Jade Raymond has departed from Haven Studios, the Sony-owned developer behind the online multiplayer shooter Fairgames, marking another setback for PlayStation's live service ambitions. According to Bloomberg, Raymond left the company she founded shortly after an external test of Fairgames, which reportedly did not meet expectations. As a result, the game's release has been pushed back from fall 2025 to spring 2026.
PlayStation leadership did not provide Haven staff with a specific reason for Raymond's departure. However, it occurred several weeks after the external test of Fairgames. Some developers at Haven expressed concerns about the game's reception and its development progress, as reported by anonymous sources cited by Bloomberg.
Despite these challenges, Sony remains committed to Haven and Fairgames, with new co-studio heads Marie-Eve Danis and Pierre-François Sapinski now leading the studio.
This development adds to the difficulties Sony faces in its live service strategy. While Arrowhead's Helldivers 2 achieved remarkable success, becoming the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios game with 12 million copies sold in just 12 weeks, other live service titles have faced significant hurdles. Sony's Concord, for instance, was a major disappointment, lasting only a few weeks before being taken offline due to extremely low player engagement. Eventually, Sony decided to cancel the game and close its developer.
The failure of Concord followed the cancellation of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us multiplayer game. Additionally, earlier this year, Sony reportedly canceled two unannounced live service games: one being a God of War project at Bluepoint and another at Bend, the developer of Days Gone.
Sony had initially announced plans in February 2022 to launch over 10 live service games by March 2026, aiming to cater to diverse genres and audiences. The company made significant investments in studio acquisitions, including Destiny developer Bungie, Jade Raymond's Haven Studios, and the now-closed Firewalk Studios.
In 2023, Sony president Hiroki Totoki announced a review of the 12 live service PlayStation games in development, committing to launch only six by the end of the financial year 2025, or by March 2026. Totoki emphasized that the timing of the remaining six games was still under consideration, stressing that "for the gamers quality should be the most important."
Bungie continues to uphold Sony's live service efforts with Destiny 2 and the upcoming full launch of Marathon later this year. Sony also recently announced a new PlayStation studio called teamLFG, which is working on a live service incubation project. Additionally, Guerrilla's Horizon multiplayer game remains in development.
