When Electronic Arts announced that they were going to create a game out of The Godfather, groans and flippant criticisms were not far behind. It took director Frances Ford Coppola 18 years to construct his gangster trilogy, and there was deserved apprehension over the licensing of such a classic, timeless film (even if Part III was only so-so).

But when it finally landed on Playstation 2 and Xbox, fears were put to rest as Electronic Arts had, for once, used all its resources to craft a very loving and enthusiastic homage to the series. Not only did they create a respectable game out of a classic name, but they also created one that also served as an extremely solid entry into the dense library of Grand Theft Auto III clones.

Months later, it arrived on Xbox 360, and Electronic Arts deserves even more praise as this is far from a shovelware next generation upgrade. Instead, it stands as a exemplary testament to how games should be upgraded to the next generation level.

Starting on a solid foundation (you can find our Xbox review here) The Godfather for Xbox 360 is replete with subtle enhancements that are the definition of polish. Graphics are the obvious upgrade, and they do not disappoint in the slightest. Models and textures are more detailed, the world is more densely populated, and both substantially enhance the game. The story of The Godfather is very character driven, and even though this is an action title the extra attention to character details really pay off. Enhancements to explosions and particle effects are also incredibly substantial.

But the true excellence of the 360 iteration is the upgrades EA made to gameplay. There are many subtle changes one wouldn't notice without playing the original game. AI has been noticeably tweaked for the better and there are new weapons and abilities. While they strongly advertised three extra missions, all these alterations play second fiddle to two major changes that really stand out and shine.

Merchants can now be brought into line via small side quests to earn their trust and respect, and you now have the ability to recruit a crew of gangsters to help you complete your missions. It's not that The Godfather was really missing these elements before, but adding more options in how one completes a task certainly enhances the depth the game already had.

Oh, the game is still leaning toward the linear, and Michael Corleone still looks and sounds nothing like Al Pacino (ahh, lawyers). However this is the definitive version of The Godfather, and it is a tremendous accolade for EA's reputation that this respects and honors the original material so well. It would be a bit much to say that this is good enough to drag people back for a second look, but if you've not already experienced The Godfather, this is most definitely the version to experience it with.

Score: 85%

Oct 16, 2006 | 4 comments
Edward Pollard