Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer allegedly misrepresented the state of development of The Initiative and Crystal Dynamics’ Perfect Dark, calling it fully playable, despite the trailer shown using a vertical slice.
Imran Khan, Senior Writer of Game Dev & Tech at VentureBeat, took to the gaming enthusiast Reset Era forums to share that what he had heard about Perfect Dark and its state of development from sources familiar with the matter. According to him, the game’s public showing last year was largely “bunk”. In contrast, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer had claimed (via IGN interview @ 2:30) after 2024’s Xbox Games Showcase that the Perfect Dark trailer shown during the event was “all playable like all in-game.”
Now that Perfect Dark has been canceled, Imran said he is able to talk more freely about it. According to him, none of the footage shown during last year’s trailer was actual gameplay, and all developer Crystal Dynamics had been doing was making exciting vertical slices with little to no foundation. Given the state of its development, he fully expected the project to get canceled.
Back in May, 2024, during an episode of Giant Bombcast, host Jeff Grubb talked about last year’s layoffs and studio closures at Microsoft. He mentioned that he’s been hearing for years that Perfect Dark had been in a very rough state. Based on what he heard, the game wasn’t coming together in any way since its announcement, and even after Crystal Dynamics was brought on board to help with development. According to what he had heard, the development team didn’t know if the state of Perfect Dark at the time was what it wanted the game to be.
Furthermore, RPGSite’s Alex Donaldson also mentioned on Twitter/X that he had some “crazy” stories to share about the development of Perfect Dark. However, he refrained from putting what he knew in print out of respect for a development team trying really hard to “push a boulder up a steep hill.”
The information is in line with what Imran Khan has mentioned, suggesting that Phil Spencer may not have been accurate about the state of Perfect Dark’s development. It may have been playable, but likely only in the shape of a series of disconnected vertical slices.
