The Making of Perfect Dark Zero – Celebrating 15 Years with Xbox Feature

In creating Perfect Dark Zero, Rare presented itself with a towering challenge. Not only did the team have to satisfy the many thousand that lauded the original 2000 Perfect Dark for N64, but the game had to be ready for the launch of the Xbox 360, and showcase the console’s capability.
Developing games for an unreleased platform is never easy. The choppy waters of convention with regard to development pipelines, creative tools and production process are yet to settle, and many questions hover around how to harness the console’s true strengths – and avoid its unexplored weaknesses.
In spite of these difficulties, Perfect Dark Zero was an important project for Rare. Initially announced at the original 2002 acquisition deal, the game was the studio’s opportunity to embrace its back catalogue and establish its shooter brand in a world where Halo and Call of Duty existed.
Was it a success? Mostly. The title sold over 1m units and was one of the biggest games at the launch of the Xbox 360. Meanwhile, its multiplayer mode received high praise from critics. But Rare – a studio known for its very high standards – was not entirely satisfied.
“Perfect Dark Zero had some massive ambitions, but the execution was tough on it,” says Lee Schuneman, who served as producer. “That’s where we fell down a bit. But it was still a good game and it was influential in some ways.”