Jade Raymond’s new PlayStation exclusive to include social elements and user-generated content

Jade Raymond has said that Haven’s next PlayStation exclusive game will include social elements and user-generated content, adding that it is being created by many of the developers behind the original Assassin’s Creed.

Earlier this year, it was announced that Raymond had started Haven Entertainment Studios, an independent company in Montreal currently working on a new, unannounced IP for PlayStation. During an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, the studio head delved a little deeper into what fans can expect from the game and exactly who is making it.

“There are three things that excite me a lot, which are also pillars of the way we think about things,” says Raymond. “First comes games as a social platform. The pandemic has shown that gaming is the social glue that binds communities together. This is what you do, especially for the younger generation, and how you make friends and hang out. That is something we really want to build and design. “

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While there are many games that include social elements in their design, the second concept on Raymond’s list adds another layer to the direction the studio appears to be taking its new IP.

“The second thing is to think about the ‘remix generation’. It started recently, there is this era of self-expression where we design our NikeID shoes, we read our friends’ blogs instead of what our professional journalists are writing. And I believe which has continued to go further with things like TikTok. That’s another thing we’re thinking about at the heart of this IP. It goes beyond user-generated content, it’s about taking that self-expression and remix concept to the next level “.

Jade Raymond in the photo on the left with Hideo Kojima. Image Credits: Jade Raymond (Twitter) – @ibjade

PlayStation has seen several of its previous exclusives focus on similar ideas to some extent in the past. Games like LittleBigPlanet have allowed fans to create and play user-generated levels alongside each other, while the most recent release of Dreams expanded the concept even further by giving users the ability to create games, mechanics, art, and more. in its entirety. creation platform.

Raymond didn’t go into too much detail about how Haven’s next game will take shape. However, the study director was eager to note that she is excited to be able to create a new IP from scratch and, in particular, one that “can last for generations and be meaningful to people on a deeper level.”

“But how do we create an IP that has that depth, but is designed to be fan-owned from the start?” Asks Raymond. “When we created Assassin’s Creed, we were really thinking about creating an IP that can be owned by creative teams in the future. We thought that if we create a framework of anything that takes place in a moment in history and has the Assassins behind it, [that] It will be consistent with the brand so that teams can develop and own it. Now what we’re thinking about is creating an intellectual property that is not just professional teams, but is designed to be owned by fans and can evolve through that. “

Creating a game that pushes the boundaries of creativity and ownership doesn’t seem like an easy task. Fortunately for Raymond, intellectual property is in experienced hands. Corey May, who was the original writer of the first Assassin’s Creed, will take on the role of world director of the game, while other staff members from the original Assassin’s Creed team are also involved.

“We started in 2004 working together. I was 29 at the time. Now we all have children and gray hair and many years later,” says Raymond. “But we still love working together. Corey was there, Raphael, Mathieu Leduc, who is our creative director, Pierre-Francois Sapinski [head of production]… the list goes on. We have a lot of people from that original game. And there was really a magical feeling when I worked on that first game, and I feel like we have that again. “

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow it on Twitter.