Assassin's Creed Veteran's New PlayStation Studio Working With PS5 Architect Mark Cerny

PlayStation's newest wholly owned studio is Haven, which was founded by Assassin's Creed veteran Jade Raymond. Sony's deal to buy the studio closed this week, and now Raymond has shared new details about what to expect from the company in the future.

Speaking to GI.biz, Raymond revealed that Haven is working with Mark Cerny, the PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 system architect, in some capacity. She said Haven is making investments into R&D, engineering, and the cloud, along with what she described as "forward-thinking R&D."

"I'm not able to say too much now, but that's obviously one of the other things that's been a big attractor and is exciting to our team with PlayStation. Of course Mark Cerny is kind of like a rockstar, too, so being able to collaborate with him is really exciting," Raymond said.

Also in the interview, Raymond confirmed just how much Haven has grown in the past year. The studio now has 106 employees, which is up by more than 50 since October 2021.

Haven's first game has not been announced, but PlayStation boss Hermen Hulst previously teased that Haven has a vision for "creating a modern multiplayer experience that brings gamers together in positive and meaningful ways."

Whatever the game is, Haven's first project will be a "live service experience for PlayStation built upon a systemic and evolving world focused on delivering freedom, thrill, and playfulness," Sony said.

"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," Raymond said.

Haven is just the studio that Sony is buying, and it's reflective of the company's continued push into the live service category. Before this, Sony announced plans to buy Destiny studio Bungie for $3.6 billion. Sony has said it wants to have 10 live-service games by 2026.