Hangar 13 Explained

Hangar 13
Type:Division
Industry:Video games
Founder:Haden Blackman
Hq Location City:Novato, California
Hq Location Country:US
Num Locations:4 studios
Num Locations Year:2018
Key People:Nick Baynes (studio head)
Parent:2K

Hangar 13 is an American video game developer based in Novato, California, in the area of the former Hamilton Air Force Base. Established with Haden Blackman in December 2014 as a division of 2K (a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive), the company's debut game was Mafia III, released in October 2016. In 2017, 2K Czech was merged into Hangar 13, wherefore the studio received two additional studios in Brno and Prague; another studio was opened in Brighton in 2018. Their second title, , was released in September 2020. Their third title, TopSpin 2K25, was released in April 2024.

History

Hangar 13 was formed around September 2013, when 2K Games announced that Rod Fergusson would be running a new San Francisco studio.[1] However, Fergusson left the position by January 2014, which he claimed was due to "creative differences" with management.[2]

On December 4, 2014, 2K announced that it had set up a new game studio, Hangar 13, led by Haden Blackman, formerly creative director for LucasArts.[3] Blackman told GamesBeat that the studio would work on a game for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.[4] Mafia III, the studio's debut title, was announced in August 2015.[5] 2K Czech, the developer of previous entries in the Mafia series, had a supporting role in the game's development.[6] Mafia III was released on October 7, 2016, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.[7] In 2017, 2K Czech was merged into Hangar 13.[8]

In February 2018, 2K announced that Hangar 13 had been hit with sizable layoffs, without disclosing exact numbers.[9] At the time, Hangar 13 was brainstorming ideas for its next game—one idea included a "fight to music" system through which the player's movement would create songs, similar to Harmonix's cancelled game Chroma.[10] In May 2018, Hangar 13 opened an additional studio in Brighton, UK, headed by Nick Baynes.[11] [12] In July 2018, the studio announced that it was working on a new intellectual property.[13]

In March 2019, it was announced that the studio had collaborated with Gearbox Software to develop a free update for , which added 4K graphics to the remastered versions of Borderlands 2 and .[14]

In May 2020, 2K and Hangar 13 announced the Mafia: Trilogy. This contained a remake of the first Mafia, a remaster of Mafia II (developed by d3t) and a platinum version of Mafia III comprised with its additional story packs. These editions were available as a bundle or individually. Both the original Mafia II and Mafia III owners on Steam and console had their editions upgraded at no cost.[15]

In November 2021, it was confirmed that Volt, an unannounced game by Hangar 13, was cancelled by Take-Two Interactive after running up a loss of $53 million in production costs.[16] [17] In May 2022, Blackman announced his impending departure from the company. He is to be succeeded by Hangar 13 Brighton studio head Nick Baynes.[18] Later that month, after Baynes had taken over, Hangar 13 laid off people across its four studios, of which the Novato headquarters dismissed 50 of its 87 employees.[19] It was reported that Hangar 13 was in the early stages of development for a prequel to the Mafia: Trilogy as well as a new entry to the Top Spin series; Hangar 13 is also awaiting a greenlight from its parent company to begin development on a fifth entry to the Mafia series alongside its prequel, as Baynes describes, to keep its developers employed at the studio for a smooth transition from one game to another.[20]

Blackman left Hangar 13 in May 2022, with Baynes taking over his role.[21] In August 2022, development on a new Mafia game was confirmed to have started.[22] Accorging to the game's Steam page, should be released in 2025.[23]

