Mafia III creative director Haden Blackman, who also founded developer Hangar 13, is stepping down as studio head and leaving the company.
As reported by Gamespot, 2K leadership shared an internal memo which announced Blackman's departure, as well as the new leadership for studio. Nick Baynes, the studio head of Hangar 13's Brighton studio, will be taking over leadership of the main California studio.
“It's with mixed emotions that I share with you several leadership updates from Hangar 13,” reads the memo. “Haden Blackman is stepping down as studio head of Hangar 13, and is leaving the company to pursue his passion at a new endeavor. We are grateful for Haden's leadership in establishing Hangar 13, building and uniting teams in Novato, Brighton, and Czech, and releasing multiple studio-defining Mafia games and collections.”
“With 30 years of industry leadership experience, Nick joined Hangar 13 in 2018 to establish Hangar 13 Brighton, and has spent the last four years growing the team, building up the studio's capabilities, and launching terrific projects like Mafia: Definitive Edition and the Mafia Trilogy. I hope you'll join me in thanking Haden and wishing him the best, and congratulating Nick on a well-deserved promotion. While change can be challenging, it can also breed new opportunities and success. We are confident the studio is in great hands heading into the multiple projects currently under way, and the team has 2K’s full support.”
Thursday, May 05, 2022
Mafia III creative director Haden Blackman, who also founded developer Hangar 13, is stepping down as studio head and leaving the company.
As reported by Gamespot, 2K leadership shared an internal memo which announced Blackman's departure, as well as the new leadership for studio. Nick Baynes, the studio head of Hangar 13's Brighton studio, will be taking over leadership of the main California studio.
“It's with mixed emotions that I share with you several leadership updates from Hangar 13,” reads the memo. “Haden Blackman is stepping down as studio head of Hangar 13, and is leaving the company to pursue his passion at a new endeavor. We are grateful for Haden's leadership in establishing Hangar 13, building and uniting teams in Novato, Brighton, and Czech, and releasing multiple studio-defining Mafia games and collections.”
“With 30 years of industry leadership experience, Nick joined Hangar 13 in 2018 to establish Hangar 13 Brighton, and has spent the last four years growing the team, building up the studio's capabilities, and launching terrific projects like Mafia: Definitive Edition and the Mafia Trilogy. I hope you'll join me in thanking Haden and wishing him the best, and congratulating Nick on a well-deserved promotion. While change can be challenging, it can also breed new opportunities and success. We are confident the studio is in great hands heading into the multiple projects currently under way, and the team has 2K’s full support.”
Hangar 13 was founded in 2014, and went on to release Mafia III in 2016, and then Mafia: Definitive Edition in 2020. A recent report also suggested that 2K parent company Take-Two cancelled an unannounced Destiny-like live-service game under development at Hangar 13, with more than $53 million already spent on the project.