MOB RULE

Conquering EMPIRE OF SIN's Chicago as AI Capone

- Fraser Brown

It’s not an easy job, working for a prohibition-era Chicago mob boss. Empire of Sin lets you recruit and nurture a gang drawn from a pool of 60 crooks, all eager to make a name for themselves—and a buck or two— in the criminal underworld, but I suspect they would have had second thoughts if they’d known what was in store for them when I slipped into the shoes of the infamous Al Capone.

Capone’s one of 14 playable mob bosses, some invented, some historical, and some even related to members of the team—like Elvira, a 70-year-old brothel owner based on John Romero’s great-grandmother. It’s a cast with a lot of big characters, and it features a level of diversity that you don’t usually see in prohibition-inspired fiction, though it’s one that’s actually more true to life.

Just doing a spot of interior decorating, don’t mind us.

“I do think it was a significant design challenge,” says game director Brenda Romero, who also has a family connection to one of the bosses. “Like, hey, we would like to have a 70-year-old woman as a boss. You know what? Why not? And it’s especially important, as it’s a nod to John’s heritage. His grandmother and great-grandmother before that were the absolute matriarchs of the family. But that’s a challenge because this is a combat game and you’re pretty hardcore.”

A CLOSE QUARTERS SCRAP IN A FILTHY ALLEY IS NOT AN ELEGANT THING