Games developed

YearTitlePlatform(s)
2016Mafia IIIMicrosoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Stadia
2020Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
2024TopSpin 2K25Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
2025Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Epic, Irrational alumnus to helm 2K's newest studio . Kris . Ligman . September 26, 2013 . February 8, 2020 . . September 30, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130930160121/https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/201086/Epic_Irrational_alumnus_to_helm_2Ks_newest_studio.php . live .
  2. Web site: Gears Of War Boss Says He Left Mafia 3 Over "Creative Differences" . Steve . Watts . January 21, 2020 . February 8, 2020 . . January 21, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200121190303/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/gears-of-war-boss-says-he-left-mafia-3-over-creati/1100-6472908/ . live .
  3. Web site: 2K Games forms new studio led by ex-LucasArts creative director Haden Blackman . Michael . McWhertor . December 4, 2014 . . September 26, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190608125753/https://www.polygon.com/2014/12/4/7331207/2k-games-hangar-13-new-studio-haden-blackman . June 8, 2019 . live .
  4. Web site: 2K launches brand new console game studio Hangar 13 . Dean . Takahashi . December 4, 2014 . . August 31, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170807002619/https://venturebeat.com/2014/12/04/2k-launches-brand-new-next-generation-console-game-studio-hangar-13/ . August 7, 2017 . live .
  5. Web site: Mafia 3: here's the reveal trailer as promised . Stephany . Nunneley . August 5, 2015 . . May 8, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160528184257/https://www.vg247.com/2015/08/05/mafia-3-reveal-trailer-gamescom-2015/ . May 28, 2016 . live .
  6. Who The Hell Is Mafia III Developer Hangar 13? . Ben . Hanson . October 14, 2015 . . September 26, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190822041738/https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2015/10/14/who-the-hell-is-mafia-iiis-hangar-13.aspx . August 22, 2019 . dead .
  7. Web site: Mafia 3 Release Date Announced, New Trailer and Deluxe Versions Revealed . Eddie . Makuch . April 19, 2016 . . September 26, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190413234927/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/mafia-3-release-date-announced-new-trailer-and-del/1100-6438967/ . April 13, 2019 . live .
  8. Web site: Have you seen these studios? . Brendan . Sinclair . January 4, 2018 . . February 25, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180224173521/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-01-04-have-you-seen-these-studios . February 24, 2018 . live .
  9. Web site: Mafia 3 developers Hangar 13 hit with layoffs . Dustin . Bailey . February 15, 2018 . . February 25, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180224232646/https://www.pcgamesn.com/mafia-3/mafia-3-hangar-13-layoffs . February 24, 2018 . live .
  10. Web site: Big Layoffs Hit Mafia III Developer Hangar 13 . Jason . Schreier . February 15, 2018 . . February 16, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180216204344/https://kotaku.com/big-layoffs-hit-mafia-iii-developer-hangar-13-1823047167 . February 16, 2018 . live .
  11. Web site: Mafia III developer Hangar 13 opens UK studio for AAA console game . Christopher . Dring . May 16, 2018 . . May 15, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180516015339/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-05-15-mafia-iii-developer-hangar-13-opens-uk-studio-for-aaa-console-game . May 16, 2018 . live .
  12. Web site: Split/Second game director heading up Mafia III dev's new Brighton office . MCV Staff . May 15, 2018 . MCV.
  13. Web site: Mafia III Developer Hangar 13 Confirm They are Working on a new IP . Brandon . Green . July 19, 2018 . . September 26, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190331000052/https://www.gamerevolution.com/news/408543-mafia-iii-developer-hangar-13-confirm-they-are-working-on-a-new-ip . March 31, 2019 . live .
  14. Borderlands . 1111422775854424065 . March 29, 2019 . Sending the hugest of shout-outs and thanks to the devs at @Blind_Squirrel_ for their work on Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition and to @Hangar13Games for their work on The Handsome Collection Ultra HD Pack! You rock!.
  15. Juba. Joe. Everything You Need To Know About The Mafia Trilogy Definitive Editions. 2021-03-14. Game Informer. en. April 22, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210422232047/https://www.gameinformer.com/2020/05/19/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-mafia-trilogy-definitive-editions. dead.
  16. News: Take-Two's 2K Cancels $53 Million Game From Hangar 13. November 3, 2021. November 8, 2021. Bloomberg News. Schreier. Jason. November 7, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211107193230/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-03/take-two-s-2k-cancels-53-million-game-from-developer-hangar-13?sref=P6Q0mxvj. live.
  17. Web site: Take-Two Cancels Unannounced $53 Million Dollar Game By Hangar 13. 2021-11-05. Kotaku. November 3, 2021. en-us. November 5, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211105204450/https://kotaku.com/take-two-cancels-unannounced-53-million-dollar-game-by-1847992907. live.
  18. Web site: Haden Blackman steps down as head of 2K's Hangar 13 . Dean . Takahashi . May 4, 2022 . . May 5, 2022 . May 5, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220505005835/https://venturebeat.com/2022/05/04/haden-blackman-steps-down-as-head-of-2ks-hangar-13/ . live .
  19. Web site: Mafia 3 developer Hangar 13 suffers another round of layoffs . James . Batchelor . May 26, 2022 . . May 27, 2022 . May 26, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220526213704/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2022-05-26-mafia-3-developer-hangar-13-suffers-another-round-of-layoffs . live .
  20. Web site: Mafia 5 Reportedly Being Planned by Hanger 13 Amidst Mafia 4 Development . Cade . Onder . May 26, 2022 . . May 28, 2022 . May 26, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220526232145/https://comicbook.com/gaming/amp/news/mafia-5-planned-hanger-13-during-mafia-4-game-development/ . live .
  21. Web site: 2022-05-05 . Hangar 13 Bosses Leave, New Mafia In Development . 2023-03-22 . Kotaku . en . March 22, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230322185951/https://kotaku.com/mafia-4-release-date-hangar-13-haden-blackman-lucasarts-1848883555 . live .
  22. Web site: Bailey . Kat . 2022-08-29 . 'All-New Mafia Game' Confirmed to be in Development . 2022-09-04 . IGN . en . September 3, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220903003314/https://www.ign.com/articles/all-new-mafia-game-confirmed-to-be-in-development . live .
  23. Web site: Mafia: The Old Country on Steam . 2024-08-20 . store.steampowered.com . en.

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