Haven City

Haven City is a huge dystopia city-state featured in the fictional Jak and Daxter universe.

During the games

In "Daxter", the first game chronologically in the story to be set in Haven City, the Metal Heads, or Metal Bugs as they are called, are infesting Haven City as Metal Head agents have by force shut down all exterminator companies in the city except one in order to prevent further interference of the infestation. This is what allows Kor into the city disguised as an old man. Daxter ends up working for this last exterminator company before Metal Kor's agent, Kaeden, destroys it like the others. Daxter eventually defeats Kaeden and almost immediately afterward rescues Jak from the fortress.

In "Jak II", Daxter has freed Jak who is understandably angry about being treated like a lab rat for two years and wants revenge on Baron Praxis, the ruler of Haven City. Jak and Daxter join the Underground, a faction against the Baron's regime, and discover that Haven City is not merely a gloomy city to which they have no connection, but actually their beloved home years in the future. Unfortunately, Kor, disguised as on old man, tricks them into completing tasks which damage the Eco Shield protecting Haven City from Metal Head invasion. The Metal Heads break into the city and launch a full-scale assault before Jak kills Kor and supposedly ends the Metal Head siege of Haven City. Interestingly, during the street fighting, only the Krimzon Guards on foot actually fought with the metal-heads, ignoring the use of anything effective; Blast Bots, Zoomers, Security Tanks and Auto-turrets were not used. This could be explained by the possible fact that the machines functioned with eco energy and as the city had ran out of eco by the time of the invasion, the guards would have been unable to use them.

In the beginning of "Jak 3", the Palace is destroyed by Count Veger during the civil war following the deaths of Praxis and the Metal Head Leader, Metal Kor. In addition, the city's industrial zone is taken over by Krimzon Guard Death-Bots and all of the west side of the city that had not been crushed by the fallen palace is taken over and turned into a new nest by the Metal Heads. The rest of the city: the port, Slums, Fortress, and the new area called New Haven City which had been rebuild from the waterslums and slum areas from Jak II were still controlled by the Freedom Guard. Sadly, both the main town and the Mar Memorial Stadium were completely destroyed.

When Jak returns, the new skyline is dominated by the floating Krimzon Guard war factory hovering threatingly over New Haven and the Metal Head tower is standing somewhere in either the old farm area or western bazaar. Both of these are destroyed by Jak.

By "Jak X" Haven City has been completely rebuilt and bears a resemblance to its original appearance in "Jak II", only much larger and most of the once uneven and dirty streets have now been cleaned and redesigned. Haven City's streets and sewers are used as race tracks for the tournament in which Jak and his friends must compete.

Government

Haven was originally ruled by a King from the Great House of Mar, the city's founder. But the long line ended years before Jak II when Baron Praxis usurped the throne from Jak's father, Damas, and banished him to the Wasteland, where he (Damas) founded Spargus City. The Baron ruled Haven with an iron fist and had the Krimzon Guard execute anyone disobeying his regime. However, his rule came to an end when the Metal Heads broke into the city and before being able to destroy the Precursor Stone, he was murdered by Metal Kor. His daughter Ashelin then took the throne and became Governor and the Krimzon Guard was mixed with the Underground, becoming the New Krimzon Guard, and later the Freedom League. Haven City also had a High Council led by Count Veger, until it was disbanded by Ashelin in Jak 3. The council also existed during Daxter (video game), as Veger was seen in the Palace, and probably in Jak II also. During the war in Jak 3, it did not trust Jak for his dark powers and friendship with Krew, and after the palace gets destroyed by Veger (although it was blamed on the Metal Heads), the city council, then referred by Veger as the "Grand Council" banishes Jak to the wasteland, despite Ashelin's protest.

In Jak II, when walking in the city near a propaganda repeater, you can at some point hear Praxis announce: "I have been informed by the "ministry"...", this ministry has not been given any sort of role or another reference in the game. But, if there existed a ministry, it was most likely dissolved, when Ashelin came to power.

Locations

*Bazaar (East): This market district was once located to the east of the Palace, and was unique in that zoomers and other hover transport were restricted to traveling on an elevated road, leaving the streets clear for pedestrians. The only real place of interest here was Onin's tent. The Bazaar may not have been destroyed by the Palace in Jak 3 as it's visible from the War Factory, but it's still not accesessible.

