Industry veteran Jade Raymond is leaving Google as it centers around outsider games.
Google is shifting away from making its own games for Stadia. It’s closing down studios in Montreal and Los Angeles, and industry veteran Jade Raymond, who Google tapped to lead the game advancement division, is leaving the organization. Stadia VP and senior supervisor Phil Harrison wrote in a blog entry that Google will continue to put resources into the assistance.
“Creating best-in-class games from the ground up takes many years and significant investment, and the cost is going up exponentially,” Harrison wrote. “Given our focus on building on the proven technology of Stadia as well as deepening our business partnerships, we’ve decided that we will not be investing further in bringing exclusive content from our internal development team SG&E [Stadia Games and Entertainment], beyond any near-term planned games.”
The organization opened its first Stadia studio in Montreal in 2019 and it obtained Journey to the Savage Planet designer Typhoon Studios soon thereafter to support the group. Google reported the Los Angeles studio last March. Harrison noticed that the greater part of the colleagues will be proceeding onward to different jobs and that Google will help them find new positions. SG&E has distributed a couple of Stadia special features, including Orcs Must Die! 3, Outcasters and Submerged: Hidden Depths.
As per Harrison, Google thinks working with designers and distributers to bring outsider games to the stage is the “best path to building Stadia into a long-term, sustainable business.” In November, Stadia’s director of games Jack Buser said that there were 400 games underway for the help. Selective Stadia titles are being developed from studios like Harmonix and Supermassive.
