Mafia 3 developer Hangar 13 suffers another round of layoffs
Almost 50 let go from California studio, others impacted in Brighton, UK and Czech
2K Games-owned studio Hangar 13 has been hit by redundancies across all three regions in which it operates.
Kotaku reports that affected staff were informed today by Nick Baynes, head of Hanger 13's studio in Brighton, UK, who took over the company after the recent departure of Haden Blackman.
The team in Novato, California appears to have been particularly affected, with almost 50 of the 87 staff let go. By comparison, the studio have over 100 full-time employees when Hangar 13 shipped its debut title, Mafia 3, in 2016.
It's unclear how badly the Brighton and Czech (formerly 2K Czech) studios have been affected, but Baynes said those who are may be able to transfer to other teams within 2K Games and its subsidiary studios.
According to a recording shared with Kotaku, Baynes told staff: "I know it sucks. I'm sorry I'm not over there to deliver this message. I will be coming over soon. I know you need some local leadership and structure, and we're working on it."
A 2K spokesperson confirmed the layoffs in a statement.
"2K is fully committed to the future of Hangar 13 as the studio navigates a challenging but ultimately promising transition period," it read. "As part of our ongoing evaluations to ensure our resources are aligned with our goals, we have made some changes that have resulted in a reduction of positions and parting ways with some colleagues.
"These decisions are always difficult. We are doing all we can to work with the impacted employees to find them new roles on other projects and teams at 2K, and are providing full support to those who cannot be redeployed, connecting them with industry networks and resources to find new opportunities outside of 2K."
Hangar 13 has suffered multiple rounds of layoffs since Mafia 3 shipped, although seems to have been stable since those of 2018.
However, Kotaku reports that aside from work on 2020's Mafia: Definitive Edition, the studio has mostly been used for co-development on other 2K titles, such as the recent Tiny Tina's Wonderlands and upcoming titles Marvel's Midnight Sun and Kerbal Space Program 2.
Several projects have been started and scrapped over the years, reportedly prompting other staff to leave the studio, although the Brighton office is believed to be working on a Mafia prequel set in Italy and powered by Unreal Engine 5.
Other members of Hangar 13 are said to be working on 'Project Hammer', a revival of the Top Spin tennis series. Baynes reportedly said Hangar 13 will focus solely on these two franchises going forwards.