*Bazaar (West): Located to the west of the Palace, this section of the Bazaar was open to hover transport as well as pedestrians. Brutter the Lurker maintained a small fish stand here, but it was mostly empty. It was destroyed when the west of the city was taken over by the Metal Heads and became the Metal Head City.
**Brutter's Stall: This is where Brutter made a living selling fish, while not at the city Cannery. It was also from here that he helped organize rescue missions to save Lurkers from slavery.

*Construction Site: A small region of the city where a building of some kind is being constructed in "Daxter" and "Jak II". While not a very significant area at first glance, many important events happen here, including the death of Baron Praxis and Kor revealing himself to be the Metal Head Leader.

*Dead Town: Dead Town is the ruins of Sandover Village. The remains of the green sages hut are there, and the Life Seed was there which attracted the metal heads.

*Fortress: A red-coloured army base for first the Krimzon Guard, and then later the Freedom League, the Fortress was where prisoners were detained. Jak was infused with Dark Eco here as part of the failed "Dark Warrior" program, and after Daxter helped him escape, he had to break into it again several times while running missions for the Underground. In Jak 3 the Fortress is blue in colour and it's entrance seems to be heavily damaged. It's inaccessible in any of the games outside of three specific missions.

*Industrial Sector: A large district to the south-east of the city, the Industrial Sector is home to several businesses, as well as the city power station. At beginning of "Jak 3" it was completely taken over the KG robots and was divided by their force barriers to keep the ones in the Port from reaching New Haven. It has shrunken since "Jak 3". It was the site of much battling between the Freedom League, the KG, and the Metal Heads during the time of "Jak 3", but it has recovered by the time of "", where it is now part of the Haven City racing venue.
**Kridder-Ridder Shop: The last exterminator business operating in Haven City, it was home to Osmo and Ximon and had served as an exterminator business for generations. Daxter also worked here for a while in " Daxter", until the shop was destroyed by the Metal Head, Kaeden.
**Power Station: The city's only power plant is where the eco power grid and the city shield are monitored by a complex system of computers and its operator, Vin. A teleporter gate here leads to several destinations, including the Strip Mine and the Drill Platform. The power station was raided by Metal Heads in "Jak II", and Vin, being terrified of the creatures, dunked his brain into the eco grid and now monitors the system from the inside.
**Transit System: A subway system with trains arriving at stations every few seconds presumably serves the entire city, or possibly the entire region, but only a small section of the system, underneath the Industrial Zone, is explored by Daxter while sorting out a Metal Bug infestation in " Daxter".
**Westside Hotel: A large hotel that had a Metal Bug infestation during " Daxter", but the problem was soon sorted out by Daxter himself. According to the clerk, Krew was a frequent visitor to the establishment.

*Main Town: Once the most beautiful and largest area in the city due to its modern buildings, canals and bustling streets.The Main Town was bordered by the Stadium in the north, the Slums in the east and the Northern Farm Area and the Port from the south. The southern Main Town, which was located in front of the Palace contained a base with the staue of the Baron on it. However, when Jak used the Light Tower in No Man's Canyon the beam destroyed the statue, revealing the entrance to Mar's Tomb. The eastern part of the area is less beautiful being more industrial-like. This could possibly have something to do with the fact that the Slums are right beside it. During Jak II it did not have any place of interest except for the elevator that led to one of the Palace's support towers. The Main Town was completely destroyed by the falling ruins of the Palace in Jak 3 and the entrance to the area is blocked by a white shield barrier set up by Count Veger. Also in the game New Haven has taken it's place as the Main City.
**There is a poster displaying Ratchet & Clank in this area, and can be seen while entering the area from the Northern Farm area.
**Mar's Tomb: A huge maosoleum of the House Mar. In the tomb there is also the hiding place of the fabled Precursor Stone.

*Metal Head City: When the Metal Heads took over most the western side of the city, which once included the Bazaar (West)and the southern Farm Area, they rebuilt it to their liking and it was renamed the Metal Head City. A slimy green canal flowed through the region, leading from the Port in the south to the Metal Head Tower to the north. The Metal Head City was eventually restored to its original state after "Jak 3".
**Metal Head Tower: A vast structure where the Metal Heads coordinated their attacks, the Metal Head Tower also contained a teleporter gate that led to the Dark Maker Ship. The top of the tower was destroyed by Jak, and later the entire structure was torn down.

