Xbox's Perfect Dark Reboot Is Reportedly "in a Rough State"

Even Joanna Dark can't help Xbox right now.

By Marc Deschamps

It's been more than three years since Xbox announced a new Perfect Dark game, and official updates have been few and far between. Unfortunately, it seems progress on the game might not be going so well. Over the last day or so, several pundits and gaming journalists have commented on the game's status, and these comments all seem to line up closely with one another. On the Giant Bomb podcast, Jeff Grubb noted that he's "been hearing for years that Perfect Dark is in a rough state," even with Crystal Dynamics jumping in to help with development. 

A Messy Development Cycle

Grubb's comments were shared on the ResetEra forums, where industry insider Shinobi062 said "that lines up" with things that he's heard about Perfect Dark. Other comments have also been made about Perfect Dark over the last day, seemingly unrelated to things Grubb said. On Twitter, Did You Know Gaming's Liam Robertson said that Perfect Dark "sounds like a future video in the making," and "a big, protracted mess." Last but not least, VG247 assistant editor Alex Donaldson also wrote on Twitter that he has "some crazy stories about the development of that game I have not put in print out of respect for a team really trying hard to push a boulder up a steep hill." 

When it comes to reports and rumors, we always advise readers to take these types of things with a grain of salt. However, with so many different people sharing similar stories, it feels like we're getting a pretty clear picture of how things are progressing with Perfect Dark. It's possible The Initiative and Crystal Dynamics could still get the game in a better state ahead of release, or that all of this information is outdated. 

Dark Times at Xbox

These reports about Perfect Dark are coming at a rocky time for the Xbox brand. All of these comments were made following the announcement that Xbox has closed several studios, including Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks. Fans were already worried about the appeal of the company's consoles following the announcement of multiple first-party Xbox games being ported to PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch. At worst, there are a lot of people thinking Xbox could become a third-party publisher like Sega did. At best, that's not part of the plan at all, and Xbox is simply struggling to manage all of the different franchises, studios, and IP it has under its umbrella. 

Not counting the 2010 remaster, the last time a new Perfect Dark came out was back in 2005, when Perfect Dark Zero was a launch game for the Xbox 360. It's been a very long wait for a new game, and fans are desperately hoping that this new title will revitalize the franchise. Hopefully the finished product can still manage to do just that. 

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Are you worried about the new Perfect Dark? Do you think the game is in trouble? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!

[H/T: Reddit]

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