Hangar 13 (company)

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.

Hangar 13
TypeDivision
IndustryVideo games
FoundedDecember 4, 2014 (2014-12-04)
FounderHaden Blackman
Headquarters
Novato, California
,
US
Number of locations
4 studios (2018)
Key people
Haden Blackman (creative director, studio head)
ProductsMafia III
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Number of employees
150 (2016)
Parent2K
Websitehangar13games.com

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 Borderlands: The Handsome Collection, which added 4K graphics to the remastered versions of Borderlands 2 and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel.[14]

Games developed
Year Title Platform(s)
2016 Mafia III Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
2020 Mafia: Definitive Edition Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One

References
  1. Ligman, Kris (September 26, 2013). "Epic, Irrational alumnus to helm 2K's newest studio". Gamasutra. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  2. Watts, Steve (January 21, 2020). "Gears Of War Boss Says He Left Mafia 3 Over "Creative Differences"". GameSpot. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  3. McWhertor, Michael (December 4, 2014). "2K Games forms new studio led by ex-LucasArts creative director Haden Blackman". Polygon. Archived from the original on June 8, 2019. Retrieved September 26, 2019.
  4. Takahashi, Dean (December 4, 2014). "2K launches brand new console game studio Hangar 13". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on August 7, 2017. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
  5. Nunneley, Stephany (August 5, 2015). "Mafia 3: here's the reveal trailer as promised". VG247. Archived from the original on May 28, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
  6. Hanson, Ben (October 14, 2015). "Who The Hell Is Mafia III Developer Hangar 13?". Game Informer. Archived from the original on August 22, 2019. Retrieved September 26, 2019.
  7. Makuch, Eddie (April 19, 2016). "Mafia 3 Release Date Announced, New Trailer and Deluxe Versions Revealed". GameSpot. Archived from the original on April 13, 2019. Retrieved September 26, 2019.
  8. Sinclair, Brendan (January 4, 2018). "Have you seen these studios?". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on February 24, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
  9. Bailey, Dustin (February 15, 2018). "Mafia 3 developers Hangar 13 hit with layoffs". PCGamesN. Archived from the original on February 24, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
  10. Schreier, Jason (February 15, 2018). "Big Layoffs Hit Mafia III Developer Hangar 13". Kotaku. Archived from the original on February 16, 2018. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  11. Dring, Christopher (May 16, 2018). "Mafia III developer Hangar 13 opens UK studio for AAA console game". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  12. MCV Staff (May 15, 2018). "Split/Second game director heading up Mafia III dev's new Brighton office". MCV.
  13. Green, Brandon (July 19, 2018). "Mafia III Developer Hangar 13 Confirm They are Working on a new IP". GameRevolution. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019. Retrieved September 26, 2019.
  14. @Borderlands (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!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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