Game development is a rather cyclical process. Staff numbers go up and down dependent on demand, but it’s never pleasant to see a significant cull of staff. Such is the fate of Hangar 13, developer of 2016’s Mafia III.
Kotaku reached out to Publisher 2K, who confirmed Hangar 13 has had a reduction in staff, thought to be quite extensive.
A spokesperson told Kotaku via email,
2K can confirm that there have been staff reductions at Hangar 13 in order to ensure that the studio's resources are properly aligned with its long-term development plans. These reductions will not influence 2K's ability to create and deliver its products that are currently in development. We never take these matters lightly, and are working with the affected employees to support them and explore potential opportunities throughout our organization.
Hangar 13 had allegedly recently been working on an idea for a new combat-focused game. It would apparently see your moves create songs. Unfortunately the concept was shelved. It’s thought the company are still in the prototyping stages of development for a future project. That would help to explain a significant staff reduction.
Mafia III was Hangar 13’s first game, and a commercially successful one at that. It shipped over 5 million copies at retail alone as of the end of 2017. Critically? It wasn’t so hot.
While it was applauded for its handling of racism in 60’s America, the game itself was not exactly fondly received. It sits on 68 on metacritic, with many reviews citing the dull game world being a major contributing factor to its failings.
It isn’t a terrible game, but it does little outside its narrative themes to justify its existence in a sea of big budget open world titles.
All the same, Hangar 13 deserve another shot. So we here at PSU wish the remaining team all the best for the future. And we also hope those affected by the cull land on their feet soon.