Summary
Jade Raymond, founder of thePlayStation-owned Haven Studios, has reportedly left her own company before the development studio has even released its first game. There is no indication as to why Raymond has left Haven andPlayStationbehind, though her departure raises some concern about the future of the planned live-service shooterFairgames.
Raymond has a bountiful portfolio of experience in the gaming industry. After getting her start as a programmer for Sony, she earned her first producer gig in 2002 with EA’sThe Sims Online. She then became a driving force behind the earlygames in theAssassin’s Creedfranchisefor Ubisoft, serving as a producer for the first entry, executive producer forAssassin’s Creed 2andAssassin’s Creed: Bloodlines, and managing director forAssassin’s Creed Unity.
After also holding high-ranking positions with Google and Motive Studio,Raymond founded Haven Studio in 2021with the aim of creating an entirely new IP, and Sony Interactive Entertainment acquired the studio in the summer of 2022. A little over four years since founding Haven, Raymond has left it behind for unknown reasons, according to an official statement from PlayStation reported byBloomberg. A spokesperson for Sony said the company was “deeply grateful for her leadership and contributions,” sending well-wishes to her in the next phase of her career, but it doesn’t indicate whether she left on her own terms.
Fairgames Developer is Under New Leadership
News of Raymond’s departure comes soon after a public test ofFairgames, the first title in development at Haven. Initially revealed at the PlayStation Showcase in May 2023,Fairgamesdrew early comparisons toWatch Dogs, another IP for which Raymond had served as executive producer. While primarily marketed as a third-person shooter,Fairgamesalso carries some heist-like elements, which have drawn the attention of some fans of Ubisoft’s action-adventure series.
In the wake of Raymond’s departure, the development studio will now be headed jointly by former Executive Producer Marie-Eve Danis and Head of Production Pierre-Francois Sapinski. A statement from Sony indicates that the company is still committed to supporting Haven, but there is growing concern thatFairgamesmay never see the light of day. Several other live-service projects for PlayStation have been canceled over the past several months, with former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida calling the live-service model a risky investment. Most notably, Firewalk Studios’Concordwas shut downon June 28, 2025, just two weeks after it launched, leading Sony to issue refunds to players who had paid $40 to access it.
