Report: Take-Two Just Hired The 'Perfect Dark' Leadership To Start A New Studio
If you can't buy the game, buy the people who were making it. That seems to be Take-Two's strategy after the messy death of Xbox's Perfect Dark reboot.
We already knew the Perfect Dark saga was a tragedy. Xbox cancelled the game in July 2025, shuttering The Initiative in the process. We also knew, thanks to a scoop from Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, that Take-Two tried to swoop in and save the project, but the deal fell apart because Microsoft wouldn't let go of the IP rights.
But now, we have the epilogue, and it is a fascinating twist.
According to a new report from Jason Schreier (via BlueSky), Take-Two has officially hired Darrell Gallagher (Studio Head of The Initiative) and Brian Horton (Creative Director of Perfect Dark) to start a brand new studio within 2K Games.
The Talent Exodus
This is a massive power move. Darrell Gallagher is the guy who rebooted Tomb Raider and founded The Initiative. Brian Horton famously left Marvel's Wolverine at Insomniac to try and fix Perfect Dark.
These are heavy hitters. By hiring them, Take-Two is effectively saying, "We liked what you were building, even if Microsoft didn't want us to publish it."
It also highlights just how chaotic the last year has been for Brian Horton. He went from directing Wolverine (one of the most hyped games on PS5) to directing Perfect Dark (one of the most cursed games on Xbox), saw it get cancelled, and is now starting from scratch again at 2K. The man needs a vacation.
What Are They Making?
We don't know yet, but we can make an educated guess.
Take-Two was interested enough in Perfect Dark to almost fund it. They clearly want a high-budget, cinematic action game or shooter in their portfolio. With Gallagher and Horton at the helm, don't be surprised if this new studio announces a "Spiritual Successor" to Perfect Dark that is legally distinct enough to avoid a lawsuit but close enough to make Xbox fans weep.
So, while Joanna Dark is dead and buried in Microsoft's IP vault, her spirit might live on at 2K. It is the gaming industry circle of life: games die, but the developers just respawn somewhere else with a different budget.
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