Author: valleyreading

Mafia: The Old Country (PS5)

I am a bit of a gamer and I have been looking forward to this latest release in the Mafia series of video games. Mafia: The Old Country (TOC) follows on from the 2016 release of Mafia III, and the remastered versions of Mafia & Mafia II.

Unlike Mafia III which saw the series try an open-world approach to the game, TOC sees a return to the linear nature of the game, with it being story driven and a much more tighter experience. We are spoiled by open-world games and to many this is a letdown but I find it is a great approach to this series with a more story based and cinematic experience. There is still plenty do in game during missions, and collectables to collect.

The graphics and ambience of the game are simply stunning, it is beautiful game visually and it feels alive during the missions and it is a game I would return to. Outside of missions there is a sort of free exploration in the Carcyclopedia mode. There you can wander and there is some things to do but not much. This is something perhaps that will be fleshed out in the future or maybe some DLC to expand the game.

As enjoyable as the game is, it is about 15 hours long, you simply want more! More things to do outside of the missions. There are lots of things they could add like races, both horses and vehicles, gambling, knife fights (great fun), debt collection or protection.

The story was very well done and I don’t feel any of it was wasted, the problem was it could have given more. It really was a cinematic experience and lots of call backs to the typical Mafia tropes and it felt like The Godfather when Michael was in Sicily. The game features call backs to the other Mafia games like San Celeste from Vito’s army missions in Mafia II, Samuele Trapani being the Sam from Mafia, and a key thread binding all four games together Leone “Leo” Galante, as well as several other characters who feature in the previous games. The game was full of great characters especially Luca, and Tino, Enzo was very well rounded too albeit naive.

This game is clearly a sequel and plays like one, it is interesting to see where the series goes from here. It is very exciting too and I hope there isn’t a long wait for maybe Mafia IV, something set in Las Vegas charting the rise of the mob and Casinos would be a lot of fun.

All in all a wonderful game and one of my favourite’s through the series and welcome return to the linear story driven game, over the open-world of Mafia III. If there was more to do it would be a perfect 10. The game is 9/10 for me

The Devil’s Flute Murders by Seishi Yokomizo

Its been a while since I read one of Seishi Yokomizo’s Detective Kosuke Kindaichi novels and I fancied catching up on the series with a new one due to be released this coming week.

This read was a great one and very readable and flows nicely. It was an interesting case involving a family and a locked room murder and the devilish apparition of an already dead family member. The plot was very cunning and I didn’t guess the culprit. There is a bit of incest in the plot which was a surprise and may be a trigger for some.

Though these are old books they aren’t dated and are very readable and enjoyable. I have the next one ready to read. The Little Sparrow Murders.

A History of Britain in Ten Enemies by Terry Deary

A light and enjoyable read from the creator of the children’s books Horrible Histories. Though I enjoyed it I did expect more from it. As far as entertainment goes it hits the mark with the facts and humour.

Compared to something like Unruly by David Mitchell it falls a bit below par, and given the reputation of Horrible Histories I expected more. It was enjoyable but could have been better.

A little all over the place with the events like for example the French or Normans you go from 1066 to 1300s. Glossing over a large chunk of history.

Essentially the enemies starts with the Romans and ends with the Germans, though given our Royal family and history then the ‘enemies’ actually won in the end…

White Nights by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

A beautiful read, a short story that will linger long in the memory and one that will be revisited. Clear to see how Dostoyevsky is a master of his craft and gets right to the heart of the human condition.

At times this was heart warming and heart breaking, two lonely souls who find love and a connection however fleeting it may be. Though I finished reading this yesterday it has lingered in my mind all day, it was heartbreakingly beautiful and I found myself empathising and feeling the lead characters loneliness in life, something I have lived through and live through too. We all have our own loneliness in life and have wasted years we later look back on with regret and sadness. This passage really hit me.

Ultimately the character in this story is an early version nice guy who gets friendzoned.

The second short story I read but didn’t care for, its the titular story that gets all the glory