*New Haven City: This is the name given to the rebuilt sections of the Water Slums and the Slums from "Jak 3" onwards. Built around a system of canals with little fountains, trees and bushes dotting the walkaways, it has a very modern look and feel to it. In Jak 3 the area became under assault permanently by the desperate KG robots after Jak unlocked their War Factorys defenses. It is here that the Freedom League had their main headquarters.
**Freedom League HQ: A tall tower where the Freedom League oversaw their movements in the war, as well as the day-to-day running of the city. It also contained a garage where Ashelin's special HellCat Cruiser was stored. It was once attacked by the KG, but it survived the war intact. In front of the HQ there is the Main Square with a large fountain that casts a light to the sky at night. On top of the fountain there is a Precursor Orb.

*Palace: The home of Baron Praxis during his time as ruler of Haven City, the Palace rose high above the city streets, surrounded by six support towers. You could see the Palace from almost anywhere in the city; a terrifying reminder of the influence the Baron had over his people. The top of the Palace was a gothic castle-like structure with towers. Inside the Palace there was a library, a dining room (which could also be the meeting place for Praxis's administration) and lastly the Throne Room, with a glass roof. Strangely the environment seen behind the windows is moving. In "Jak 3" the Palace became the HQ of the Freedom League, as Ashelin took on her father's role as the leader of Haven City. However, the palace was destroyed when Veger attacked it, but this was blamed on the Metal Heads. The crumbled remains of the Palace destroyed much of the Stadium Section, but it revealed an entrance to the Precursor catacombs beneath the Palace. It is behind the port where it used to be and the 6 Support Towers are each at a different district.

*Port: A large harbor to the south of the city, which is where tankers and other vehicles drop off their cargo. It had shrunken little in "Jak 3". Strangely, although tankers and other ships are seen here when needed, there are no exits from the port to the outside world visible.
**Gun Course: This is where citizens can try out their weapons against fake targets. In "Jak 3", Tess worked here, developing weapons and special gun courses to test them.
**Naughty Ottsel: A saloon once owned by Krew, when it was called the Hip Hog Heaven. While Krew owned the bar, both Tess and Sig worked here, and Jak and Daxter were frequent visitors. After Krew's death, it was taken over by Daxter and renamed the Naughty Ottsel. In "Jak 3", Torn used the bar as a southern HQ for the Freedom League, mainly because the Ottsel's head is supposedly good shooting practice. After Jak and Daxter re-open the path to New Haven and the northern HQ, Daxter regained ownership of the bar.
**Tanker: In " Daxter", a large tanker was moored in the port, which Daxter had to travel to twice in order to clear it of Metal Bugs. While on his second visit into the ship, he unwittingly turned on a self-destruct feature, destroying the vessel.
**Port changes: In Naughty Dog's Jak X, the layout of the port is changed to be racing. Naughty Dog has not said if this change is permanent or just temporary for game uses.

*Pumping Station: The Pumping Station is located to the north of the city just outside the north wall, the only way to get to it is through a pipe which is located at the water slums at the northern end of the city. the pumping station is made of a small island and a sunny beach. It converts the sea water into fresh water for the city. It is infested with metal heads due to it being outside the walls. In Jak 3 there was no way to get to it due to the water slums being rebuilt into new haven. In Jak X it was known as Atoll Arena, which was a group of tropical islands joined together by bridges. However in Jak X it was not joined onto Haven City, and it must have been rebuilt as the buildings are a lot more high-tec. It did look very different in Jak X.

*Slums: Located to the east of the city, the Slums were home to most of Haven's inhabitants. People living here got a poor quality of life, due to the terrible living conditions. However, the Underground movement had its main headquarters here, and the Slums were later the site of many battles between the KG, Freedom League and Metal Head forces.
**Underground Hideout: A small bunker hidden beneath the city wall where Torn, Tess, Kor, and the rest of the Underground plotted their actions against the Baron. Despite the fact that the entrance is clearly marked by the symbol of the Underground, it was only ever attacked by the Krimzon Guard once, when they sent Blast Bots to destroy the hideout. It was presumably abandoned after the Underground was disbanded.
**In the sequel spin-off game to Jak 3, Jak X, the slums has expanded into a larger city section, complete with outdoor restaurants, no burning garbage cans, and pipes that spew sewer waste into inter-city industrial ponds. It has not been said if this change is permanent, or just temporary for Jak X's Haven City venue.

*Mar Memorial Stadium: This huge sports arena is one of Haven City's main landmarks. The Stadium can be quickly modified to accommodate different sporting events, such as JetBoard stunt arenas or NYFE Air Racer tracks. It was severely destroyed by the falling Palace in "Jak 3", but it was soon rebuilt, and by the time of "" it once again stands proud.

