Mafia II “Well Below Expectations,” Profit Unlikely Says Analyst Pachter

Wedbush Morgan’s Michael Pachter has said that 1k Czech’s Mafia II won’t turn in a profit.

“Mafia II’s average Metacritic score of 74 is well below expectations, and consumer interest appears to be waning, as the game’s position has dropped in many best-seller lists in its first week. With six years in development, we believe the game is unlikely to achieve profitability,” Pachter said.

“With longer development cycles, Take-Two has a profitability threshold higher than its peers. We believe that the company must focus on streamlining its development process and providing better visibility on future game releases.

“Despite a multitude of recent game announcements, Take-Two’s share price has taken a battering recently, reflecting investor disappointment that there has been no update on the next Grand Theft Auto, which appears to have potentially slipped to 2012.”

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Written By on August 31st, 2010 Categories: Industry News, News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360 Tags:

53 Responses to “Mafia II “Well Below Expectations,” Profit Unlikely Says Analyst Pachter”

  1. Can’t wait to get my hands dirty on Mafia II. 😛 I can still remember the good ol’ memories of the original one when I first played it back in 2003. :mrgreen:

  2. @sng425

    Bro, you should definitely play it. I finished it already. Just a note though. Don’t go expecting a GTA type gameplay. Mafia 2 is all about the story and is heavy on cutscenes. Yes, it is set in an open world, but there are not enough missions outside the main storyline to take advantage of all that gorgeous city. But a really good game.

    Oh, and got Red Dead Redemption (PS3) today. Can’t stop playing it. :mrgreen:

  3. @Sng425

    I didnt play the original but i will surely play Mafia 2.Its about 47% completed so have to wait more to get my hands on it.Kane and Lynch 2 is about to finish its about 97% will tell u my verdict pretty soon as i promised :mrgreen:
    Bro,you have finished Red Dead Redemption before can u give me a anecdote if possible cuz i m thinking about getting it next week for my ps3.

    @TheGamingWiz

    Maybe Mafia 2 is more like Godfather series games from EA not like Grand Theft Auto series from rockstar.

  4. @sng425

    oh i forgot ur gonna submit a in-depth review of that.Sorry! i will wait for that :mrgreen:

  5. @The Gaming Wiz/Mushfiqur Rahman

    “Don’t go expecting a GTA type gameplay.”

    I would never expect a GTA type gameplay from a game like Mafia II. Currently, I’m expecting a bit more enhanced & improvised gameplay from Mafia II than the original. :mrgreen:

    “Yes, it is set in an open world, but there are not enough missions outside the main storyline to take advantage of all that gorgeous city.”

    Ain’t that the disadvantage of the first one also? the first one was also set in the open world, but the storyline followed an extremely linear gameplay that the players didn’t even get to explore the city.

    “Oh, and got Red Dead Redemption (PS3) today. Can’t stop playing it. :mrgreen:”

    Well, I’ve also had the same situation when I first played it ! looks like you also got addicted to it like me ! :mrgreen:

  6. @Rabbi

    “I didnt play the original but i will surely play Mafia 2.”

    Well, you must have missed out a really good game then. However, The PC version of the game was good, but the console version that was later ported to the PS2 & Xbox was awful ! I really hated it ! 👿

    “Bro,you have finished Red Dead Redemption before can u give me a anecdote if possible cuz i m thinking about getting it next week for my ps3.”

    My review for RDR is almost half-way done, but it would take at least a few more days for me to come to a completion. So, I would rather suggest you to get it. I’m quite certain that you won’t regret about it. :mrgreen:

  7. @Sng425

    Sad thing is, I too didn’t play the original Mafia. Guess that’s why I don’t get why so many people are complaining about Mafia II.

