Today, Sony has officially announced on the Playstation Blog that they are acquiring Haven Studios. The company, headed by Jade Raymond and based in Montreal is now the 18th studio to join the Playstation Studios family.
Raymond, who was one of the key figures behind Assassin’s Creed and Assassin’s Creed two, and founded an led both Ubisoft Toronto and EA’s Motive Studio, founded Haven Software a year ago with an investment from SIE. Since then, Haven Studios has been working on a new IP for Playstation that they describe as a “AAA multiplayer experience.”
Playstation Studios Head Herman Hulst said that from the beginning, they were “inspired by Haven’s vision for creating a modern multiplayer experience that brings gamers together in positive and meaningful ways.” He is also impressed by the studio’s growth and progress over the last year, and so it made sense to welcome them into the Playstation family.
Raymond has also released a statement, saying that she is happy to be working with SIE, who she calls a “supportive partner that truly understands the creative process and what it takes to make a blockbuster AAA game.” She is also thrilled to be working alongside other renowned developers in the Playstation Studios family:
One year ago this month, we embarked on a journey to start Haven Studios with a small team and big ambitions. Our goal was to build a studio where we could make the kind of games we’ve always wanted to create – and games we’ve longed to play!
We’ve made amazing progress in a short time thanks to our talented, passionate team and their exceptional contributions. We established a culture at Haven grounded in kindness, adaptability and courage that unlocks creativity. Our first new IP for PlayStation is on track to deliver a AAA multiplayer experience with a vision to build a systemic and evolving world focused on freedom, thrill, and playfulness that will keep players entertained and engaged for years.
Today, the Haven team begins a new phase of our journey, as part of the PlayStation Studios family. Working with Hermen, Connie Booth and the team at PlayStation over the past year has been a career highlight. SIE is a supportive partner that truly understands the creative process and what it takes to make a blockbuster AAA game. They have empowered and encouraged us to bring our bold vision to life and make our dreams come true and we could not be more thrilled about this opportunity to strengthen our partnership.
As a SIE first-party studio, we will have the opportunity to collaborate with some of the world’s most renowned development teams, including studios like Guerrilla, Naughty Dog, Media Molecule, and Insomniac Games, the creators of games that have inspired us as players and developers for years. We’re excited to learn from these world-class studios, as well as the exceptional central creative, technology and marketing teams whose expertise will enable us to deliver even better games to players.
To our Haven team – a huge thank you. It’s been one of the most rewarding years of my career – and to the players out there, we can’t wait to share more. We’re just at the beginning of what is sure to be a wondrous adventure that will span generations.
Jade Raymond
CEO and Founder, Haven Studios
No further information about the game in development has been given. This acquisition comes in the wake of SIE’s recent acquisition of Bungie, and Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
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