Studio president Nick Baynes calls it “a linear adventure” in a world where “you can go off the beaten path and explore.”

After a YouTube ad leaked the release window, Hangar 13 showcased Mafia: The Old Country during The Game Awards with some cinematics and gameplay. The clear elephant in the room is Grand Theft Auto 6, which launches in Fall 2025 and is the latest in a series that Mafia has invited comparisons to since the first game.

However, when speaking to IGN in a new interview, game director Alex Cox and Hangar 13 president Nick Baynes clarified that they’re different titles. Baynes described The Old Country as “comparable” to Mafia 1 and 2 instead of Mafia 3.

“I think the way that we would describe Mafia 1 and 2, and I think a lot of fans would, is it’s a linear adventure that’s set in a world around you that you can go off the beaten path and explore, but really the game’s taking you down that path of the story. So I think if you use Mafia 1 or 2 as touch points of what it’s like, that’s certainly closer than Mafia 3.”

And yes, that means it’s not quite an open-world title, at least not in the “strictest sense”, per Cox. Baynes added, “The way I describe it is you’re not going to be playing Mafia: The Old Country and going off and doing endless side quests and doing activities in the world.

“We want players to go through and experience a story, but set in this beautiful world. And if you are going along a path and want to go over here and explore, in many cases, you can do that because the world exists around you. But we’re encouraging you to go through the story.

“One of the things I love about these games is people tend to complete them because they want to find out what happens. And again, this is a trend with this game as well. We want people to go through and experience the whole story.”

It won’t say the game is “purely linear” since it sounds “too tight” or that it’s “open-world” which is “too broad,” hence the comparison to the first two Mafia games. “Open-world is a very loaded term, and it’s a conversation we have had many times regarding, ‘Should we use this word or not?’ And the answer is kind of yes and no. I hope that helps you!”

Mafia: The Old Country is out in Summer 2025 for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. As a prequel set in 1900s Sicily, it focuses on Enzo Favara, an indentured laborer who joins the Don Torrisi family for a better life. Of course, that means committing more than a few crimes. Stay tuned for more details in the coming months.