'Mafia 2' developers not able to play or test game 'until very late' in development

A post-mortem of 2010's Mafia II.

The developers behind 2010's Mafia 2 were not able to play or test the game until "very late" in development, according to 2K Czech designer Jarek Kolar during a post-mortem presentation today at GDC Europe.

Describing the process of developing the title, Kolar explained that while the game was not playable, the team would test the title by "just imagining things, doing it on paper."

The difficulties of development stemmed from a decision in 2005 to switch to next gen by building their own engine, and focusing on visual aspects which consequently took resources away from gameplay, basic mechanics, and the Save and Load options. In addition, the story-driven title was written outside the team "in isolation" from the designers, and prior to the prototyping of the gameplay.

According to Kolar, this "kicked us in the back in the end."

"But in the end we made it and we are quite proud of what we have achieved," Kolar concludes, stating the studio can now move on and make greater games than what they offered with Mafia 2.

While a sequel to Mafia 2 was announced in 2010, little information on its development status is currently available.