The Godfather: The Game/Tips

General Tips

 * In some of your safehouses you can FLIRT or MAKE A MOVE on one of the prostitutes next door to your own room, and she will give you advice (and a little respect).
 * When taking over a warehouse or a compound, hire a CREW MEMBER for some extra muscle.
 * You can retry CONTRACT HITS if you miss the bonus condition the first time around.
 * The PUPPETEER HANDS above someone indicates they can be of some use to you.
 * Check out TRAINING VIDEOS in the main menu for more information on the five families, police, and rackets.
 * Remember to SAVE your progress frequently in the SAFEHOUSES you buy around the city.
 * Exploding cars can be a powerful weapon if you're quick and careful.
 * Banks have lots of cash for the taking if you have dynamite for the vault and aren't afraid of cops.
 * Find a doc to restore your health...for a price.
 * Invest skill points in STREET SMARTS to help avoid mob wars and police crackdowns.
 * Don't forget to upgrade your SKILLS as you earn more respect.
 * Note that the highest respect level you can reach in the game is 50, after which you earn no more respect points. So in those versions of the game that divide skills upgrades between "Enforcer" and "Operator" (including the Playstation 3 and Wii), you can only get the perk for all 30 points in one or the other, not both.
 * Telephones can be found in hotels, clubs, and safe houses.
 * Crew members can be hired in every neighborhood. Look for the crew icon on your map.
 * Go into FREE-AIM to easily target explosive crates, barrels, and racket trucks.
 * Buy SAFEHOUSES in different neighborhoods to save your progress and restock your supplies.
 * The handbrake is perfect for power sliding around corners.
 * Outgunned? Find a BLACK MARKET MERCHANT to upgrade your firearms.
 * Use the WAYPOINT flag in the map screen to place a marker on the mini-map.
 * When being chased in your car, slam into enemies before they can pull up next to you.
 * Use dynamite to blow safes inside businesses.
 * When being pursued in your car, shake your chasers with high-speed cornering.

Money Makers

 * For some big money, try hitting a BANK. Make sure you've got dynamite to blow the vault. (Note: bribe a cop outside the bank so once you get the money you can get back to your safehouse without being chased by the cops.)
 * Occasionally you will see a heist-in-progress. Kill the gangsters outside the bank and take the money bags, that way you won't have to take heat for blowing up the safe.
 * After you take over a warehouse, there may be a racket worker hanging around who will ask you to resupply a racket. The farther away the delivery location the more money you earn.
 * The fat older businessmen wearing a yellow shirt and carrying a briefcase are MOB COURIERS. You may kill them to steal their money but this will raise your VENDETTA and you will be pursued by his employers. However if a fellow Corleone or a policeman kills the courier you will get no vendetta for stealing from his corpse.
 * You can shoot at or repeatedly ram a rival gang's truck until it stops. Kill the two gang members that get out, intimidate the driver until he gives up the keys, then get in and drive it to one of your safehouses for a payout.
 * The rival gang will come after you, so attack trucks that are near your safehouse to quickly earn the payout.

In the Pause Menu
All of these tips are performed in the pause menu
 * Check your family standing in CAREER PROGRESS
 * Invert your camera controls in the OPTIONS menu
 * Your HIT LIST in the OBJECTIVES screen will tell you how to get the most respect for each hit.
 * Upgrade your SKILLS each time you earn a RESPECT LEVEL.
 * Check out TOM'S REPORT for information on RIVAL FAMILIES and police HEAT LEVELS.
 * For weapon upgrades and ammo, find the BLACK MARKET MERCHANTS using your MAP.

Family Business
Killing rival mobsters, extorting businesses, and taking over rackets will earn you respect from the Family.
 * Doing a FAVOR for a Corleone is a great way to earn respect with the Family.
 * The Corleones will receive a percentage of your payday income - but you'll earn more as you climb the ranks.
 * To look your best and increase your respect, buy new threads from a friendly tailor, or get a haircut at the barbershop.
 * Visit a TAILOR or BARBER to purchase a new look from the Mob Face menu!
 * Corleone Family allies and soldiers always wear black jackets, and they will help you out in a pinch.
 * You can only hire crew members that are equal or less than your own rank.
 * To get more respect, use your fists to defeat mobsters.
 * Some Corleones will offer you contract hits against rival family members. Completing hits earns you respect and money.
 * You'll get a bigger cut of your extorted business income as you rise up through the Family ranks.

Hits

 * HIT CONTRACTS from Corleones can earn you big respect and cash - especially if you get the BONUS CONDITION.

