Crystal Dynamics is working on the new Perfect Dark game

Perfect Dark
(Image credit: Microsoft)

The new Perfect Dark game is being co-developed by Crystal Dynamics, the Square Enix studio responsible for the recent Tomb Raider trilogy, Marvel's Avengers and Gex (vale Gex). The announcement was made today by the game's primary studio, The Initiative.

"We are partnering with Crystal Dynamics, the world class team behind character-driven games such as Tomb Raider, to bring this first-person spy thriller to a new generation," The Initiative tweeted. "The teams couldn’t pass up a chance to work together.  We’re still early in development, but incredibly excited to use this unique opportunity to deliver on the vision for Perfect Dark!"

The Initiative is a new Los Angeles based studio. It has yet to release a game, but it's headed by Darrell Gallagher, who spent ten years at Crystal Dynamics working across the Tomb Raider series. The Initiative's Daniel Neuburger also previously worked at Crystal Dynamics, though the studio also boasts former talent from BioWare, Sony Santa Monica, Blizzard and more.

Perfect Dark doesn't have a release date or even a release window just yet, and it sounds like development had barely begun as of July

"In the end and this'll sound like maybe the wrong thing to say I actually don't think it matters what path that we pick," Xbox head Phil Spencer said in July regarding the game's possible direction, "whether we decided to go back and reimagine Perfect Dark or do something new, I think the important thing is the quality of the execution and whether we deliver a delightful game that people love."

Shaun Prescott

Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day.