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"Mature Content Warning!" |
| “ | You know something, Lincoln, you're possibly the baddest motherf*cker I ever laid my eyes on. But you shouldn't have said no. | „ |
| ~ Giorgi to Lincoln, moments before betraying him. |
Note: Most of the information here is taken directly from my NPE proposal.
What's the Work?[]
Mafia III is an open-world action shooter game developed by Hangar 13 and 2K Games. The game's story follows Lincoln Clay, a Vietnam vet returning home from war, whose entire family is killed by the mob in New Bordeaux. With the help of his ally and CIA operative John Donovan, as well as other iconic characters from the Mafia franchise like Vito Scaletta, Lincoln vows revenge to take down the entire Marcano Crime Family.
Who's the Character?[]
Giorgi Marcano is the secondary antagonist of the game. He is the spoiled son of Sal Marcano, the boss of the Marcano Crime Family, who was groomed from childhood to follow in his father’s footsteps. Despite growing up alongside Lincoln Clay, Ellis Robinson, and Danny Burke as close friends, Giorgi ultimately values the Marcano crime empire more than any of those friendships.
What Makes Him Heinous?[]
He is extremely arrogant and entitled, due to having a privileged upbringing provided to him by his father at the expense of innocent people. Even at a young age, he participated in mob activity and at one point planned to sell heroin behind his father's back.
During the Federal Reserve heist, he helps plan and execute the robbery by stealing an armored truck, infiltrating the building in disguise, and secretly stealing money plates for a counterfeiting scheme. Afterward, he helps his father and Ritchie Doucet in the massacre at Sammy’s Bar, personally shooting Lincoln in the head and helping kill Sammy and Danny, before lighting a match and burning the establishment (Lincoln's childhood home) to the ground.
In the following months, as Lincoln recovers from his injuries, Giorgi continues to escalate the Marcanos’ criminal empire by pushing for heroin trafficking, installing the Dixie Mafia in Delray Hollow, and resisting his father’s attempts to legitimize the business. He even murders his own aunt, Olivia Marcano, by slitting her throat after Lincoln leaves her hospitalized, attempting to prevent her from creating further legal trouble for his father in a desperate effort to preserve the family’s power.
As the Marcano empire collapses and Lincoln arrives to confront Giorgi and Sal at the unfinished casino, Giorgi orchestrates a suicidal last stand, sending the family’s remaining henchmen to their deaths in a futile attempt to stop Lincoln. Even when faced with death, Giorgi shows no remorse, insisting that every betrayal, murder, and act of violence was justified in service to his father.
What Makes Him Inconsistent?[]
He is extremely affable and, for the time, relatively progressive. Aside from a single instance in which he uses an Asian slur, he is noticeably more tolerant and accepting of other races than those around him, including his own father. When he welcomes Lincoln to the Retroussé Yacht Club for the first time and Lincoln realizes he is the only Black person there, with several members staring at him, including a woman clutching her purse, Giorgi simply tells him to “pay them no attention.” He even apologizes for using a racial slur during the Federal Reserve heist, explaining that he only did so to avoid drawing suspicion from the other guards, who used the term casually.
He truly loved his father and remained loyal to him until the very end, even sacrificing his own life in an attempt to prevent Lincoln from killing him. He was also willing to betray his childhood friends without hesitation if it meant earning his father's love and approval. Giorgi even tells Lincoln so during his final moments, "It was never about us... It was... about my old man... my father... I'd do anything for him... Same as you and Sammy."
While he doesn’t show it often, Giorgi seems genuinely remorseful about betraying Lincoln. Although he does ultimately pull the trigger, he seems reluctant to do so, and on closer inspection, even appears slightly teary-eyed when he shoots Lincoln in the head.
His death is played for sympathy. Lincoln laments on how he trusted Giorgi and always thought of him as a true friend, while Giorgi insists that his betrayal was nothing personal and that he only did it for his father, moments before Lincoln slowly drives a knife into his abdomen.
Heinous Standards[]
In my opinion, he meets the heinous standards because of his personal villainy toward Lincoln. While Sal may have been the one who ultimately carried out the murders of Lincoln’s family, it was Giorgi’s personal connection to Lincoln that allowed him to get close and attempt to kill him, along with everyone Lincoln cared about. Giorgi’s betrayal is especially painful for Lincoln because the two had known each other for many years.
Giorgi also helped run and maintain several of Sal’s rackets, including the sex-trafficking operation in Delray Hollow, and he even defied his father at times by trying to expand the criminal empire’s operations. This went directly against Sal’s wishes, as Sal intended to go legitimate and eventually retire from the criminal lifestyle altogether.
Verdict[]
Yes for betraying his childhood friends and helping murder Lincoln’s entire family, in addition to helping run and maintain Sal’s criminal empire, including killing his own aunt. However, he is affable, genuinely loves his father, shows some remorse for his actions, and his death is played for sympathy.