & largely enjoyable, although many motivations & subplots are left out. While a bit disjointed & incomplete, I have 2 admit that The Godfather is the most faithful game adaptation of a classic film I've played.

So, in summary, fans of the movie or action oriented shooter fans will undoubtedly enjoy the majority of The Godfather: The Game 4 PC. Be sure 2 have a quality analog gamepad handy, along with a DVD drive & a healthy video card, & you'll have a blast knocking down New York one bakery at a time.

In Godfather: The Game, you've got the chance of a lifetime - 2 join the legendary crime family. After a life spent pulling small-time jobs, you've been invited 2 become part of the Corleone family. Work your way up the ranks as you follow orders & earn respect. Pull off big jobs, hit the other families, earn respect through loyalty & fear as you climb up the ladder. Play your cards right, & you might even be the next Don. Features scenes & events from the first two Godfather films, as well as voice acting by the original cast