* Water Slums: A flooded area to the north of the city, where civilians lived in old shacks suspended above the waters. A mostly featureless area, it was only notable for containing the Oracle's hut and a pipe that led to the Pumping Station. Sometime between "Jak II" and "Jak 3", it was completely rebuilt into New Haven.
** Oracle's Hut: In this hut, the mysterious Precursor Oracle (Who seems to be the same one from the first game) could be found, willing to give guidance and wisdom, or even special powers, to those who proved themselves worthy by killing Metal Heads and bringing him their Skull Gems. He gave Jak his Dark Jak powers, but his hut is strangely absent in "Jak 3" onwards.
** Old houses: Some believe before the Water Slums became such, it was a dried up area that led down into a pit, mostly where poor residents lived in their houses. This area could've possibly been flooded from the pipe that leads to the Pumping Station.
* KG War Factory: The place where the Krimzon Guard Death Bots are made, and also the place where Cyber-Errol hides out away from the enemy until Jak puts it out of action and what is left is presumably dismantled.

* Farm Areas: The Farm Areas were rural sections used for food production. Divided into the northern and southern areas by the Western Bazaar, the Farm areas were inhabited by several Yakows as well as food crops irrigated by machines. The northern farm area was destroyed by the palace's collapse in Jak 3 and the southern, along with the bar, was seized and morphed into the Metal Head City.

Haven City in Jak X

After the war Haven City has strangely been completely rebuilt and extented all in less than a year. The walls no longer surround the whole city as open ocean can be seen from the coastal city sections. New Haven is between the Main Town and the Slums in Jak X, just like in Jak II. The Mar Memorial Stadium is walled for some reason and there are 2 Bazaars and 2 Farm Areas. The Dead Town site has been rebuild into huts, just like Sandover Village. Most of the city is a New Havenish/Main Townish area with roads, eco vents, modern buildings, archs and mini-rivers with large bridges extented over them. The city has also a new larger Industrial Sector and a larger Port with the Naughty Ottsel still operating in the area. The Palace and Mar's Tomb are also found in the game. You'll find Krimzon Guard Poster and Freedom League Guard posters as well and other posters from Jak II and Jak 3.

Minor places in the city

* Cannery, Daxter
* Distillery, Daxter
* Bar / Brewery, Daxter
* Construction Site, Daxter/Jak 2

Connection with Jak

Jak was sent to Sandover Village at around the age of 3 with Samos The Green Sage.At around the age of 15 Jak and his friends found the Rift Gate again and went back to Haven City in order to defeat Metal Kor and sent his younger self to the past to grow up.

Immediately upon arriving back in the future in relation to where he spent most of his childhood, Jak was captured by the Krimzon Guard and locked in the fortress. For two years he was tortured with Dark Eco experiments until finally Daxter rescued him.

Jak's birth name is Mar, given to him by his father Damas as a sign of his lineage to the great house of Mar, the founder of Haven City.

Many fans believe Jak is "the" Mar that founded Haven City, however, in their eyes, this would make Jak his own forefather, something would be a sort of grandfather paradox. Some others believe that he is not "the" Mar, just a descendant that was sent back in time with Samos the Green Sage so that he could grow up, travel through time to the present and end the war in Haven City.

Another theory is that further in the future, Jak (or Mar) travels back into the past to the age of Mar. This means that Jak does all the heroic things that Mar does because he is Mar. The one problem is that the Rift Gate was destroyed and Jak would have to find another one. But, when Kor came out from the Rift Gate, he stated that the "Last" Rift Gate was opened, so there may be more.

One theory of how Jak can travel through time is that now that he has met with the Precursors he has their technology. So the Precursor spaceship from the end of Jak 3 can actually travel trough time as well. It was quoted by Ottsel Surfer and ottsel Dummy,"But there are way more challenges inthe future!" "Or was it the past?" The "was it the past" quote says that Jak travels through time. So Jak may be Mar himself and travel into the past to help build Haven City, fend off Metal Heads and the Dark Sages Gol and Maia, then travel to the events following Jak II and 3. Krew quoted "poor fool died before he ever got a chance to use it" referring maybe to Mar traveling into the future to finish his eco cannon. This may be further explained in the next Jak and Daxter game in the series, Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier.

One final theory is that since Jak is named for the house of Mar, there was another Mar that has long since died. Damas did after all name him Mar for the house of Mar.

Some say that the foundation of the city may have been loosely based on Chicago, Illinois.