Hangar 13’s upcoming Mafia: The Old Country has revealed its PC system requirements, marking a significant shift in gaming hardware demands. The game, developed using Unreal Engine 5, requires PlayStation 5-equivalent graphics processing power even at minimum settings, as announced on May 9, 2025.
The baseline specifications demand an AMD Ryzen 7 2700X or Intel Core i7-9700K processor, alongside an NVIDIA RTX 2070 or AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT graphics card. These requirements align closely with current-generation console capabilities, representing a substantial leap in minimum PC gaming prerequisites.
The game’s ambitious technical requirements stem from its implementation of Unreal Engine 5’s advanced features. These include Lumen for real-time global illumination, Nanite for detailed geometry rendering, and Virtual Shadow Maps. Additionally, the integration of ray-traced lighting necessitates hardware support for ray tracing, further elevating the entry barrier for potential players.
For optimal performance at 1440p resolution, the recommended specifications raise the bar even higher. Players will need an AMD Ryzen 7 5800X or Intel Core i7-12700K processor, paired with 32GB of RAM and either an NVIDIA RTX 3080 Ti or AMD Radeon RX 6950 XT graphics card. Storage requirements remain consistent at 55GB across all configurations.
This technological evolution marks a departure from previous Mafia titles, which operated on less demanding engines. The shift to Unreal Engine 5 represents a broader industry movement towards photorealistic visuals and sophisticated lighting effects, though at the cost of increased hardware requirements.
The specifications highlight a growing alignment between PC gaming requirements and console performance standards. This convergence suggests a new baseline for future AAA game development, where high-end hardware becomes increasingly necessary for acceptable gaming experiences.
These requirements have sparked significant discussion within the gaming community regarding accessibility. The substantial hardware demands may present challenges for players with mid-range or older systems, potentially influencing the game’s market reach and adoption rate.
The implications extend beyond Mafia: The Old Country, potentially signalling a new era in PC gaming where hardware requirements increasingly mirror those of current-generation consoles. This development may reshape how developers approach multi-platform game optimisation and influence future hardware upgrade cycles for PC gamers.
Source: Eurogamer