  8. @sng425

    bro,played Kane and Lynch 2 Dog Days for sometime and its a good game not a outstanding like Assassins Creed II though.I am summarizing my view of the game.Waiting to play Mafia II 😛

    (+)ve’s
    *Fast Paced Action
    *Good Graphics and Optimized as well
    *Cutscenes are well placed and balanced in the game [Really Good Camera Angles during that too]
    *Sprint animation is fluid and endearing to watch
    (=)ve’s
    *Too Buggy
    *Gameplay mechanics are not that enhanced
    *Gibberish Weapon management system
    *Peculiar Story
    *Accessability is poor
    *Cover Management is really bad

  9. @The Gaming Wiz/Mushfiqur Rahman

    Am I the only one here who played the original Mafia? Hopefully not. As long as I remember, the original Mafia was blessed with a good score from the critics & was considered as a smashing hit, then why didn’t you play it? 😕

    “I don’t get why so many people are complaining about Mafia II”

    I guess the only reason behind it is because of its developer, 2K Czech(Formerly known as Illusion Softworks) is not so experienced or proficient like all the other known game developers like Rockstar, EA, Ubisoft etc. So its quite sensible that there might be some shortcomings in their games as well. And maybe that’s why people complain about it even though all of the Mafia titles are really good games and has made a good impression along the all other games that are similar to its nature. :mrgreen:

  10. @Rabbi

    Thanks for the resumé 😛

  11. @sng425

    My Pleasure. got a Razer Lachesis mouse today :mrgreen: also a razer mat, i guess i missed the Red Dead Redemption for that now Oh Well! Cant wait to take out the competition 😈 :mrgreen:

  12. @Rabbi

    That Razer is a sweet mouse. I had a Logitech with a Zboard mouse mat. Funny thing, I kept the plastic covering that the mouse mat came in. Short to say, the Logitech died on me. *Sigh* Didn’t know how slow it is to aim with a normal mouse and yes I always play with the sensitivity turned up to max.

  13. @Sng425

    I was sooo into GTA those days that I didn’t check out Mafia. My friend played the original one and I remember he always kept telling me to play it and how great that one was.

  14. @TheGamingWiz

    Its sad that ur one died 🙁 Yeah ur right and its a very exotic mouse specially those razer exclusive leds 😛 I cant even think of getting the dpi to max 😈 too sensitive.Cuz 5600dpi is a overkill in my opinion.Only a gaming prodigy can kick ass in 5600dpi in fps games.1600dpi is the default setting for me but never can control anything over 2000dpi well 😥 To say the truth i was in the same situation as u are back in the 2003’s.I also heard about mafia from people around me but i was too addicted to gta back then like u so didnt play that :mrgreen:

  15. @Rabbi

    5600dpi? I wonder how fast it could be when controlling it(especially on a fps)? wouldn’t it be too blurry? 😕 for me, the default setting should be in 1600dpi like you, I also can’t control the sensitivity above that. 😥

  16. @sng425

    yeah 5600dpi is too fast to handle but i think heavy RTS gamers need the 5600dpi speed more than the fps players.I can handle upto 2000dpi with precision.I can change the dpi sensitivity when playing fps like taking down the dpi to 400 when using sniper rifles for better precision and when i get the assault rifle i bump it to 2000dpi.Overall it improved my shooting caliber thus improved my scores in online fps games like Crossfire :mrgreen:

  17. @Rabbi

    “I can change the dpi sensitivity when playing fps like taking down the dpi to 400 when using sniper rifles for better precision and when i get the assault rifle i bump it to 2000dpi.”

    Well, I must say that’s a good contrivance indeed for all those fps gamers who are having problem with the mouse sensitivity while using different weapons ! By the way, got both Kane & Lynch 2 : Dog Days & Mafia II. Haven’t played Kane & Lynch 2 though, just because I do have some plan to play the campaign in co-op with a friend. I’ll post my anecdote as soon as I finish the campaign. :mrgreen:

  18. @The Gaming Wiz/Mushfiqur Rahman

    Just played the first two chapters of Mafia II and its awesome ! 😛 Honestly, I really didn’t expect that much from a game that’s coming from a developer like 2k czech. It turns out that they’ve really worked hard in all this years of developing the game. But it could have been better if they would have made it a little bit earlier. I wonder why did they take so much time(its almost 6 years, if i’m not wrong) to develop this game? I hope they don’t release the next sequel to Mafia II in 2018… :mrgreen:

