When Microsoft laid off an astonishing 9,000 people in July, the long-awaited Perfect Dark reboot was among the casualties. The main studio working on it—The Initiative—was shuttered, but co-developers Crystal Dynamics tried to salvage the project by cutting a publishing deal with Take-Two. The deal never eventuated because Take-Two and Microsoft couldn't agree on who would retain ownership of the Perfect Dark franchise.
Nevertheless, it looks like Take-Two did get something out of those discussions: former The Initiative boss Darrell Gallagher and Perfect Dark director Brian Horton will found a new 2K Games studio. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier announced as much today, before Gallagher confirmed on LinkedIn.
