“In this journey, it’s not uncommon for there to be staffing changes, especially during a time of global upheaval over the last two years, and there’s plenty more work in front of us to deliver a fantastic Perfect Dark experience to our players,” he said. Darrell Gallagher, current studio head of The Initiative, was previously studio head at Crystal Dynamics and told VGC that the wait will be worth it when the Perfect Dark reboot finally does arrive. “wo most senior writers also recently quit, analysis shows, along with the project’s technical director, tech art director, lead gameplay engineer, lead animator, QA lead, and more,” the report states.ĭespite what one former staff member described as “painfully slow” progress on the game, bringing Crystal Dynamics on board may have “triggered an effective soft reboot” for Perfect Dark well into its development, one that recruits new staff more aligned with the second studio’s development culture. Those design team departures reportedly have been joined by other creative farewells.

The turnover seems heavy in the key design lead roles that help shape a game, with “most of The Initiative’s senior design team, including game director Dan Neuburger, design director Drew Murray, lead level designer Chris O’Neill, principal world builder Jolyon Myers, two senior system designers, a group of three former God of War designers, and more” all having left the studio. The timing of most of those exits, reports VGC, appears to coincide with Crystal Dynamics (the studio behind Square Enix’s Tomb Raider and Marvel’s Avengers) boarding the project as a collaborator in early 2021. According to VGC, there's “a lack of creative autonomy and slow development progress” on the game, with an estimated half of Perfect Dark’s development staff at The Initiative - “or around 34 people” - believed to have left the studio over the past year. The report's sources suggest that the large change in staff and the inclusion of Crystal Dynamics may well have triggered an internal soft reboot of Perfect Dark, and that a final release could well still be years away.A new analysis of studio staffing and talks with “multiple former senior developers” may hint at the perceived holdup. “We wish all our former colleagues the very best, and I’m confident in the team we have in place, the new talent joining, and we can’t wait to share more with the fans.” In a statement to VGC, Gallagher (who remains as studio head at The Initiative) said, 'In this journey, it’s not uncommon for there to be staffing changes, especially during a time of global upheaval over the last two years, and there’s plenty more work in front of us to deliver a fantastic Perfect Dark experience to our players. Gallagher and Neuburger were previously studio head and game director respectively at Crystal Dynamics, and It was hoped that a team familiar with their management methods would work well with them. VGC's sources claim that the culture problem was part of the reason for bringing Crystal Dynamics on board as a collaborator studio. “Making games is hard enough, let alone when you feel like you can’t get through to people making the decisions that affect everyone,' one source said. The alleged result of this was a project that developed 'painfully' slow and a lack of company culture. Staff apparently felt unheard by their seniors on issues such as development priorities, project planning, and team staffing. It was apparently built as a top-down hierarchy, starting with Neuburger and studio head Darrell Gallagher, who heavily dictated the creative decisions. Reasons given for staff departures predominantly include a feeling that the studio was not a collaborative place to work. VGC's interviews with former Initiative staff suggests that the departures have come 'fast and furious', something that has impacted the momentum of the project. Additionally, VGC notes that two senior writers recently left, as well as the technical director, technical art director, lead gameplay engineer, lead animation, quality assurance lead, and more.

Game director Dan Neuburger appears to have left the team this year, and previous departures include design director Drew Murray, lead level designer Chris O’Neill, principal world builder Jolyon Myers, and several more from the core team. It notes that around 34 people have quit within the last year, including much of the senior design team. The report from VGC is complied from interviews with unnamed ex-Initiative employees and analysis of the studio's structure.

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