  19. @sng425

    No Problem! 😉 co-Op should be more fun than playing solo.Kane and Lynch 2 has just got better as it progressed and its more enjoyable to me now that i could add some more positives right away.Anyway pre-Eid Mubarak to you and TheGamingWIz also to everyone in the GamerworldBD community and have a nice time :mrgreen:

  20. @Sng425

    Yes! Another gamer converted to Mafia II. :mrgreen:

    On a serious note, I doubt it will take them that long to make the next Mafia. Six years?! Ouch. It would be heart breaking even more if I played the original and waited for the sequel.

    2K Czech could have made the graphics a bit better. Cutscenes look awesome and from what I’ve read they were done using the game engine in-game.

    @ Rabbi

    Happy Eid Mubarak to you too bro!

  21. @TheGamingWiz

    Playing Mafia II now its awesome :mrgreen: has its similarity with gta btw…..

  22. @Rabbi

    “Has its similarity with gta btw” without the variety of open world missions 😛

  23. @TheGamingWiz

    ““Has its similarity with gta btw” without the variety of open world missions :razz:”

    Yeah thats what i meant.It has a gta feel even though its a one way game vyt the hud is like gta and on one moment i thought it was made on the gta engine after playing it 😆

    I am on chapter 8 now the story is so amazing drastic tourarounds for mr vito scalleti 😛 I got all the 5 dlc packs it gave me extra dresses and cars dont know if it contains other extra things as well like guns and other stuffs.Yesterday a dlc named Jimmy’s Vendetta was found in the torrent sites i downloaded it about 400mb way bigger than the other dlc’s i used.I wont try that dlc until i finish the game cuz there was a time when i got a dlc for just cause 2 it removed my save files therefore i am holding on to the latest dlc after the game is completed.

  24. @Rabbi

    “Has its similarity with gta btw” without the variety of open world missions”

    I think the gaming wiz is right, even though it’s set in the open world but it still lacks the variety of open world missions. And this works for the first one as well,(And that’s what I was actually talking about, lately) I mean, even though both of the Mafia games are set in the open world but both of them are tightly followed by an extremely linear storyline which sets them both apart from being the typical gta style gameplay. I hope 2k Czech won’t iterate the same thing again in Mafia III.

    Anyway, happy Eid Mubarak to you as well ! 🙂

  25. @Rabbi

    “I am on chapter 8 now the story is so amazing drastic tourarounds for mr vito scalleti”

    Now I’m also at Chapter 8 where Vito and his gang join a shootout with a bunch of guys after burning down the bar ! :mrgreen:

  26. @Rabbi

    “I am on chapter 8 now the story is so amazing drastic tourarounds for mr vito scalleti”

    btw Now I’m also at Chapter 8 where Vito and his gang join a shootout with a bunch of guys after burning down the bar ! :mrgreen:

  27. @Rabbi

    Sorry for the double post….It was mistakenly done by me. 😳

  28. @sng425

    yeah they also took out those greasemonkeys 😆 after the treacherous attack on the bar now i am in chapter 9 😛

  29. @Rabbi

    I too have got past that chapter & now I’m in the chapter 10 which is called “Room Service” where Vito & Joe blows up the 18th floor of a hotel in empire bay. :mrgreen:

  30. @sng102

    now i am in chapter 13 😛 [This part of the message has been moderated as it contains spoilers]

  31. @sng425

    now i am in chapter 13 😛 [This part of the message has been moderated as it contains spoilers]

  32. @sng425

    sorry for double post as i mistakenly wrote sng102 😳

  33. @Rabbi

    Thanks for the SPOILER 😛 😛 I had to edit that part out

  34. @Rabbi

    Unfortunately, I couldn’t understand 😕 what you wrote out there due to the fact that it was edited by the gaming wiz for containing spoilers. Can you please write it out again(of course this time it shouldn’t contain spoilers like before, otherwise it’ll get edited again and I won’t understand a single thing)? 😛

