Xbox studio the Initiative debuts Perfect Dark at the Game Awards

Microsoft helped kick off The Game Awards tonight with a quick reveal of what its new studio The Initiative: Perfect Dark is working on. The Santa Monica-based developer brought a teaser to promote the Xbox Series X / S game.

The Initiative’s creative team says the game takes place in a green sci-fi setting. On the surface, everything seems fine. But something underneath is rotten, and this game explores that, using the Perfect Dark franchise as its framework.

Microsoft founded The Initiative in 2018. The company has previously referred to it as its “AAAA” study, which is a reference to the massive budgets that select “triple-A” studios work with. Since then, Microsoft has attracted the talent of developers like Naughty Dog and Sony Santa Monica.

Now, The Initiative is on its way to launching its first game. And you may have high expectations to meet. It’s games like this that will determine whether Xbox is a primary gaming destination or just a sideshow for Nintendo and Sony.