Perfect Dark Is Reportedly In A "Very Rough State"

Update 12/05: Jeff Grubb has since stated in a follow-up video that other sources feel that Perfect Dark is looking "really good" and think it's "coming together" well. Our original report follows.

Summary

• The Perfect Dark reboot is reportedly in a "very rough state" and doesn't sound as though it's come together much since it was announced four years ago.
• Several other journalists have backed up this statement, sharing similar murmurings from behind-the-scenes that the project is in a bad state.
• Giant Bomb host Jeff Grubb says that the studio doesn't even know if it wants Perfect Dark to be an FPS at this point, despite being a reboot of a cult classic FPS series.

Four years ago, Microsoft announced that it was working on a Perfect Dark reboot, finally bringing the cult classic FPS to modern audiences. A year later, it revealed that it was partnering with Crystal Dynamics on the project, but in 2022, the studio lost nearly half of its staff--including senior writers, the technical director, and the lead gameplay engineer to name a few. Things looked bleak, but two years on, it's reportedly not gotten any better.

Speaking on the Giant Bomb podcast, host Jeff Grubb said, "I've been hearing for years that Perfect Dark is in a rough state. It sounds like it's in a very rough state. It doesn't sound like it's come together in any way since [being announced] and Crystal Dynamics coming on board".

Did You Know Gaming's Liam Robertson backed up this sentiment, "From what little I have heard about the development of the new Perfect Dark, it sounds like a future video in the making. Just a big, protracted mess."

Reportedly, Perfect Dark Might Not Even Be An FPS Anymore

The real kicker is that the Perfect Dark reboot--continuing a beloved first-person shooter series--might not even be a first-person shooter.

After Niki Grayson jokingly nodded at Microsoft having some of the most prestigious FPS developers under its belt, like id Software who created the genre in the '90s with Wolfenstein, Doom, and Quake, Grubb said, "It sounds like they don't even know if that's what they want to do with that."

A developer's LinkedIn profile hinted at the 'reboot' being a remake last year, so if it isn't an FPS, it's unclear what exactly it could be. Maybe it's a cosy farm sim.

We don't have much official information to go off of even four years later, so we've no real idea what Perfect Dark looks like right now, but if reports are to be believed, this might not be the comeback we were all hoping for.

Perfect Dark