  35. I’ve just finished the first chap of mafia 2, and now playing the 2nd..
    the game looks awesome!!!

  36. @TheGamingWiz

    LOL! 😆 😆

    @sng425

    I will try to be as vague as possible with ur request on hand.I am now in the middle of the missions like earning money to pay back the debt before time runs out and something two drastic happened on the way too something one was related to vito’s past all this on chapter 13.I hope i didnt spill the beans 😳

  37. @xlivnt

    Mafia 2 is one of the two games of this year which impressed me and immersed me after Assassins Creed II hoped the story never ends :mrgreen:

  38. @Rabbi

    “I hope i didnt spill the beans :oops:”

    No, looks like you didn’t, ’cause I still didn’t understand what you were trying to say, but I don’t need anymore explication as I’m already on chapter 11, So I guess chapter 13 isn’t too far away ! I think I’ll soon find it out as soon as I reach Chapter 13. :mrgreen:

    @The Gaming Wiz/Mushfiqur Rahman

    “On a serious note, I doubt it will take them that long to make the next Mafia. Six years?! Ouch.”

    I wouldn’t be surprised if they take another six years to make the next Mafia because they are still not proficient enough to make it within a year or two or even three. But I will still eagerly wait for the next one even if it releases on 2016 or so! :mrgreen:

  39. @sng425

    completed Mafia 2 :mrgreen: the ending was kind of vague 😡 Anyway loved every moment of the game its time to try out the dlc Jimmy’s Vendetta :mrgreen:
    a bit of nint for you-Chapter 13 is the biggest chapter on the game 😀

  40. @sng425

    another bit of info for you
    I played on the medium difficulty
    Gameplay time is about a bit less than 13 hours shown in the game statistics window
    Tried a bit of jimmy’s vendetta its worth downloading it just adds a new menu below story mode called jimmy’s vendetta after u install the dlc.Its similar to the gta dlc’s released before.Its about 400mb you could find it in torrent sites.Anyway enjoy mafia 2 and heppy gaming as always :mrgreen:

  41. @Rabbi

    I’ve also completed the story. 😀 So far, the game seemed good enough to me. 😛 Though I was expectantly hoping the ending to be a “great” one, after reading this article here on GWB(http://www.gamersworldbd.com/2010/06/mafia-2-wont-have-multiple-endings-says-producer.html). The producer said that it’ll have one “great” ending instead of having multiple endings. And that really got me excited about it. But unfortunately, the ending really didn’t seem to be a “great” one to me. Regardless of the fact that it was supposed to be “outstandingly great”, it almost seemed dreadful to me. 😡

  42. Finished Mafia II today both the story and gameplay was compelling 🙂 . The game was filled with exhilarating sequences and sucks you into its action. The overall action was simply terrific although I did expect much more coz 6 whole years is a large gap since i beat the first one. A fantastic game hoewever but can’t say the same about the ending. Also you get to know about who killed Thomas Angelo, the protagonist of the first game.

  43. Btw max out your Mafia II experience with a G19 keyboard 🙂 . Its so cool. Got one last month 😛

  44. @gamerkid69

    “Finished Mafia II today both the story and gameplay was compelling 🙂 . The game was filled with exhilarating sequences and sucks you into its action.”

    Now there’s something i agree with 100% :mrgreen:

  45. @gamerkid69

    “Also you get to know about who killed Thomas Angelo, the protagonist of the first game.”

    Yeah, I was quite shocked 😯 when they killed Thomas “Tommy” Angelo, the protagonist of the original Mafia. And that wasn’t the end of it, I got more shocked 😮 when Vito said, “Ennio Salieri sends his regards”, “cause as long as I remember, Salieri was Tommy’s boss and the don of the Salieri family, the family that Tommy use to work with. I wonder why did he(Don Salieri) kill his own right hand man? 😕

  46. *SPOILERS* If you haven’t finished the game please don’t read 😉

    @sng425

    “Yeah, I was quite shocked when they killed Thomas “Tommy” Angelo, the protagonist of the original Mafia. And that wasn’t the end of it, I got more shocked when Vito said, “Ennio Salieri sends his regards”, “cause as long as I remember, Salieri was Tommy’s boss and the don of the Salieri family, the family that Tommy use to work with. I wonder why did he(Don Salieri) kill his own right hand man?”

