The Godfather II Image
Metascore

Mixed or average reviews - based on 29 Critics What's this?

User Score

Mixed or average reviews- based on 27 Ratings

  • Summary: After being promoted by Michael Corleone to Don of New York, players expand to new cities, as they build up their families through extorting businesses, monopolizing illegal crime rings and defeating new families in an effort to become the most powerful mob family in America. To help players manage their empire, The Godfather II introduces "The Don's View" – an innovative strategy meta-game that allows players to oversee the entire world as they grow the family business. Using the Don's View, players will be able to build, defend and expand their crime rings, while keeping an eye on the movements and plans of the rival families. Players will also learn to master the business of organized crime by building a family of Made Men, hiring crew, handing out orders, and promoting their best men up the ranks. Set in a stunning open-world environment, The Godfather II expands on the popular gameplay mechanics of the first game and doubles down on the series' signature BlackHand control scheme, which now features even more visceral hand-to-hand brutality at your fingertips, introducing a new combo system, pressure tactics and executions. In The Godfather II, players fight alongside their hand-picked crew, who have their own skills and expertise. Each family member specializes in a specific field such as demolitions, arson, engineering, first-aid and more. As The Don you control the family, sending some of your men on missions while heading off into action with others. The combination of strategic organized crime gameplay and brutal BlackHand action promises to set The Godfather II apart from other open-world games. Play The Godfather II online multiplayer modes and become the true Don of Dons. Take your money, weapons, and crew from your single-player experience online and wage mob warfare against up to 16 players from around the world. Play as one of the family’s crew specialists and put your best strategies to the test as you take over territory and strike back at rivals. Earn upgrades and money that can be used in your single-player experience. [Electronic Arts] Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 29
  2. Negative: 5 out of 29
  1. The Godfather II doesn't trip over the ambition of its design - it balances the different genre aspects extremely well - but nagging graphics issues weigh it down, causing quest characters and family members to disappear or distort in-game and in cutscenes, sometimes requiring me to load old saved games to progress. [Apr 2009, p.82]
  2. Dominic’s criminal activities remind me of GTA. The first one in 3D to be exact – the one released for PC seven years ago. But despite its prehistoric visuals I like it in some kind of way. The don mode adds some strategic challenge to the quite simple (and in a couple of missions even quite boring) gameplay. Not a perfect mafia game, but if you have never played GTA4 before, you’ll be well-entertained.
  3. The game feels like it came out a few years too late. GTA is much more modern in every way, but the strategy elements are unique and can be a lot of fun. On the other hand, the game is far too violent. That some opponents are immortal except when brutally executed just serves one purpose: voyeurism - and plays into the hands of people asking for video games to be banned.
  4. Bizarrely creaky tech masks nice ideas. [May 2009, p.66]

See all 29 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 11
  2. Negative: 4 out of 11
  1. I've got to say with all the negative reviews I was wary of trying the game. I've also got to say that I was pleasantly surprised. This is not a perfect game, but it is a very solid one. The Dons view, and the ability to pick and promote members of your family offer a nice, if slight, strategy edge to what is otherwise a slightly above average action game. It's no GTA4 or Mass Effect, but a very fun game nonetheless. If you can pick this up for any system at a bargain bin somewhere I would say it's definitely worth $20 or so. Expand
  2. SD
    7
    This game is fine if viewed as a respectable third person shooter with a few bells and whistles. The scenario - The GF2 - is essentially a bonus, the plot wafer thin, and variety somewhat lacking. If proper family development, upgrades that really make a difference, and some more serious challenges had been included, it could have been a great game. As it is, what it amounts to is a shooter. That said, though, it is competently done, and the combat is fun for short periods at a time, so it's not a disaster by any means. Expand
  3. Its pretty much like the previous game, except reskinned to look like the 50's. They should have remade everything from scratch but instead we have the same average looking graphics, repetitive side missions. Decent gameplay, the gunplay is your standard fair but the improvements here is being able to overview the city what stores and businesses can provide something for the family and new made men to recruit into the family. The melee combat is a bit better than before which adds a series of combo's. While this sounds good what lets it all down is the game is ridiculously easy. Theres health potions that fall from every enemy you kill and your health regenerates. You can take over the city on your own you don't even need any made men to come with you...
    Multiplayer is terrible. Its wasted potential.
    Expand
  4. 4
    I had a alright time with the godfather 2. There is however no denying that the game gets extremely repetitive, that the gameplay is unvaried, that the cars drives like **** that the world is small and shallow, that the narrative is lacking, that the action is unsatisfying, that the graphics feels old and dated, that the mission design is a joke, that the AI is a joke and that the game is short (8 hours long). The game is not beyond saving though and at the very least its playable. I had a alright time with it and if you find the game for a cheap buck and you are a sucker for gangster sandbox games you could do worse. I just feel sad for the people who bought this budget-title for full-price. Expand

See all 11 User Reviews