Hoping for the Perfect Perfect Dark
By Shaun Hatton - May 29th, 2009
Art by Rocco Commisso
With E3 coming up, one of the things we’ve speculated about in the office is the possibility of a new Perfect Dark title. We let our imaginations drift on this and ultimately realized we would love to play as a more mature Joanna Dark in a world reminiscent of Blade Runner. The narrative would unfold in real-time in-game as it does in Half-Life 2, with no cut scenes whatsoever. Additionally, the idea of including a morality gauge appealed to us as it meant we could determine just what kind of operative we eventually became. The Nintendo 64 title gave us a real sense of home and place in the Carrington Institute, and this allowed players to learn and perfect the game. This is also something we’d like to see should we be greeted with an announcement of a new Perfect Dark title.
A more mature Joanna Dark might hide out in old, run-down hotels while posing as a tourist between missions. She’d secretly plot her adventures on hastily-scrawled notes in a secret code: a dialogue she’d keep to herself but which the player could understand. If cornered in that very room, she’d have the option to go along with the ruse or to pull out the guns and make a break for it.
While the game might not end up being anything like our fantasized version, Rare certainly has had the time to have been working on one, and Microsoft sure could use another exclusive. The question is: Will they deliver?
