Mafia III Definitive Edition

Mafia III: Definitive Edition is a PC open-world crime action game set in 1968 New Bordeaux, a fictional city inspired by New Orleans. Steam and Epic currently list the game under this exact Definitive Edition name. It is the complete edition of Lincoln Clay's story, combining the main campaign with its story expansions and bonus packs rather than introducing a separate remake of the original game.

Lincoln Clay's revenge in New Bordeaux

You play as Lincoln Clay, a Vietnam veteran whose surrogate family is betrayed and murdered by the Italian Mafia. The campaign follows his attempt to dismantle the city's criminal hierarchy while building a new organization of his own.

New Bordeaux is an open-world setting built around districts, criminal rackets, safehouses, businesses, roads, waterways, and hostile territory. The game uses a third-person perspective for exploration, driving, shooting, melee combat, and stealth encounters.

The main loop is direct: investigate a racket, identify the people controlling it, disrupt its operations, and decide which lieutenant receives control afterward. These choices alter the balance between Cassandra, Burke, and Vito Scaletta, creating tension inside Lincoln's new family as the campaign progresses.

Combat, stealth, and territory control

Mafia III supports several approaches to the same objective. You can push through with brute-force gunfights, use suppressed weapons and distractions for stealth takedowns, or combine cover shooting with close-quarters executions when enemies are isolated.

Cover is central to firefights, but Lincoln is not limited to staying behind a wall and trading shots. He can blindfire, move between cover positions, perform takedowns, call allies for support, and use upgrades that improve his weapons, health, vehicle access, and tactical options.

Driving is part of the mission structure rather than a separate racing mode. New Bordeaux's roads connect objectives, rackets, hideouts, and story locations, while vehicle handling and police attention affect how safely Lincoln can move through the city.

The criminal empire system

The most distinctive system is the racket takeover loop. Each district contains criminal operations that must be weakened before Lincoln can confront the local leader. Completing objectives exposes the structure of a racket and turns the open world into a sequence of targeted pressure campaigns.

After taking control of a district, you assign it to one of Lincoln's lieutenants. Rewards can unlock crew abilities, weapons, vehicles, upgrades, and other services, but favoritism has consequences. Keeping the lieutenants balanced can preserve loyalty, while repeatedly rewarding one faction creates friction elsewhere.

This is not a traditional role-playing game with a large branching dialogue tree. Its meaningful decisions are tied to territory ownership, lieutenant loyalty, mission order, and the final shape of Lincoln's organization. The result is a campaign about management through violence, not an abstract character-stat simulator.

What the Definitive Edition includes

The current package includes the main game, all three story expansions, and the bonus content associated with the original release. The story additions are Faster, Baby!, Stones Unturned, and Sign of the Times.

Faster, Baby! shifts attention toward high-speed pursuits and a new investigation involving activists and law enforcement. Stones Unturned adds a separate operation involving Lincoln, Donovan, and a returning threat. Sign of the Times takes the series into a darker mystery built around ritualistic crimes and altered perception.

The edition also contains the Family Kick-Back Pack and Judge, Jury & Executioner Weapons Pack. Players comparing old listings should therefore check the contents carefully: the Definitive Edition is the straightforward all-content option, while the Epic listing also identifies the base game as single-player with additional downloadable content available separately in that storefront presentation.

Who should play it?

Mafia III is a strong fit for players who want a story-driven crime sandbox, a grounded third-person shooter, period atmosphere, and a campaign where criminal territory is taken apart one operation at a time.

It is less suitable for players expecting constant mission variety, deep role-playing statistics, competitive multiplayer, or a densely reactive simulation in every street. The campaign deliberately repeats its racket structure, so the central question is whether the evolving character relationships and setting are enough to keep that loop engaging.

The game also works best for players who value presentation and character drama over pure mechanical novelty. Its strongest identity comes from Lincoln's revenge story, New Bordeaux's music and visual period detail, and the uneasy politics of building a criminal family from the ashes of another.

PC storefront and platform details

On PC, the game is sold through Steam and Epic Games Store under the exact name Mafia III: Definitive Edition. The developer is Hangar 13, and the publisher is 2K. Steam lists achievements, Steam Cloud, Family Sharing, and Remote Play features, while the Epic version requires an Epic account through its launcher.

Steam lists support for keyboard and mouse play alongside controller functionality, with interface, subtitles, and full audio available in English, French, Italian, German, and Spanish. Additional text and interface localization includes Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Czech, Russian, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, and Korean; these languages do not all include full voice audio.

The PC version includes configurable display and input options, including control remapping, mouse and controller sensitivity settings, aim assistance, driving assistance, field-of-view adjustment, and windowed or fullscreen presentation. Players interested in broader open-world crime sandboxes can compare its mission structure with large-scale criminal open worlds such as Grand Theft Auto V, although Mafia III places more emphasis on a single protagonist and organized territory control.

Similar PC games and genre fit

The closest comparison depends on what you want from Mafia III. Players seeking a larger sandbox with multiple protagonists, heists, and more systemic freedom may prefer Grand Theft Auto V. Players who want a more playful open-world approach to stealth, gadgets, and cooperative experimentation can look toward third-person urban sandboxes like Watch Dogs 2.

Within the Mafia series, the earlier Definitive Edition games are more focused on linear gangster narratives and period crime drama. Mafia III is the outlier: it expands the city, adds a repeatable district-conquest structure, and places lieutenant management at the center of progression.

Mafia III: Definitive Edition FAQ

Is Mafia III: Definitive Edition the current PC name?

Yes. Steam and Epic currently list the PC game as Mafia III: Definitive Edition. It is the complete edition associated with the original Mafia III campaign, not a new standalone sequel.

Does the Definitive Edition include the story DLC?

Yes. The package includes Faster, Baby!, Stones Unturned, and Sign of the Times, along with the Family Kick-Back and Judge, Jury & Executioner bonus packs.

Is Mafia III: Definitive Edition multiplayer?

No. The PC storefront listings identify it as a single-player game. Its progression, territory decisions, and story missions are designed for solo play.

Can you choose how to approach missions?

Yes. Lincoln can use direct gunfights, cover shooting, stealth, suppressed weapons, distractions, melee takedowns, and crew abilities. The available approach depends on the location and objective, but the game consistently supports both loud and quiet tactics.

What makes the empire system different?

Districts are divided into criminal rackets that Lincoln must investigate and dismantle. Afterward, control is assigned to a lieutenant, and those assignments affect loyalty, rewards, and the internal balance of Lincoln's organization.

What languages are supported on PC?

Steam lists 13 supported languages. English, French, Italian, German, and Spanish include full audio, interface, and subtitles, while Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Czech, Russian, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, and Korean provide interface and subtitle localization.