    Well, I hope this explanation helps 🙂
    Actually, after Paulie and Tommy robbed the bank, Sam finds out that Tommy and Paulie were the ones who did it and tells Salieri who, immediately ordered Sam to kill Tommy after killing Paulie.After you kill Sam and his men, Tommy flees to Europe with his wife and daughter and then tells the detective (forgot his name) 😳 about his story and therefore Salieri is sentenced to death row. It was believed that Salieri was killed in jail but he’s in fact alive and soon gets his revenge by hiring Vito to kill him.

    Hope this helps :mrgreen:

  47. Sorry for the spoilers but they were the only way to help sng425 😳

  48. @gamerkid69

    Well, when I played the first one it was roughly about 7 years ago, so I nearly forgot the story. 🙁 But I do remember that the first one’s ending wasn’t so unsatisfying as this one. 👿 However, There is one more thing that I hated about Mafia II, and that’s the extremely linear storyline and gameplay, ain’t that sounds more tantalizing? They give you a huge open world map, but don’t give you the freedom to explore it. Even though it might sound quite intrinsic to those gamers who have played the first one(since the first one’s gameplay was also quite similar to it), but I still didn’t like it, I was hoping that they won’t iterate the same thing again in Mafia II. But they proved me wrong and did it again. 👿

    Anyway, thanks for the explication, bro. 🙂 You really made me quite nostalgic and for a while that remembered me of those bittersweet memories and I was imagining myself playing Mafia back in those days. :mrgreen:

  49. finished mafia 2 few days back, and the story was absolutely awesome, loved every bit of that game. But i hated the awful ending to the game. I guess Joe’s fate will be decided in future dlcs.
    Cause as some sites says that the dlc “Joe’s Adventure” will set during the time vito was in prison and it will not decide joe’s fate.

  50. I played in medium difficulty and the gameplay time was about 13 and half an hour.

  51. @xlivnt

    “finished mafia 2 few days back, and the story was absolutely awesome, loved every bit of that game.”

    To all you naysayers, here’s another who loves Mafia 2

    “i hated the awful ending to the game. I guess Joe’s fate will be decided in future dlcs.”

    I think the ending concluded well. I was really sad to find out Joe’s friend wouldn’t live as the deal included Joe only. Has Joe made up for the mistakes he made. I guess so. And remember, he did save the old guy when Henry was out to kill him.

  52. @sng425

    sorry for late reply.I couldnt get into my gamerworldbd account for some time but its good now.Yeah i agree with u and i even mentioned it earlier before you that the ending seemed vague to me and the contraintes that links the predecessor to this one are very helpful and solves the dillema of the players playing the first game of the series.Anyway i am enjoying F1 2010 its awesome cant wait for fifa 11,pro evolution soccer 11 and medal of honor in the upcoming weeks.Good Luck and Happy Gaming as always! :mrgreen:

  53. @The Gaming Wiz/Mushfiqur Rahman

    “To all you naysayers, here’s another who loves Mafia 2”

    Don’t we all love Mafia 2? It’s only shortcoming is it’s semi-sandbox type of gameplay and the lack of freedom to explore it’s wonderful open world map. But now it has almost become quite intrinsic to us as all the Mafia games are almost similar to each other and now I’m quite certain that 2k Czech will again iterate the same thing in Mafia 3 as well. 👿

    @Rabbi

    It’s good to have you back again in GWB! 😛 I also can’t wait to play those games that you mentioned earlier, it’s indeed going to be a hell of a year for gaming ! 😀 Happy Gaming to you too as always ! :mrgreen:

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