Rivals
Eliminate each of the rival families to control all of New York City. Achieve this by taking over all of its businesses and blowing up its compound.
 * The BARZINIS are the strongest of the four rival families.
 * The TATTAGLIAS are the weakest of the four rival families.
 * Little Italy is the easiest neighborhood to take over.
 * Stripes above an enemy's health correspond to his rank. The more stripes he has, the tougher he is.
 * The color of a mobster's suit shows which family he's from.
 * If a family's vendetta gets too high, you'll start a MOB WAR. End it by blowing up one of their businesses or bribing an FBI agent.
 * During a MOB WAR, your businesses will be repeatedly bombed until the war ends.
 * The more mobsters you kill in a family, the higher their vendetta against you.
 * Plant bombs in both buildings in a rival family's compound to take it out. It will also cause them to lose control of their neighborhoods.

Merchants and Businesses
Businesses produce income every payday and make certain services and merchandise available.
 * Before extorting a business, take care of any rival family guards outside.
 * You will lose income if a shopkeeper or a racket boss under control dies, or their business is bombed.
 * Each merchant has a weakness. Find the weak spot to guarantee a maximum payout! Some potential weak spots:
 * Use the threat of a POWER ATTACK.
 * Smash up the store. Break the cash register to get some money.
 * Pull out a gun and target the merchant or his customers.
 * Punch the merchant.
 * Grab the merchant and throw him around.
 * Some merchants may ask you for a FAVOR. Help them out, and you'll be richly rewarded.
 * Find BLACK MARKET MERCHANTS to buy ammo, weapon upgrades, molotov cocktails, and bombs. These are handy during mob wars.
 * The STREET SWEEPER is one of the most powerful weapons you can buy from a BLACK MARKET MERCHANT.
 * If a merchant already respects you, try just talking to him. He may agree to pay you more out of respect for the Corleones.
 * When merchants surrender, you may earn more cash by applying more pressure.
 * Try to find Barzini Underboss Alfredo Satori at the Barzini Compound. If you kill him he drops $5.000 dollars.

Rackets
Rackets use legitimate businesses as fronts. Like businesses, rackets produce income but at a higher rate.
 * Taking over a front will reveal other fronts used in that racket. Taking over a business that is a racket’s front will unlock the back door.
 * When you see a roadblock, chances are there is a RACKET WAREHOUSE nearby.
 * Make sure to take over all fronts to steal power from your rivals.
 * Attack racket trucks and interrogate the driver to get his keys.
 * Find and takeover RACKET WAREHOUSES for serious cash - but be ready for a big fight.
 * BUYOUT racket bosses by talking to them first. Have enough cash and they'll make it worth your while.
 * If you kill a Racket Boss, you won't be able to get money from that racket.
 * Racket bosses will pay you more money, depending on how much pressure you apply.
 * If a racket boss already respects you, don't threaten him. If BUYOUT is an option, you'll earn maximum income.
 * Try camping by a safehouse you own or the Corleone compound. Then wait for racket trucks to come by, then steal them and put them in.

Police

 * Bribe corrupt cops to keep them off your back for a while.
 * Once you bribe a cop, the BRIBE TIMER will show how long the police will be friendly to you.
 * Bribed cops might even help you out in a fight against rival mobsters.

Heat
HEAT levels are unique for each neighborhood. If your heat gets too high, try driving to a different neighborhood and hide out.
 * These will raise your HEAT level:
 * When you break the law
 * Killing civilians will raise your HEAT and gets the cops all over you. Only kill when you have to.
 * Killing innocent workers inside rackets
 * Bribe a police chief to bring down the HEAT level in a neighborhood.

Combat Strategies

 * Running in the open can be suicide during a gunfight - use cover!
 * Use traffic as cover instead of standing in the open.
 * Grab an enemy and use him as a shield if you're low on health.
 * Use WALL COVER to safely target and shoot enemies around a corner. Always use wall cover to look around corners before blindly running into a group of enemies.
 * Crouching and firing behind low cover is much safer than out in the open.
 * High-ranking mobsters can't be grabbed at full health, so beat them down before trying.
 * Sneak up behind people and strangle them using the GARROTE before they have a chance to call for help!
 * Use a POWER ATTACK to break through an enemy's block.
 * For increased firearm accuracy, wait for your spread to shrink to its smallest size.
 * Use your fists to conserve ammo and earn higher respect per kill.
 * DYNAMITE is always handy when you need to takeout a safe or when you're outnumbered.
 * Mobsters with long coats are stronger than mobsters with short coats. They carry Tommy guns or shotguns.
 * Your HIT LIST targets don't always know they're in danger. You may be able to use surprise to your advantage.
 * The shotgun is most effective at close range. Always use the right weapon for the job.
 * BOMBS can do major damage - including taking out a whole business. Use with care.
 * Shoot destructible objects that your enemies hide behind to flush them out of cover.
 * Always reload by pressing Up on the directional pad before going into an unknown situation.
 * Shooting in short bursts can improve your accuracy - especially with the Tommy Gun.
 * Throw bottles at enemies or pistol whip them to get them on their knees.