Mafia Mobile sees IGG jump into the crime strategy genre as it opens pre-registration

• Mafia Mobile is a new release from IGG, the devs behind Fate War
• Dominate the city, then the world with your criminal empire
• Recruit deadly capos and establish your own underground franchise

La Cosa Nostra, 'Our Thing', the Mob, Triads or just 'organised crime'. For whatever reason, the spectre of black-suited hitmen and well-dressed kingpins has dominated pop culture. And the same is true on mobile, as those who remember Mafia City's successful(?) series of adverts on YouTube will remember.

But now there's a new power player in town as IGG, the studio behind Fate War, now takes a swing at it with Mafia Mobile. It's not hard to see where the comparisons to Mafia City already lie, with the strategy element where you train your capos (officers) and conduct raids against rival gangs.

Now in pre-registration and set to arrive sometime in September, Mafia Mobile boasts a raft of individual underlings to gather, ranging from Assailants, to Bikers and Gunmen that each play a different role in your criminal empire as you go from a single city to, perhaps, the entire world.

Sleeping with the fishes

While IGG's recent venture with Fate War looked to have an interesting few twists on the genre, I can't help but feel that Mafia Mobile might be cutting it a bit too fine in terms of resemblance. Add onto that some of the skeevier aspects ('date hot babes' indeed), and it just seems a little late 2000s for me.

After all, with Gamescom Opening Night Live seeing some amazing new releases like Arknights: Endfield getting top billing and plenty of new launches on the horizon, it can seem like, however good Mafia Mobile turns out being its time may've already passed.

Still, if you do feel the megalomaniacal hunger to establish yourself as lord of all you survey, you've got plenty of options on mobile. Check out our list of the best strategy games on iOS for more options you can play right now!