A new project by Mafia developer Hangar 13 has been shelved by Take-Two, with the organisation writing off $53 million as a result. The release, codenamed Volt, has been in production since 2017, according to Bloomberg, and has apparently gone through “multiple iterations since it was first conceived”.
According to sources “familiar with the decision”, as reported by the ever-reliable Jason Schreier, the “current version [of the game] struggled due to reboots, technological hiccups, and challenges caused by COVID-19”. Apparently the title was billed as “Cthulhu meets Saints Row”, and featured superheroes in “online gameplay”.
Unfortunately for the team at Hangar 13, executives at Take-Two and publishing label 2K Games didn’t see the value in completing the project, especially given how much development time would be required to finish it off. Employees at the studio will meet with bosses later today to learn what’s next for the team – hopefully there are no layoffs.
[source bloomberg.com, via twitter.com]
Comments 15
Eesh not good at all. Here’s hoping the staff are alright.
Take-Two becoming more and more like Ubisoft & EA, cancelling projects with potential in favor of milking the series they know will generate more revenue. They're playing it too safe really, and the more they milk GTA, the less interested I am in GTA6.
Sad to hear we won’t get another game for them for awhile. But if what they had wasn’t fun it needs to be cancelled regardless of sunk costs. It’s not that uncomment. About a third of game project ending cancellation. Hard to know whether something will work until you’ve built it and that is expensive to do.
Aww man. They coulda just given me the $53M instead.
I like Hanger 13, so this kind of upsets me. Means we won't get another game from them for years.
@JustPlainLoco couldn't agree more
Drop in the bucket when it comes to take2. They sold 5 million GTA V copies in the last period. They'll be fine.
Now don't be dicks and fire anyone at Hanger 13
Good, Hangar 13 have produced absolutely nothing of value from inception onward so I have no doubt this cringey concept was shot down for being more of the same. Mafia 3 was an absolute shambles at launch and even after myriad patches it is still one of the most soulless, trite games in recent memory. And one of the Trophies is still glitched, for crying out loud - testament to how poor this lot are from a technical perspective.
The remake of the original was a quick cashgrab, and that spy-themed game set in Berlin they were working on also got thrown in the trash because it wasn't up to snuff. 2K made a big mistake in gutting 2K Czech after (or perhaps even during) development of Mafia 2 and instead pumping funds into this miserable new studio. Could have continued to have Daniel Vávra at the helm of the Czech outfit but instead we have Haden Blackman continuing to plough a sinking ship into one iceberg after another.
Firstly I hope everyone at the studio keeps their job.
Second the reality of creative development is that not every project should be seen to completion, knowing when to cut the cord is important. As disappointing as that may be to developers, investors and potential players. Though you hope to realise this WELL before 4 years and $53 million down!
@Golem25 I can only comment on the Mafia series as games I've played, but I can't say I agree.
Mafia 3 was a great game with a few birthing pains. It suffers a little from open-world-itis, giving it a very different feel to the earlier games, but still being better than most of the open world games it tries to emulate.
The Mafia remake, meanwhile shows significant care and attention in trying to capture what made the original great, in a time where many would see the original as unplayable. The number of details that have been recreated and then improved upon is breathtaking. Would I prefer to play the original on PC? I'm not sure, but most of that is nostalgia. There are parts of the remake I dislike, and parts of the original I miss, but a quick cash grab it most certainly wasn't.
Well, the team had years of paid employment and hopefully learned a lot from the challenges of the project. They might feel it’s a shame, or be excited to start work on something fresh, but it doesn’t sound like the game would have been that great if released.
Waiting on Mafia IV in Las Vegas
"Chthulu meets Saints Row" Oooh! "And featured Superheroes in online gameplay." Nahhh...
Cthulhu meets Saints Row.... now that's a line I didn't think I'd ever see.
@Golem25 I have to quite disagree with you on the remake of the original Mafia. I didn't think it was a quick cashgrab at all and well worth the money. Absolutely enjoyed the game and the visuals were not terrible.
@hi_drnick Or they could have given 53 random people 1 million USD each.
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