Organized crime has captivated audiences for years, and when The Mafia Trilogy came along, it gave gamers across the world the opportunity to step into the shoes of a gangster.
From Tommy Angelo's early days as a cab driver and then making his bones in the Salieri crime family in the 1930s, to Vito Scaletta establishing himself as more than a hitman in the 1940s, all the way through to Lincoln Clay in the 1960s, fighting his physical enemies and for racial equality, The Mafia Trilogy introduced a number of memorable characters into the open world of gaming.
10 Francesca Scaletta — Mafia 2
The older sister of the protagonist, Vito Scaletta, in Mafia 2, Francesca, plays a brief but important role in the second game. She visits Vito in jail in 1945 and informs him of her impending marriage to a hoodlum by the name of Eric Reilly. The marriage doesn't work out as Eric is abusive and cheats on her.
She asks Vito to have a word with Eric. Knowing who Vito is, surely she didn't expect him to just have a word? Eric subsequently gets beaten up and Francesca cuts all ties with her brother because of this. Usually, Mafia women turn a blind eye to the deeds of their family members in the mob, but Francesca shows that she's a strong character and doesn't adhere to the mafia's mentality. The player still aligns with Vito, but it's a reminder that he isn't a good guy, which is vital to the game's themes.
9 Cassandra — Mafia 3
Cassandra is the leader of the Haitian mob, and underboss in the Clay crime family, which makes her character stand out in The Mafia Trilogy as the only woman to actually be involved in organized crime.
She is known as the 'Voodoo Queen' and is very mysterious and above all, ruthless. She's a character that shouldn't be underestimated, and she has a cult following with fans of the games. It's very important that a character like Cassandra appears in The Mafia Trilogy, because women are involved in organized crime, and it needs representing in games and films.
8 Frank Colletti — Mafia
This character has a surprising amount of power, as an advisor to Don Salieri. He's often by the side of the don, but he's not afraid to stand up to him as we see occasionally. The player learns through the game that Frank and Salieri had a race dog that they used to bet on and when the dog became pregnant, Salieri tried to get the animal killed.
Frank was forceful in stopping the Don from going through with this, and it showed how strong a character he is that he would go against the boss. He also showed a softer side to his character, revealing himself to be an animal lover. He is eventually assassinated which isn't a surprise as not many guys in this life get out of it alive, but he's a memorable character in the first Mafia game.
7 John Donovan — Mafia 3
Donovan is a CIA operative and a friend of Lincoln Clay from their time in Vietnam. Lincoln went in the direction of the mafia which is a polar opposite of Donovan. However, Donovan is a corrupt operative who helps Lincoln out on numerous occasions and this is what makes him such an interesting character and one of the best in Mafia 3.
He's conflicted and very much unpredictable which can be annoying when navigating through the game, but overall, fans like him as he is on Lincoln's side and that means the player makes more money in the game because of it.
6 Don Salieri — Mafia
The mob boss on the right side of our protagonist, Tommy Angelo in Mafia, is none other than Don Salieri. When the player meets him, he seems like an affable guy, but it soon becomes clear that if he's crossed, there might be fates worse than death.
The turning point in the game is when he orders the death of Frank Colletti, which makes Tommy question his loyalties, and he goes against the mighty don. He succeeds but ultimately, Salieri has the last laugh when Tommy's betrayal catches up to him in old age. Without a doubt, Don Salieri is the most powerful character in the game.
5 Lincoln Clay — Mafia 3
Lincoln is a great protagonist in Mafia 3 and very different from the main characters in Mafia and Mafia 2, He isn't Cosa Nostra, so he has different sensibilities to his counterparts. Having said that, he's still a gangster in every way possible. Being a black man in the 1960s puts Lincoln in a very interesting position in the game.
Lincoln is not only at war with Sal Marcano, but he also stands up to the prejudice facing black people like himself in an era that was not kind to African-Americans. This adds to his likability and makes him a worthy protagonist in this immersive open-world game.
4 Don Morello — Mafia
No Mafia best character list is complete without the inclusion of a rival boss. Don Morello was the founder of the rival Morello crime family in Mafia, and he's a force to be reckoned with.
When the player first meets him, he mercilessly kills someone with a tire iron, because they complained that he ran into the back of their car. It was even witnessed by the police, but due to his power, they turned a blind eye. He was gunned down by Tommy at the end of the game which was a delight to many fans who hated him.
3 Joe Barbaro — Mafia 2 (Brief Mafia Appearance)
Joe is Vito’s best friend, and a colorful character to say the least. He is fun to be around in the game as he likes fast cars, partying, and chasing broads. On the other side of his gregarious personality is a violent thug, who thrives in the world of the Mafia because of this.
A testament to Joe's popularity is that he appears in his own DLC whilst Vito is in prison, called Joe's Adventures. The player steps into the shoes of Joe as he attempts to help his friend out, alongside completing jobs to rise through the ranks in the mob.
This DLC would make for a great game-to-TV spin-off if ever made. Getting to see the story through Joe's eyes gives the player a greater understanding of who he is. Joe's fate at the end of the game is ambiguous as he's driven off in a car, presumably to be killed, but nobody knows.
2 Vito Scaletta — Mafia 2 (Brief Mafia Appearance)
It was a risky move to focus on Vito Scaletta as the protagonist in Mafia II, as he was the man to kill fan favorite, Tommy Angelo at the end of the first Mafia game. But it's nothing personal in the mob, as business takes precedence, so the player gets into the shoes of the likable hitman, and we follow his story.
He does have loose morals, as many characters in this series do, but he's always trying to do the right thing, and he loves his family. He tries the straight life working on the docks, and it does nothing for him. He wants to become a big deal in the criminal underworld instead, which he succeeds in.
1 Tommy Angelo — Mafia
The OG of all OGs. Tommy Angelo is the character players first meet when they play the original Mafia game. They follow him as he goes from a cabbie to a member of the Salieri crime family.
He has many positive traits that endear him to fans, including his love for his family. The game follows him from his early days to his final days when he gets gunned down by hitman, Vito Scaletta, who in turn, takes over as the focal point in Mafia 2. When it comes to the passing of the torch, this is an interesting spin on it. The characters in the sequels are brilliant, but they can never match up to the original gangster, Tommy Angelo.