Haden Blackman, head of the studio and founder of Mafia III developer Hanger 13, left the studio and 2K seven years later.
Haden Blackman will be replaced by Nick Baynes, who has 30 years of industry leadership experience and joined Hanger 13 in 2018. They were responsible for launching Mafia: The Authority Edition and the Mafia Trilogy.
Haden Blackman spent his early years of game development at Lucas Art, and was a producer of Star Wars: Galaxies, a project lead for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, and more. While Haden Blackman's next move was not revealed, 2K said he would leave the company to "pursue his passion for his new career."
Mafia 3 was released in 2016 and IGN commented on it: "Strong character and confident storytelling keep players engaged, even though the gameplay offers little more than muddy standards and repetitive open-world action." ”
Hanger 13 Studio was founded by 2K in 2014 and helmed by Haden Blackman, while Mafia 3 is the only new game released by the studio since its inception. In 2018, Hanger 13 suffered major layoffs. The studio will continue to work with Gearbox Software.
In 2021, a Bloomberg report said hanger 13 was canceled after an undeclared game Volt caused $53 million in damage to 2K. The studio is currently hiring for another unannounced project.