I will admit that I probably judged Mafia II a little too harshly in my time with the demo. It's a beautiful game with some truly great moments. However, those moments are few and far between, and that's primarily what holds the game back from greatness.
It seems to me that what 2K Czech are going for with Mafia II is an authentic slice of life story that happens to be about a young man (Vito Scaletta) who becomes involved with the mob, as opposed to just putting itself in direct competition with GTA IV by being an open world game. Many people will compare it as such, but it's evident within the first two chapters of the game that Mafia II has a different approach. It takes its time setting up situations and relations with the characters. For instance, Vito's childhood friend Joe. There were times where I thought he a genuinely cool, albeit crude, individual. There were also times where Vito showed restraint with him whereas I would've beat the crap out of him. Both Vito and Joe have multiple layers to them, which is a sign of good writing, but they rarely get a chance to shine through.
The same goes for the overall story. From playing through the game I can definitely tell you that the game's story is well written, most evident in the dialogue. However, well written does not mean original. Mafia II's narrative borrows heavily from many big mob movies. There were moments where I could've sworn I was having deja vu, because I had seen similar scenes elsewhere. Anyone who has seen the Godfather films or Goodfellas would feel that way.
This is where I become torn with my feelings for the game. On the one hand, it's presentation promises authenticity with its environment. Empire Bay is one of the most real-feeling cities I've had the pleasure of cruising around in a game. The game's excellent soundtrack helps with that as well. However, the game goes the other way with attempts at tension and drama that work well in the movies they borrow from, but here they just fall flat.
The great moments lie in the game's action sequences, which are very intense and satisfying, if a little frustrating sometimes. I died a total of twenty-two times in my play through of the game. Also, the game could benefit from more frequent checkpointing. I don't want to have to start all over when I just reached the end of a section. There was one part in Chapter 14 where I was cursing the game for being cheap, but some thinking goes a long way to being victorious, and I can appreciate that.
Although Empire Bay is an impressive spectacle running on a great game engine, outside of the story of the game (which you'll spend most of your time driving during and between missions) there's very little to do. Sure, there's clothing shops, gun shops and cars to collect, but to what end? You only need two sets of clothes during the whole game, and you always have a small arsenal with you on missions, and there's only two to three good vehicles in the game. The only real extra content on offer is collectibles in the form of Playboy spreads...
...Which brings me to my next point of the gross exploitation and demeaning of women in the game. The only females in the game are either strippers (one of whom is referred to as a "cum-dumpster"...um, what? Are you fucking kidding me with this?) or damsels in distress. The 1940s and 50s were a time when women were making their mark on society and feminism was reaching a new high point in America. I feel that 2K Czech has drastically misrepresented the time period in making the game's women so objective. There are also many insulting racial stereotypes that the game supports and shoves in your face. That isn't edgy guys, it's just disgusting and tasteless and will likely turn many people off, myself included.
Mafia II is, as many others have said, a missed opportunity. You have a great game world and great action powered by a slick game and physics engine, and a few mildly interesting characters and great dialogue to give it some life. Unfortunately, it's tarnished by a sloppy, predictable plot and poor attempts at shock-value. Many of my issues from my demo experiences were fixed, like the graphical hiccups and cover mechanics, but it still remains an average game. It's good, and I'm glad I gave it a fair shake, but it isn't great.