New Delhi: As acquisitions in the gaming space continue to heat up, Sony Interactive Entertainment has announced it is buying Montreal-based Haven Studios founded by industry veteran Jade Raymond who brings with her what Sony calls "a wealth of experience from her industry achievements and an infectious passion for creating games". The acquisition cost has not been disclosed and comes almost a year after Haven and Sony announced a partnership. Now, Sony is taking it to the next level by bringing Haven as one of its first-party Sony PlayStation studios.
"We began working with Jade and her team in early 2021 when they were on the brink of announcing the formation of Haven Studios. 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," Hermen Hulst, Head of PlayStation Studios, said in a statement.
Sony PlayStation Studios is welcoming the first Canada-based game development team creating new AAA modern multiplayer game for PlayStation. With a team of over 60 employees, Haven Studios will be the 18th studio to join the PlayStation Studios family. The day-to-day operations post–acquisition will continue to be run by the management team at Haven Studios in collaboration with PlayStation Studios’ leadership team.
"We’ve had the privilege of working closely with Haven this past year and have been impressed by the studio’s growth and progress. So now, practically on the anniversary of when we made our partnership official, it’s especially exciting to formally welcome them into the PlayStation 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! Today, the Haven team begins a new phase of our journey, as part of the PlayStation Studios family," said Jade Raymond, CEO and Founder, Haven Studios.
This announcement comes in less than a month after Sony announced its largest acquisition in the past decade, of buying the US-based video game developer and Destiny franchise maker Bungie, for $3.6 billion. Sony has been a regular in acquiring video game studios. The Tokyo-headquartered tech giant had also mentioned that Bungie will remain an independent and multi-platform studio and publisher.