In 2002, some Czech guys from Illusion Softworks unveiled one of the best games in gangster genre: Mafia: The City Of Lost Heave. Although the game it was considered by many gamers just a GTA inspired game, Mafia have sold more than two million copies worldwide.

Mafia it was in fact the story of Thomas (Tommy) Angelo, a taxi driver who decides to join the Salieri criminal organization, led by Don Salieri. All the action was set in a fictional city inspired by 1930’s New York and Chicago. The original game was released for PC, but in 2004 Illusion Softworks ported the game to Playstation 2 and Xbox. Due to some technical issues the game failed to be a success, but soon after there were rumors that the Czechs are working on a sequel.

Today, 2K Games a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software officially announced that Mafia 2 is not just a rumor.

Like the original Mafia title, Mafia 2 immerses players in the mob underworld of a fictitious late 1940’s-early 1950’s scenario and the game will be developed by the same team from Illusion Softworks.

Players will easily become engaged in the game’s cinematic Hollywood movie experience with strong, believable characters in a living, breathing city, 2K Games said.

“As the original Mafia was a big success, we are excited to leverage the power of next generation console technology to create an all-new experience, while embracing the elements that resonated with the previous game’s fans,” said Christoph Hartmann, President of 2K. “The ‘wow’ factor of Mafia 2 is definitely the benchmark-setting visual quality and action that you expect to see only in Hollywood movies.”

2K Games also releases five screenshots that looks great, but it didn’t say anything about a possible release date. According to 2Games, Mafia will be launched for PC and nex-gen consoles.