Be A "Made Man" This September

Friends of ours: Bonnano Crime Family, Bill Bonnano

Mastertronic today donned its finest Italian suit and tightest leather gloves as it confirmed the release of Made Man, a Mafia action game epic from Manchester-based Silverback Studios, for PS2 and PC in September.

Prepare to get 'made' in the most compelling and thrilling mafia experience you've ever seen. Work up the ranks of The Mob, from opportunist G.I. fighting in Vietnam, to 'wise guy' on the make, doing deeds and winning favour from the Don in New York City.

Your mission is to be 'made' – that is, being firmly accepted into the fold of the Mafia elite. But what dirty deeds must you perform to get there? What will you have to sacrifice, and who might double cross you, on the way?

Made Man is a story of friendship, betrayal and greed told in seventeen action-packed chapters that span three decades, from the blood-soaked jungles of '60s Vietnam to the grime and high-rise hell of '70s and '80s New York City. The game has been created in conjunction with genuine Mafia insiders; New York Times best selling author David Fisher and Bill Bonnano, former high ranking member of the infamous Bonnano crime family. Such valuable insights ensure that Made Man's atmosphere, characters, style and violence are all as authentic as possible to real life.

"Made Man indoctrinates you into the family of the modern Mafia and lets you live the power, corruption and violence during the '60s, '70s and '80s," commented Andy Payne, Managing Director of Mastertronic. "Working closely with David Fisher and Bill Bonnano has resulted in a Pulp noire-style plot for the game rivalled only by Oscar-winning big screen epics. With Made Man, we're doing to the Mafia videogames genre what The Godfather did to Mafia movies."

"This is about as close to really being in the mob as a game can be. You turn your back on the wrong person, that's it, game over," continued Bill Bonnano, real life Made Man and former member of the Bonnano crime family. "I have worked with author David Fisher to make sure every level, every scene, every detail, actually represents the inner workings of organised crime. No question about it this is as real as it gets."

Players assume the role of Joey Verola and play through the key events in his life of crime. Along the way players will experience many innovative gameplay features, including:

Jump to cover – Avoid a hail of bullets by using the jump to cover technique, which launches Joey in the direction of the nearest safe spot. From there, Joey can sidle along and around the cover spot as well as fire over or around it before ducking back into safety. Joey can also create his own cover spots by strategically blasting away at the game's destructible scenery.

Picture-in-picture (PIP) – Remotely view the action at key locations away from Joey's immediate environment by taking advantage of the picture-in-picture views. PIP allows players to memorise the locations of sentries and important items, as well as heightening Made Man's movie-like dramatic style.

Dual weapons and melee combat – Joey can wield two firing weapons simultaneously for double the carnage! Melee weapons are also available for brutal bar room-style brawling and hand-to-hand combat using anything from chair legs, crowbars and knives to inflict the most damage.

Missile combat – Joey can throw all manner of explosive missiles including grenades, Molotov cocktails and pipe bombs for maximum firepower. Missiles may also be used in stealthier stand-offs, in the form of empty drinks cans and rocks that can be used to distract and stun the enemy.

Proprietary physics system – Silverback's proprietary physics and 'rag doll' system is designed from the ground up to feature rich and dynamic environments that allow the player to destroy surroundings and enemies with realistic and spectacular results.

In addition to the key features above, Made Man also features a comprehensive reward system. As Joey fights he will be rewarded for performing various types of hits and kills. As Joey amasses these rewards he increases the effectiveness of his abilities and also gains new skills. Beware of hitting innocent civilians however, as doing so will actually punish the player by reducing accumulated points and, if too many innocents are targeted, Joey's speed, reload time and accuracy are all negatively affected.

Made Man is being developed by Manchester-based Silverback Studios and will be published by Mastertronic for PlayStation 2 and PC in September at full price.

Sign up for a life of crime.

Thanks to XGP Gaming.

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Putting the Muscle on the Sopranos

Friends of ours: Soprano Crime Family

James Gandolfini, star of HBO's mob drama "The Sopranos," is muscling into a salary dispute between two of his castmates and the cable network before production begins on the show's last batch of episodes.

Gandolfini, whose own bitter contract squabble with HBO three years ago escalated into a court battle before it was settled, is hosting a sit-down this weekend with co-stars Steven Van Zandt and Tony Sirico, according to sources.

With less than two weeks until the scheduled production start of the show's last eight episodes, Gandolfini is said to be looking to intervene in the network's standoff with Van Zandt and Sirico over their demands for higher pay.

Only a handful of "Sopranos" actors -- including Emmy winners Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli and Vincent Curatola -- have closed deals to appear in the final installments of the HBO gangster drama.

Following the network's decision in the summer to extend the sixth season of "Sopranos" from 13 to 20 episodes -- 12 to air this year and eight in 2007 -- the cast of the Emmy-winning series began negotiations for substantial salary increases for the final batch of episodes.

With the first table read scheduled for July 5, several key cast members, including Lorraine Bracco, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Steven Schirripa and John Ventimiglia, have not signed on the dotted line to continue. But it has been Sirico and Van Zandt, who play iconic characters Paulie Walnuts and Silvio Dante, respectively, who have had the toughest and most publicized renegotiations.

With each of the two actors and HBO still more than $500,000 apart on the money, and Sirico and Van Zandt not budging on their $200,000-an-episode asking price -- more than double their most recent fee -- a conclusion of the groundbreaking series without Paulie and Silvio looms as a real possibility.

Talks between the actors and HBO are still ongoing.

"HBO has made generous offers to the cast, and, as always, we're confident that we will resolve all of these matters amicably," an HBO spokesperson said.

Bob McGowan of McGowan Management, who manages Sirico and Van Zandt, declined comment Wednesday.

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Dropping a Dime

Friends of ours: Joe "The Builder" Andriacchi
Friends of mine: Bruno Caruso, Ron Jarrett

Thanks to John Kass, today you're invited to participate in a time-honored Chicago political tradition.

It's called "dropping a dime." And everyone can play.

All you do is go to chicagotribune.com/clout, click on the "list of clout" and peruse Mayor Richard Daley's list of politically connected city payrollers and their clout-heavy sponsors that was introduced into evidence this week at the federal City Hall corruption/patronage trial.

Included among the sponsors were unions, tough guys and mayoral brains, including his brothers, like Bill Daley. (If Bill's picture keeps appearing on the front page in connection with stories about the federal trial, will he still become White House chief of staff under a President Hillary Clinton?)

There are so many intriguing questions associated with this list. One name is Andriacchi. There are many people with this name. But could this person be related to Joe "The Builder" Andriacchi, known to the FBI as a reputed boss of the Chicago Outfit? Or is it another, completely unrelated Andriacchi?

Another is Ronald Jarrett, sponsored for his city job by former laborers union boss Bruno Caruso, a reputed Outfit associate. Is this the same Ron Jarrett--the master jewel thief--who was killed in an Outfit hit in Bridgeport a few years ago? Or, is it just a typo?

If you know, then drop a dime and give a shout on city jobs clout.

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