In case leakers and publishers are quiet about important details regarding upcoming video games, your best bet about legitimate information are the job listings. For example, Hangar 13’s recent job ad for Senior 3D environment artists to create “organic art & landscapes, Unreal Engine.” The listing adds that part of the individual’s responsibility is the creation of “assets for a AAA game in a large-scale virtual environment with the focus on organic models.”
While the listing’s mention of “new Mafia franchise game” guarantees what game it is for, the key phrase is “organic models.”
Eagle-eyed observers believe this proves an earlier leak about Mafia 4’s setting as a prequel during the early days of the organization in Sicily, Italy. At the time, the Mafia spent their days on the run from Benito Musolini and his elite soldiers.
New Job Listings Likely Exclude Las Vegas or Any Large City Setting as the Setting For Mafia 4
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Of course, this doesn’t guarantee anything. Any metropolitan city when the Mafia were active can fit the description. By hiring someone specializing in organic environment art, this doesn’t mean that they’ll create swamps, like in Mafia 3, or greenery. Keep in mind that rocks are still considered an organic environment. The hiring of specialists isn’t specifically a hint for the setting of Mafia 4.
If anything, it shows just how much more massive Mafia 4 is compared to previous outings since Hangar 13 bothered to hire so many artists who will be creating so much environmental art. Either that, or it’s a massive undertaking because it will use Unreal Engine 5 and will likely be for next-gen consoles like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S/X (and maybe even the Nintendo Switch 2).
Either way, it’s accepted that Mafia 4 is a prequel to the first Mafia game. We can only presume it’s set in the early 1900s or late 1800s. Whether the location is Sicility, Italy, which is considered as the birthplace of the Mafia, remains to be seen.
We’ve heard very little about Mafia 4 since it was confirmed earlier this year and we likely won’t hear much about it for a while until it’s much closer to its release.
At the moment, it’s believed Mafia 4 (and perhaps even Mafia 5, which has already been confirmed) is part of Take-Two Interactive’s massive release pipeline through 2025.
The Mafia franchise is widely considered one of the more criminally underrated GTA-like video game franchises albeit with smaller budgets. Despite their flaws, the first three Mafia games were beloved by fans for their combat and story. If given a much larger budget to work with this time around, Hangar 13 might finally be able to make a proper Mafia game.
