"PlayStation's Jade Raymond Leaves Fairgames Amid Sony's Live Service Challenges"

Jade Raymond has departed from Haven Studios, the Sony-owned developer behind the online multiplayer shooter Fairgames. This follows a reportedly unsuccessful external test of the game, leading to its delay from a fall 2025 release to spring 2026. This development marks another setback for PlayStation's live service ambitions.

According to Bloomberg, Raymond's exit came several weeks after the external test of Fairgames, which did not meet expectations. Staff at Haven were left without an official reason for her departure from PlayStation leadership, but internal concerns about the game's reception and progress were evident. Sony, however, continues to support Haven and Fairgames, with Marie-Eve Danis and Pierre-François Sapinski stepping in as co-studio heads.

This news adds to the challenges facing Sony's live service strategy. While Arrowhead's Helldivers 2 achieved significant success, selling 12 million copies in just 12 weeks and becoming the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios game, other ventures have faced significant hurdles. Notably, Sony's Concord experienced a disastrous launch and was quickly taken offline due to low player numbers, eventually leading to its cancellation and the closure of its developer.

Further setbacks include the cancellation of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us multiplayer game and two unannounced live service titles earlier this year—one from Bluepoint, known for its work on a God of War project, and another from Bend, the developer behind Days Gone.

Sony had ambitious plans announced in February 2022 to launch over 10 live service games by March 2026, aiming to cater to different genres and audiences. This strategy included significant studio acquisitions such as Bungie, Haven Studios, and Firewalk Studios. However, in 2023, Sony president Hiroki Totoki announced a strategic review, committing to launch only six of these games by the end of the financial year 2025, with plans for the remaining six still under consideration. Totoki emphasized the importance of quality over quantity, stating, "It's not that we stick to certain titles, but for the gamers quality should be the most important."

Despite these setbacks, Bungie continues its live service efforts with Destiny 2 and the upcoming Marathon. Sony also recently announced a new PlayStation studio, teamLFG, working on a live service incubation project, alongside Guerrilla’s ongoing development of a Horizon multiplayer game.