The UPS man showed up at my door yesterday with another package. This time with two copies of EA's recent ports of GTA contender The Godfather. I tried out the PLAYSTATION 3 version this morning, The Godfather: The Don's Edition, and came away pretty happy.

This wasn't a title I was expecting to care for, given my apathy toward the GTA franchise—mostly due to the spotty controls—and it's pioneering open-ended gameplay. You see, I'm the kind of guy who likes being told where to go, what to do, and given a mini-map telling me how to get there. I'm a lazy gamer. And I don't really care for licensed IP.

That said, when two hours flew by exploring the city, extorting money from local businessmen and knocking the school spirit out of some college kids with a baseball bat, I knew my initial prejudices had kept me from a surprisingly solid game.

Many of you have probably already played The Godfather when it was released on the PS2, Xbox, PC or PSP, and you won't find much new here to convince you to replay it. The SIXAXIS control is at times perfect and other times maddening. Graphically, the game looks below average at best—city streets are unusually empty and no one at Team Ninja will be lauding EA for its brilliant texture work. It has a few wrinkles in the presentation and visuals departments, but it's still going to get a ton of play time from me.

I'm going to spend more time with it tonight, then try out the Wii version later and compare the two. Look for impressions of The Blackhand Edition, as well as final thoughts on both over the next couple days. Michael McWhertor

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