Hangar 13 will return to the Mafia license.
The American studio Hangar 13 has been in a precarious position for many years. Since releasing the ambitious but very average Mafia III, it has gone through two rounds of layoffs, first in 2017 and then in 2018. The studio had several ideas for new licensing during this time and beyond, like a spy game revolving around musical cues called Rhapsody. as well as a Destiny 2-style co-op game. Codenamed Volt, it was quietly shut down by parent company Take-Two Interactive last year after $53 million had already been spent on development. Finally, the third IP, codenamed Mosaic, was a loot based ARPG and was also removed before it was officially announced.
To bounce back after canceling their new license, Hangar 13 will restart the Mafia license with a fourth opus. This event will take place before the main trilogy (the original idea was to go to 1970s Las Vegas, but another option was also approved) and will be powered by the Unreal Engine 5 graphics engine for the first time.
Hayden Blackman is replaced by Nick Baines in Hangar 13.
“We are grateful to Hayden for his leadership in creating Hangar 13, building and uniting teams in Novato, Brighton and the Czech Republic, and releasing several Mafia games and compilations that have made the studio famous. What Hayden helped build will continue to live and grow in the coming years. We support all of our employees in their passions and wish them all the best for the future,” Take-Two Interactive commented in a press release. “With 30 years of industry leadership experience, Nick joined Hangar 13 in 2018 to found Hangar 13 in Brighton and has spent the last four years growing the team, building the studio and launching great titles like Mafia Definitive Edition and Mafia trilogy. We are confident the studio is in good hands for several ongoing projects and the team enjoys full 2K support.”
Note that Matthew Urban, chief operating officer of Hangar 13, also left the studio: “What an incredible adventure. .. Let’s see what happens next. “