The Initiative says Crystal Dynamics will still co-develop Perfect Dark following Embracer’s acquisition
Xbox studio The Initiative has stated that it will continue to co-develop Perfect Dark following news that Embracer Group is acquiring Crystal Dynamics.
Embracer has agreed to acquire Crystal Dynamics, Eidos Montreal, Square Enix Montreal and a catalogue of IPs including Tomb Raider for $300 million.
The acquisition announcement did not, however, mention what would be happening with Crystal Dynamics’ commitment to help with development on Xbox’s Perfect Dark reboot.
According to a new tweet by The Initiative, however, it appears that Crystal Dynamics will continue to work on the game following the acquisition.
Retweeting a statement from Crystal Dynamics which referred to the acquisition as “a new chapter in our story”, The Initiative confirmed its plans.
“We’re excited to see Crystal Dynamics take these next steps with their studio,” it said. “Our teams have made great progress in building Perfect Dark together as co-development partners, and we will be continuing this work with them in their next chapter.”
Xbox signed up Marvel’s Avengers and Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics in September 2021 to help develop its Perfect Dark reboot.
At the time, The Initiative tweeted: “Perfect Dark update! 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.”
However, VGC reported in March that The Initiative has seen a “fast and furious” wave of senior departures in the past 12 months.
As much as half of the core development team known to be working on the upcoming Perfect Dark reboot quit the company during the last year.
That includes most of The Initiative’s senior design team, including game director Dan Neuburger,
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