The free major update "Free Ride" for "Mafia: Hometown" is online. The Free Ride update is a free expansion pack that adds car and horse racing, combat challenges, a new first-person driving mode, photo mode, classic difficulty mode, and new weapons, accessories, cars, and clothing.
Josh Zammit, associate design director at developer Hanger 13, discussed the update on the PlayStation Blog.
“We’re incredibly proud of everything the team has accomplished, so it’s hard to pick the one that excites me the most, I love racing; it’s a ton of fun racing around our world at high speeds in these amazing vintage race cars. There are a lot of technical corners on the track and the better your technique, the more rewarding it is to drive them.”
"The combat challenges are also great. Stand-off mode will test your limits against the enemy head-on, while assassination mode is fun and you can keep trying until you perfect the level."
"I think players will find one particularly interesting and unexpected, but I don't want to spoil it. Keep an eye out for the notes in Enzo's apartment - one of them might reveal some interesting clues worth investigating."
"Mafia: Homeland" free mode update details
The Dorata Valley calls to you again, Mafioso.The free-mode update for Mafia: Hometown will be available on November 20. This free update adds a new mode, new challenges, new collectibles, and more for all players.*
Free Mode is the focus of this update, completely replacing the old Exploration Mode while also offering a host of new features.To show the full scope of the update, here's a rundown of the major new additions.We've also included some developer insights from Hangar 13 Associate Director of Design Josh Zammit; be sure to check out his developer Q&A on the blog.
“Free Mode is something we’ve been thinking about a lot,” said Zammit. “The team has put a lot of thought and care into our world, giving us even more reasons to explore and, more importantly, find new ways to have fun.”
*Requires main game.Some content needs to be unlocked through gameplay.
free mode
Free Mode offers new ways to experience Mafia: Homeland's vision of early 20th century Sicily, allowing you to explore the environment at your own pace and participate in a series of new challenges.This mode focuses primarily on new gameplay content and has no impact on the narrative portion of Enzo's journey.
In other words, Free Mode includes a variety of challenges that will be unlocked based on your completion of the main story chapters.You can switch between the main story and Free Mode via pause and the main menu while advancing the story, or you can wait until you've completed all chapters and then enter Free Mode with all initial challenges available; the choice is yours.
Each challenge can be completed in three increasingly higher reward tiers, and you'll earn progressively higher amounts of dinars (an in-game currency earned through play) to spend in Pasquale's shop.As you complete challenges in order, new items will be unlocked in the store; complete them all for the best rewards.
Challenges are divided into two main categories, Racing and Combat, each with its own sub-categories:
Racing and Horse Racing
Look for Pasquale to start a race, or if you want to race a horse, look for Gaspare:
Ring Race (3 Challenges): Drive the fastest car, complete the required number of laps on the track and lead the opponent.
Speedy Highways (3 Challenges): Race across the Dorata Valley against multiple opponents in these challenging point-to-point races.
Time Trial (6 tasks): Race against time on a track without opponent interference and refresh your personal best.The checkpoint time trial requires driving along a fixed route, while the free route time trial requires finding the fastest path between two points.
Horse Racing (3 missions): Gallop your horse and outsmart your opponents in these intense roundabout races.
combat challenge
Speak with Valerio to accept these combat-focused challenges:
Standoff (5 Challenges): Enzo must fend off multiple waves of hostile guards, bandits, and soldiers in the limited-time Standoff challenge's battle mode.Kill attackers and loot stopwatches from high-value targets to add precious seconds as you fight off each wave of bloodthirsty enemies.In these increasingly desperate gunfights, you must manage your weapons, resources, and positioning.
Assassinations (4 challenges): Test your stealth skills in limited-time assassination challenges.Sneak into a fixed location, execute your target, and try to escape alive.Along the way, you can choose to crack any safes you find to increase your score.
There's more to come...
Like the free modes in previous Mafia games, Mafia: Hometown's free modes hide secrets waiting to be discovered.Keep your eyes open and be sure to follow any clues you come across, as powerful rewards will be available to players who can follow this hidden trail to the end.
