Have our readers ever been interested in those who are behind the creation of their favorite video games? It often happens that developers, designers, programmers, voice actors, composers and others do not pay enough attention at all. We decided to correct this misunderstanding and tell in more detail about one interesting personality, quite famous in the gaming industry. Meet Jade Raymond
This well-known girl in the community was able to build a good career, starting with the rank of ordinary programmer and ending with the role of executive producer of several large projects. Today's article is dedicated to her.
Biography: early years and early career
Jade Raymond was born in the city of Montreal, located in Canada. Her family did not have a large income, so immediately after school, the girl fled to one of the local hospitals and was engaged in a small part-time job as a telephone operator. The future career of a computer game producer was reserved for Jade from childhood, when she seriously began to get involved in video games. Soon they became her real passion, and one day she realized that she wanted to devote all her adult life and career to them, becoming a developer.
Jade Raymond graduated from the Department of Information Technology at McGill University. A few years later she received her first diploma and got a job as a programmer in Sony. Only a year passed, and Jade was able to lead the work of a research group called SonyOnline and tackle new multiplayer games.
Leaving Sony and the way forward
Thanks to her success in developing online games, Jade Raymond was able to find a higher-paying position, but at Electronic Arts. Then no one suspected that leaving Sony would soon bring her great success.
From under the wing of a talented development team that Jade joined, The Sims Online appeared - one of the most popular online games of the time. The work brought Miss Raymond to the United States of America, but soon she was overcome by longing for her native Canada, after which, in 2007, Jade decided to return. Upon arrival, she signs a contract with Ubisoft, where she is engaged in producing one of the most recognizable gaming franchises - the first part of Assassin's Creed.
This period brings Jade public attention, and she accepts the offer to become a co-host on the gaming channel G4 techTV. Many fans of video games recognize the girl, and thanks to her attractive appearance, she won the hearts of almost the entire male audience.
Motive Studios
In 2015, Miss Raymond left Ubisoft and returned to Electronics Arts. In a new place, she was allowed to take a leadership position at the head of Motive's internal studio, which is located in the city of Jade, Montreal.
The first project the team was working on was announced. This is a Star Wars shooter. The development was shared by another studio called VisceralGames, and the post of creative director went to Amy Hennig, who is familiar to many Uncharted players.
Some interesting facts
- Miss Raymond has mixed roots: she is 25% Chinese, 25% Australian and 50% Canadian.
- Some of the girl’s fans call themselves the “Jade Empire” after the game of the same name (Jade Empire) was released.
- Donkey Kong is considered the most favorite character, especially that which appears in DonkeyKongCountry on SNES consoles.
- Recently, the favorite game is Resident Evil 4. Once, Jade Raymond even managed to talk and interview the creator of this part - Nate Williams from Kapkom.
- Sits in several gaming forums under the nickname IBJADE. Presumably, by the same nickname, it can be found in XboxLive.
- During the filming of the Star Wars interview, several children mistook her for Natalie Portman and tried to sign autographs.
- In parallel with the post at ElectricPlayground, Jade continued to work on games for Ubisoft.
- There was a time when she spent ten hours every day for three months at Everquest.
- Favorite music: The Killers, Dr. Dre, The Pixies and more.
- Enjoys watching The Living Dead 2, Hero, The Magnificent Seven, Indiana Jones and Professional.
- From television series on television prefers "Missing", "24" and much more.
- When asked what she would like to take with her to a desert island, she chose the Tetris. If she would be stuck there in the company of someone, she would prefer a board game.
Sims Online
This is the first project that has fixed the name of Jade Raymond in the gaming industry. The developers decided to leave the basic concept of the game, which is easily foreseen thanks to the name of the project alone. Users still need to diligently lead their virtual lives. A sim exists in an almost real world, in which in addition to it there are the same people. He eats, drinks, sleeps, makes friends, watches TV, goes to work - all this and much more are the life charms that The Sims Online is rich in.
However, the main difference between this project and the original series of games was the introduction of live users into the process, instead of artificial intelligence. Now, all our actions will be watched by a multi-million audience consisting of the same gamers.
"Assassin's Creed"
Another game with which Miss Raymond's name is strongly associated. Today it is a huge franchise whose audience is a huge number of fans. The original part of the series was published in 2007. Then its development was led by two people - Jade Raymond and Patrice Desile. It was under their strict guidance that the first Assassin's Creed was created.
The plot of the game is based on speculative fiction: there are real city names and historical figures, but any historical authenticity is slightly “pushed” to the side. The story tells about the confrontation between the Templars and the Assassins - two orders fighting for two different goals. The game touches on religious themes, there is a lot of violence, and the idea of gene memory is also played out. The first part was very warmly received both by the gamers themselves and the press, which served as the subsequent appearance of several sequels and the further development of the franchise.
Work on Watch Dogs
Few people know, but Jade put her hand as an executive producer on this project. Watch Dogs is an action adventure movie set in an open world. The essence of the gameplay is that users must try on the role of a hacker by hacking into various devices and getting hidden information from there.
The main character is called Aiden Pearce, and he is driven by a desire to take revenge on those who destroyed his family. Together with him, players will have to walk through the streets of virtual Chicago and experience firsthand what it feels like to be a first-class hacker. Watch Dogs was warmly received by the public, but it is no secret that much more hopes were placed on it. After some time, the second part of the series was released, but Jade Raymond did not take part in its creation.