Sony’s acquisitions strategy of late has been to acquire single, individual studios that already have a relationship and history with PlayStation, and their next purchase very much falls in line with that. It’s been announced that Haven Studios has been acquired by Sony, becoming the sixth studio to be brought into the PlayStation Studios lineup over the last year, after Housemarque, Bluepoint Games, Firesprite, Nixxes Software, and Valkyrie Entertainment.
Haven Studios was first established by industry veteran Jade Raymond in early 2021, when it was also confirmed that the developer had partnered with PlayStation and was working on new PS5-exclusive multiplayer IP. As has been strongly suggested several times since then, PlayStation Studios boss Hermen Hulst has confirmed it will indeed be live service game, which, as we know, is an area that Sony is looking to have larger presence in in the coming years.
“We began working with Jade and her team in early 2021 when they were on the brink of announcing the formation of Haven Studios,” Hulst wrote in a PlayStation Blog post. “From their first pitch, we were inspired by Haven’s vision for creating a modern multiplayer experience that brings gamers together in positive and meaningful ways. We were confident in their creative and technical expertise to deliver on such an ambitious project and were thrilled to invest in their journey developing a new, original IP for PlayStation.”
Haven Studios’ CEO and founder Jade Raymond wrote, “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.”
As you’d expect, with Haven Studios being brought under the PlayStation Studios umbrella, the developer will also be able to leverage the knowhow and experience of other first party PlayStation teams- and according to Raymond, that’s very much something that Haven as a whole is looking forward to.
“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,” she wrote. “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.”
There’s no word yet on when Haven’s debut project is going to be formally unveiled, but with it still clearly being in the early stages of development, there’s a good chance we won’t hear about it for some time yet.