Mafia boss simulator

Sal, 48, takes over a family in New York City after the old Don steps down. A bitter older capo named Enzo wants the seat for himself. Sal sets a life goal to win Enzo's loyalty and keep the family together.

On Tuesday, Sal plans an outing to an Italian bakery on Mulberry Street in Little Italy. He invites Enzo and his consigliere for a formal sit-down. Because people in LifeSim talk in open text and remember past events, Enzo brings up an old slight. Sal offers him a prized construction territory, and they reach peace over espresso.

If you want tactical combat and racket management charts, other games do that better. Empire of Sin lets you fight turf wars and manage breweries in 1920s Chicago. City of Gangsters is a tycoon game about supply chains and favors.

The Godfather II gives you an open world with action combat and a strategy map. LifeSim has no combat, weapons, or business mini-games. Instead, it gives you the whole real Earth and people who answer in their own words and remember your promises.

A boss does not work clocked shifts. Your days start around noon at a social club and run late into the night at restaurants. Between sit-downs, you have a partner, kids, and neighbors with their own routines and goals.

Your eldest child might graduate from college and want you to go legitimate before their wedding day. You can check your calendar for birthday drinks or a house party on the map. If you miss a family dinner for a walk-talk with a captain, your partner remembers and brings it up later.

You start by writing your name, age, city, and backstory in one text box. You can start as a young associate on the street or an aging boss holding court. There is no built-in career ladder, so you act out promotions and tribute in your chats.

When you think a hidden microphone is in your club, you invite a captain for a walk-talk on a noisy sidewalk. You test their omerta, the code of silence, by sharing a false rumor in a text thread. Your money and relationships shift with your chats and activities as your character ages day by day.

New York City is home to the historic Five Families, with social clubs in Little Italy and fronts near the Fulton Fish Market. In Chicago, you can hold meetings near the Green Mill Cocktail Lounge in the footsteps of the Chicago Outfit.

In London, British firms run out of East End pubs like the Blind Beggar in Whitechapel and West End nightclubs. Montreal offers the cafes of Saint-Leonard and the busy Port of Montreal. In Las Vegas, you can meet rival bosses outside resorts on the Strip.