Layoffs are a sad reality of the gaming industry, as Agents of Mayhem developer Volition faced some layoffs a few months ago. Now, it seems that Mafia III developer Hangar 13 faces the same fate but to a potentially higher degree. While Volition faced around 30 layoffs, Hangar 13 is rumored to have lost a significant number of its staff (exact numbers haven’t been specified).

According to one source familiar with Hangar 13, the studio has spent the past year trying to figure out its next project. One idea was a third-person action game with a “fight to music” system where your combat created songs, but it was recently dismissed. It is worth noting that Mafia III was Hangar 13’s first game.

Publisher 2K confirmed the layoffs in the following statement:

“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.”

It is worth noting that, just a couple of months ago, Horizon: Zero Dawn lead quest designer David Ford had joined Hangar 13. It seems unlikely, but at the time of this writing, it is unknown whether or not Ford was affected by the layoffs. However, it doesn’t seem like success is necessarily a component in these layoffs, as Mafia III did commercially well.

Mafia III launched in October 2016 and shipped over 5 million copies by early 2017, making it was a commercial success for 2K. However, it has since received mixed and mediocre reviews, but it remains to be seen if any of these factors were a consideration in the layoffs. Considering a Bioshock Infinite designer has recently returned to 2K Games (presumably for a new Bioshock), time will tell if 2K was serious about these layoffs not influencing its ability to deliver games currently in development.

Mafia III is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Source: Kotaku