Job listings over the last year have suggested that Mafia developer Hangar 13’s next game was going to feature a sci-fi setting and an open world with an emphasis on multiplayer gameplay. More details on the project emerged when report claimed a few months ago in a report that claimed that it was currently codenamed Volt, and described it as “Cthulhu meets Saints Row”.
Now, however, it seems Volt has been cancelled. In its recent quarterly fiscal report, Take-Two Interactive – parent company of Hangar 13 owner 2K Games – revealed that it recently took hit of $53 million due to the cancellation of an unannounced game. A report published by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier claims that that game was Hangar 13’s Volt.
According to Schreier, the game, which would see players playing as superheroes battling each other in a multiplayer experience, had been in development in some form since 2017. Since then, the project went through several changes in a turbulent production cycle, and was struggling due to challenges brought about by COVID-19, several reboots, and technical issues. Deciding that the investment of time and resources wasn’t worth it, 2K seems to have now officially shelved the game.
What Hangar 13 will move on to next remains to be seen. Shortly before the launch of Mafia: Definitive Edition last year, the developer said it “would be thrilled to make another Mafia game.” It’ll probably be a while before we learn more about whatever the studio’s next project is though, and it certainly is a shame that we never got to see their vision for this cancelled new IP.