New weapons, talismans, vehicles and clothing
As part of this Free Roam update, Enzo’s collection has been expanded with a long list of new additions, and every new weapon, talisman, vehicle, and costume is fully playable in the main story.Here's a quick rundown of the number of items that have been added to the game:
16 new outfits (and 3 new hats to match any outfit)
4 new daggers
3 new guns
3 new talismans
2 new cars
“Among the props that come with the update, my favorite is a new car, the Beneventi Montanaro,” Zammit said. “It is based on the earliest off-road vehicle design and is a lot of fun to drive. It performs well on mud and grass, so taking shortcuts, going up hills, and crossing fields is very enjoyable. Although it is not the fastest car, you will find that there are several games where this car can play its unique advantages.”
"Speaking of new talismans," Zammit continued, "Explorers are my favorite. There are some collectibles in the game that are extremely difficult to find. Using Explorers will prompt you for nearby collectibles and guide you to find them. Hopefully, it will make it easier for accomplished hunters to find those foxes."
new features
Each of the following new features are available with the Free Roam Update:
First person driving perspective
For the first time in series history, first-person driving perspective is now an option in Mafia: Homecoming.Experience Dorata Valley from the driver's seat in the most immersive way possible, including new detailed vehicle interiors and close-up views of character animations.Whether you're driving around with your companions in the main story, marveling at the dust kicked up by your racing rivals, or just driving around just to take in the scenery, this new feature puts you more firmly in Enzo's shoes.
photo mode
Mafia: Homeworld’s stunning Sicilian countryside was created just for you to take photos of, and now you can.Photo Mode - one of the most anticipated features by fans - pauses the action with the press of a button, captures those beautiful scenery and intense firefight moments, and then shares them online or with friends.
In addition to basic camera placement and rotation, Photo Mode lets you adjust a number of parameters to tailor each composition to your liking:
lens
Field of view (FOV)
Enable focus (focal length/aperture)
style
brightness
Contrast
saturation
camera tilt
filter
None/Sicilian Film Mode/Sicilian Film Sepia/High Contrast/Soft Light/Retro Film/Color Separation/35mm Film
filter strength
Vignette
film grain
Film scratches
show
Show player character
Show other roles
show grid
sicilian movie model
Sicilian Cinema Mode is a dramatic new mode designed for an immersive experience that is designed to evoke memories of classic Italian cinema.Play "Mafia: Hometown" as if you were in a studio at the beginning of the century, enjoying emotional black-and-white visual effects, realistic retro sound effects, Sicilian dubbing turned on by default, and a simpler scene UI to enhance the cinematic feel.Photo Mode also includes two Sicilian Film filters that apply the same visual effects to your photos for an authentic retro look.
classic difficulty
Classic difficulty, borrowed from the original Mafia and Mafia: Definitive Edition, returns for those players looking for a higher level of challenge in Mafia: Homecoming.Hone your skills and test your mastery of combat, stealth, and driving by playing the main story or Free Mode on Classic difficulty, where enemies are deadlier, health regeneration is sparse, and unused bullets are lost when reloading.
"I'm sure our hardcore fans will be delighted with the return of Classic difficulty," said Zammit. "We're definitely not pulling any punches with this mode, and it's an extremely satisfying way to play for players looking for a higher stakes. While I recommend beating the game on Original difficulty first, Classic difficulty is the ultimate test of your skills."
corona
While exploring Sicily in Free Mode, you can change the weather with the interactive sundials that can be found in the vineyards and Enzo's apartment.There are four options to choose from, giving you the freedom to explore in any atmosphere you prefer (and take great photos in Photo Mode):
sunrise
Afternoon
foggy day
dust covered
The Free Roam Update is a labor of love from everyone at Hangar 13, and we can’t wait to see you traverse the land, take on all the new challenges, and experience the new features.Thank you so much for your continued love and support; I hope you enjoy your return to Dorata Valley.
