I’ve put over 40 hours into PS4 Mafia: The Old Country since it launched, and I made almost every possible mistake on my first playthrough. I skipped side content that locked me out of rare upgrades, picked dialogue choices that got innocent NPCs killed, and wasted thousands of in-game dollars on gear I never used. This guide pulls all the lessons I learned together, so you don’t have to fumble through your first run like I did.
Core Mechanics You Should Master Before Starting PS4 Mafia: The Old Country
The game runs on three core systems that most new players ignore until they run into a problem: respect, notoriety, and vehicle handling. Respect isn’t just a progression bar to fill to unlock main missions. It also determines how friendly local merchants are to you, how much you pay for safe house rent, and whether random gang members will help you out during fights. Respect gains are halved if you’re caught committing crimes in front of civilian witnesses, so always scope an area for bystanders before you pull off a heist or steal a car in a busy neighborhood.
Notoriety works a little differently than it does in other open world crime games too. If you hit 5 star notoriety, even members of your own gang might turn you in for a police reward, so don’t go on random rampages unless you’re prepared to lay low in a safe house for an hour or more to let the heat die down. Vehicle handling is also far more realistic than most players expect. I totaled three separate rare sports cars in my first week because I assumed it handled like GTA, and I had to grind side jobs for hours to afford replacements. It’s also a good idea to practice driving in the rural parts of the map first, where there’s less traffic and fewer police patrols, before you try to outrun cops in the busy downtown area.
The Best Side Quests to Prioritize for Rare Rewards
A lot of players skip side quests to rush the main story, but you’re missing out on some of the best gear and story beats if you do that. Most of these quests tie into the backstories of side characters you meet in the main story of PS4 Mafia: The Old Country, so they’re worth playing even if you don’t care about the rewards. Side quests marked with a blue family icon give you permanent stat boosts that carry over to New Game+, so you should do those as soon as they unlock on your quest log.
There are three side quests in particular that you should never skip, no matter how eager you are to get to the next main story chapter:
- The "Baker’s Debt" side quest: Unlocks a free permanent safe house in the north end of the map, no weekly rent required, and access to an exclusive weapons dealer who sells suppressed shotguns you can’t get anywhere else in the game.
- The "Union Strike" side quest: Gives you a 20% discount on all vehicle repairs and upgrades for the rest of your playthrough, which saves you tens of thousands of dollars over the course of the game.
- The "Lost Sister" side quest: Unlocks a unique companion character who can help you on heists and distract police during chases, and she never betrays you even if your notoriety is maxed out.
I skipped all three of these on my first run, and I struggled through the final heist because I didn’t have the suppressed shotgun or the companion to back me up. You can still beat the game without them, but it’s 10x harder, and you miss out on some of the most emotional story beats in the entire game. Side quests expire after you complete certain main story missions, so check your quest log every time you finish a main chapter to make sure you don’t miss anything you wanted to do.
How to Make Smart Dialogue Choices That Don’t Derail Your Run
The dialogue system in this game is way more impactful than most players realize. A single throwaway line can lock you out of entire quest lines, turn key allies against you, or even change the ending of the game. The first rule is to never lie to senior family members unless you’re 100% sure you can get away with it. I lied to the underboss about a botched smuggling run on my first playthrough, and he cut me off from all high-paying jobs for three chapters, forcing me to grind low-level odd jobs to get back in his good graces.
You can tell which choices have permanent consequences by the small red warning icon that pops up in the corner of the dialogue box, so don’t click those unless you’re ready to live with the outcome. If you’re trying to get the good ending, you should always choose options that protect innocent civilians, even if it means losing a little respect in the short term. The respect you lose is easy to earn back with a few small jobs, but the goodwill you build with civilians pays off in the final act of the game. It’s worth noting that some "bad" choices can unlock fun alternative content too, so if you’re on a second playthrough, don’t be afraid to pick the chaotic options just to see what happens.
Beginner Mistakes to Avoid on Your First Playthrough
I made all of these mistakes, so I can tell you exactly how much of a headache they cause. First, don’t hoard all your cash for fancy cars and suits. You should always keep at least $5,000 in reserve for bail money, emergency medical bills, and bribe payments when you get caught by the cops. I once got arrested with $200 in my pocket and had to sell my favorite customized rifle to pay my bail, which was a brutal setback that took me hours to fix.
Never leave a mission half-finished to go mess around on the map – if you log out or get killed while you’re in the middle of a main mission, you’ll lose all the progress you made on that mission and have to start over from the beginning. That’s one of the most annoying quirks of PS4 Mafia: The Old Country, and there’s no way to fix it, so you just have to plan around it. Also, don’t ignore the police wanted level. Even a 1-star wanted level can turn into a 5-star level if you don’t lay low, and once the SWAT teams show up, you’re almost guaranteed to get killed unless you have a fully upgraded safe house to hide in. One more thing: don’t steal cars from other gang members unless you want to start a full-on gang war. I stole a motorcycle from a rival gang member just for fun on my first run, and they started attacking me on sight everywhere I went for two whole chapters.
At the end of the day, PS4 Mafia: The Old Country is all about taking your time and immersing yourself in the world, not rushing through the main story as fast as possible. If you follow the tips I laid out here, you’ll avoid most of the frustrating mistakes I made, and you’ll get way more out of every hour you spend playing. You don’t have to play perfectly to have fun, but knowing these little tricks will make your first run way more enjoyable, whether you’re here for the tight story, the tense heists, or just messing around in a beautifully rendered 1920s open world.
