Take-Two Hires Perfect Dark Lead Developers After Failing To Save The Project From Xbox’s Cancellation
via The Intiative 
Jack Coleman (He/Him) is a News Editor from Ireland. This is his third full year in games media, having previously worked freelance for various outlets, including DualShockers and NME.
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The cancellation of Perfect Dark and simultaneous closure of The Initiative was a shocking development for many, especially considering lengthy snippets of gameplay (that were mostly fake) had been released by the studio shortly before its untimely demise.
Despite the cancellation of the project by Xbox, the progress on Perfect Dark must have impressed Take-Two because Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier revealed earlier in the year that the Grand Theft Auto publisher was attempting to save the project by acquiring both the IP and the studio.
Perfect Dark Leads Hired By Take-Two
Earlier this year I broke the news that Take-Two was close to rescuing Xbox s Perfect Dark but the deal fell apart. Now, a new development: Take-Two has hired Perfect Dark studio head Darrell Gallagher and director Brian Horton to start a brand new studio within 2K.
Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier.bsky.social) 2025-12-08T21:51:37.009Z
Now, Schreier reports that the deal ultimately fell apart, and Perfect Dark will remain with Xbox for the foreseeable future. However, Take-Two has hired studio head Darrell Gallagher and director Brian Horton to found a new studio under 2K. They won’t be continuing with Perfect Dark, but at least something has been created from the remains of the project.
“With a combined six decades of AAA game-making experiences across franchises like Tomb Raider, Call of Duty, Destiny, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Hitman, Deus Ex, and more, we’re thrilled to confirm Darrell Gallagher and Brian Horton have joined 2K for their next all-new venture,” a spokesperson told IGN.
It’s heartening that Gallagher and Horton have the opportunity to start a new project for 2K, and the pair will likely hire additional developers who worked for The Initiative before the studio was closed. However, Perfect Dark hasn’t been saved, and that’s a shame for everyone who worked on that project.
Take-Two reportedly wanted to buy Perfect Dark from Microsoft, but an agreement couldn’t be made.
The Initiative’s closure coincided with the cancellation of several projects at Xbox. An unnamed sci-fi MMO was cancelled at ZeniMax and Rare’s Everwild was cancelled despite nearly a decade of development on the project.
With Xbox’s ongoing identity crisis, the chances of Perfect Dark being passed onto another studio in the near future is exceedingly unlikely. It seems Perfect Dark will return to hibernation, as there hasn’t been a release in the series since 2010.
There was a concerted effort by Joanna Dark actor Alix Wilton Regan and others to save the project, but unfortunately the page seems to have turned on this particular page in Perfect Dark’s history.
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