Canceled Scarface 2 game looks extremely 2009 in new footage of prototype

gamesradar.com:

New footage of canceled open-world game Scarface: Empire, the sequel to 2006's Scarface: The World is Yours, has popped up online.

Mafia Game Videos (opens in new tab), an aptly named Youtube channel dedicated to games about the mafia, shared a few minutes of Scarface: Empire footage in a recent video, fleshing out some ideas and environments spotted in recently unearthed (opens in new tab) concept art. 

The premise of the game, according to one former developer cited in the video, was that series lead Tony Montana moved his cocaine empire to Las Vegas as Miami drug regulations got stricter. Scarface: Empire saw Tony build his own Vegas casino to circumvent the local mob and provide a front for his new drug ring, taking out mob big-wigs behind the scenes to grease the wheels.  

We can see some of that concept in action in these brief gameplay snippets. The footage is taken from an incomplete build, but even at this stage, it looks like a competent enough open-world game. The World is Yours was a PS2 and Xbox game while Empire was planned for PS3 and Xbox 360, so naturally it looks quite a bit better even as a prototype. 

The original Scarface game was well received for putting a bit of a spin on the 3D GTA formula – which was pretty new and heavily riffed on in 2006 – and the shooting, driving, and police chases shown here definitely have a similar vibe. Another section of the video focuses on the revival animations that would play when Tony's downed in combat. These are much more barebones than the gameplay, but they do provide an interesting look under the hood of the game – not to mention some primo late-2000s NPC expressions. 

A prequel to the Mafia game series is reportedly in the works.