Free Ride lands in Mafia: The Old Country – challenges, first‑person view, Photo Mode

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Hangar 13 has rolled out the Free Ride Update for Mafia: The Old Country, expanding the game with a standalone mode focused on open‑ended play and bite‑sized challenges. Free Ride fully replaces the previous Explore mode and can be accessed alongside the main campaign. The update also brings first‑person driving, a robust Photo Mode, a Cinema Siciliano presentation preset, Classic Difficulty, and manual weather selection in Free Ride. New weapons, cars, outfits and charms added here are also available in the campaign.

Associate Design Director Josh Zammit says the team built Free Ride to deepen how players engage with the world:

“Free Ride has always been close to our hearts. The team pours so much care and attention into our worlds, and it gives us a reason to spend more time exploring them, and more importantly, finding new ways to have fun.”

Official video:

Free Ride – how the new mode works

Free Ride lets you roam 1900s Sicily at your own pace and tackle racing and combat challenges. Progress ties to campaign completion – as you finish story chapters, more challenges unlock in Free Ride. Each challenge offers three reward tiers and pays Dinari (earned through play), which in turn opens up new items as you advance.

The mode is separate from the campaign narrative, but you can hop between modes via the pause or main menu. Hidden secrets are tucked across the map; follow in‑world clues to reach optional rewards.

Challenge lineup at a glance

Below is a quick breakdown of Free Ride’s challenge types and how many of each are available at launch.

Challenge counts – Free Ride mode

New gear added across the game

The update expands Enzo’s arsenal and wardrobe, and these additions are fully usable in the main story.

Content totals – new items

Zammit highlights a new 4×4‑style car for off‑road shortcuts:

“My favorite item coming with the update is one of our new cars, the Beneventi Montanaro… It does well on dirt and in grassy areas, so taking shortcuts and driving uphill and across fields is a blast.”

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He also points to a collectible‑friendly charm:

“Esploratore is a favorite. Some collectibles in the world are super hard to find, and using Esploratore shows you when a collectible is nearby and guides you to it.”

First‑person driving makes its series debut

For the first time in the franchise, first‑person driving is officially supported. It adds detailed interiors and up‑close character animations, offering a different perspective whether cruising with companions, racing, or free‑roaming.

Photo Mode – granular controls and filmic presets

Photo Mode pauses the action and provides fine control over framing and look. Players can adjust FOV, focal distance/aperture, brightness, contrast, saturation, camera tilt, and toggle character visibility and grid.

Filters include Cinema Siciliano, Cinema Siciliano Sepia, High Contrast, Soft Glow, Analog, Split Tone, and 35mm Film, with intensity, vignette, film grain and film scratch options.

Cinema Siciliano and Classic Difficulty

Cinema Siciliano reframes the game with black‑and‑white visuals, vintage‑style audio, Sicilian VO by default, and a cleaner contextual UI for a period look. Photo Mode offers two matching filters to echo the presentation.

Classic Difficulty returns for players seeking a stricter ruleset in campaign or Free Ride – enemies hit harder, health regeneration is limited, and unspent bullets are lost on reload. As Zammit notes:

“We definitely don’t pull our punches in this mode… for people wanting higher stakes, it’s an extremely satisfying way to play.”

Sundial weather control in Free Ride

While exploring Sicily in Free Ride, you can set the scene via an interactable sundial in the Vineyard and Enzo’s apartment. Options include Sunrise, Afternoon, Foggy, and Ashfall – useful for both exploration and Photo Mode compositions.

The bottom line – why this update matters

Free Ride turns Mafia: The Old Country into a richer sandbox with time trials, wave‑based firefights, and stealth contracts that reward continued mastery. Paired with first‑person driving, Photo Mode, and Classic Difficulty, the update gives players more ways to test skills, chase cosmetics and collectibles, and revisit Sicily on their own terms.