In the last few days, a handful of job listings have appeared online hinting that the next Mafia game will be set outside America. After being reported on Reddit, fans are beginning to speculate.
Hangar 13, developer of Mafia 4, have begun advertising for Senior 3D environment artists to focus on "organic art & landscapes, Unreal engine." The listing goes on to say the artist will need to be able to create, "assets for a AAA game in a large-scale virtual environment with the focus on organic models."
The listing continues, "He/she defines, develops and maintains high-end-run game environments and contributes to the new Mafia franchise game." So, we know for sure they're being hired to work on a Mafia game.
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The key wording in all of this is 'organic models.' If Mafia 4 were to be set in a city, there likely wouldn't be such a focus on creating organic 3D models. Of course, the game could still be set in America, but outside of key cities from the mafia's past. However, fans of the game are speculating this will be a prequel set in Sicily and show the rise of the mafia.
One comment points out the game could be set during "the mafia's dog days, when they were ruthlessly hunted by a troop of elite soldiers on orders of Benito Musolini."
It's worth taking the listing with a pinch of salt. Depending on the time period, Mafia 4 could still be set in the US, but will perhaps show the earlier grassroots days of the mafia, before shifting to a city setting. There's also the fact that both Mafia 4 and Mafia 5 have been announced, so there's a chance Hangar 13 is hiring for the fifth game.
However it pans out, at least we know that Mafia 4 is in production and hopefully we get to see some footage in the not to distant future.
Featured Image Credit: 2K GamesTopics: PC, PlayStation, Xbox