Xbox Game Studios and the whole Perfect Dark mess — wow, where to even start? So, apparently, they pulled the plug on this game. Yeah, the one they were so hyped about when they showed it off like it was the next sliced bread back in 2020. This was supposed to be The Initiative’s big debut. Anyway, Matt Booty (love that name) who’s in charge over there, decided this dream was over. Something about this got leaked to Windows Central, I think.
Booty’s note to the team was kind of heavy. Saying they’re not just ditching Perfect Dark, but also Everwild? And on top of that, The Initiative — poof, gone. Maybe it’s some grand scheme to save resources? I don’t know, corporate-speak isn’t really my thing. But yeah, they acted like it was some big hard decision, because duh, people’s blood, sweat, and probably tears went into these projects.
Flashback to 2020 at The Game Awards… No, wait, it was a bit before that. Microsoft had started The Initiative in Santa Monica — oh! And Darrell Gallagher from Crystal Dynamics was running the show. They teased us with Perfect Dark, a twist on ecological sci-fi. Though, what was it? Oh right, a 2024 re-reveal or something off like that. Honestly, I think I spaced out back then.
Last year, Booty threw out some buzzwords about near-future wars, tech drama, and Joanna Dark saving the day. Stealth stuff, parkour — like some action movie but in a game. You’d have all the cool toys and guns to play with. They mentioned first-person shooter vibes mixed with immersive, sneaky gameplay? Sounded ambitious, if you ask me.
The Initiative, together with Crystal Dynamics, was making this for Xbox Series X and PC, but they never gave us a release date. Which is a bummer, I guess, if you cared.
Oh! And let’s not forget the legacy. The original game came out on the good ol’ Nintendo 64 in 2000. There was a spruced-up version for Xbox 360 in 2010, and they even did a spinoff for Game Boy Color, I think, plus a prequel, Perfect Dark Zero, in 2005. A whole saga — now just kind of… dust.
