How to easily win knife battles in Mafia The Old Country

Knife battles in Mafia The Old Country are not the kind of fights you can simply rush through. They’re tense, up-close encounters where a single mistake can end Enzo's life. These duels are built to feel like real cinematic standoffs; every feint, step, and slash matters.

If you want to walk away instead of bleeding out in San Celeste’s dirt, you need to know how to read your opponent and react without hesitation. That said, here is how you can win knife battles in Mafia The Old Country.

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A guide to secure wins in knife battles in Mafia The Old Country

Winning knife battles in Mafia The Old Country is all about control (Image via 2K)

Read the fight, don’t just swing

The first thing to keep in mind is that button-mashing is not going to help Enzo out one bit in knife duels. These fights have their own pacing, more like a quick-witted dance than a brutish fight. Each input window for dodges, parries, and strikes is different, and any early or late response will cost you. You need to keep an eye on your opponent's stance and the movement patterns.

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Use the audio and visual cues

Your ears are as important as your eyes in these battles. Enemies give away their next move through subtle audio hints – a grunt, a shift in weight, or even the scrape of a boot right before they strike. Additionally, a red glint signals a dangerous, unblockable attack. The moment you see that glow, forget about blocking and dodge instead.

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Mix up your approach

If you always parry, your opponent will start breaking through. If you only dodge, you’ll never open them up for counters. The secret lies in variety, so alternate between parrying light attacks, dodging unblockables, and slipping in your own slashes or thrusts. Keep the enemy guessing, and you control the tempo of the fight.

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How the system works

Knife duels in The Old Country are meant to be slow and tactical. Light attacks can be parried with precise timing, giving you a chance to counter immediately. Unblockable moves, marked by the red glow, require dodging, without any exceptions.

Wear your opponent down this way, and you’ll eventually trigger a brutal finishing move that ends the fight in true Torrisi fashion.

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Knife duel controls

Action	PS5	Xbox
Strike	R1	RB
Thrust	Triangle	Y
Slash	Circle	B
Parry	Square	X
Dodge	Cross	A
Move	L	LS
Ping HUD	Touchpad	View Button
Pause Menu	Options Button	Menu Button

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This concludes our article on how to win knife battles in Mafia The Old Country. For more such guides, follow Sportskeeda.

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