The Mafia series has received some great news about its future, after developer Hangar 13 hired a new Narrative Director. Following the hire, indications are that Hangar 13 will look to follow up on last year’s Mafia: The Old Country at some point in the future.
Mafia is well over two decades old at this point, with the first release in the series dating back to 2002. Across its 24-year history, the Mafia series has released four mainline titles, plus a remake of the original game, the latest being 2025’s Mafia: The Old Country. It was the third game in the series from Hangar 13, which took over development from the now-defunct studio, 2K Czech. Mafia: The Old Country received modest reviews, with a Top Critic Average of 74 on review aggregator site OpenCritic. While its narrative was praised, criticism fell on its dated gameplay mechanics.
Mafia: The Old Country Doesn’t Reinvent the Wheel, and That’s Okay
Mafia: The Old Country’s gameplay and mechanics don’t bring anything new to the table, but that definitely isn’t a bad thing.
Mafia Series Gets a New Narrative Director
A LinkedIn post from Emily Grace Buck has revealed that she has been hired as the new Narrative Director for the Mafia franchise at Hangar 13 going forward. Buck is due to start her role in June, arriving on the back of nearly four years at DICE as the Studio Narrative Director on the Battlefield franchise. Her previous credits also include time as a Narrative Design Lead at Ubisoft Reflections, and over three years as a Narrative Designer at Telltale Games, working on games such as The Walking Dead: The Final Season, Batman: The Telltale Series, and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series.
The implication beyond this is that the Mafia developer needs someone to shape the franchise’s narrative going forward, meaning there will indeed be new games in the future. Mafia: The Old Country was a modest seller for Take-Two, which, in this day and age, often isn’t enough. However, this is great news for those who want to see the series continue. Buck was unable to say, revealing when asked in her LinkedIn comments that, because she hasn’t started yet, she doesn’t know whether a new game is on the way anytime soon.
There has typically been a significant period of time before the release of mainline Mafia games. Not including 2020’s Mafia remake, the shortest gap between new titles in the series was six years with Mafia 2 and 3. Between the third game in the series and Mafia: The Old Country in 2025, there was a nine-year gap. With this in mind, fans shouldn’t expect Hangar 13 to be far along in the development of a new Mafia title, as history suggests that there’s a considerable wait to be had yet.
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
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Hangar 13 has yet to comment on the possibility of a new Mafia game, but there is one more reason why it’s definitely a distinct possibility. Last year, actress Carina Conti, who played Isabella Torrisi in Mafia: The Old Country, claimed that a new Mafia title was in the works. This should be taken with a grain of salt until Hangar 13 reveals anything itself, but for now, it’s the most significant piece of evidence that fans have to speculate on.
- Released
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August 8, 2025
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, In-Game Purchases
