Take-Two didn't save Perfect Dark, but it did recruit the lead devs and open a new 2K studio

2K Games has recruited the leads behind Xbox's cancelled Perfect Dark shooter to head a new studio.

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As most of the games industry contracts, publisher Take-Two Interactive is opening new production groups and planning for the future. Brian Horton and Darrell Gallagher have been hired by Take-Two's billion-dollar 2K Games label to helm a new creative group for an unannounced project. The news comes months after the publisher tried to make a deal to salvage Microsoft's now-scrapped Perfect Dark game; faced with profit challenges, Microsoft chose to cancel Perfect Dark and shut down The Initiative, a studio that had been formed specifically to work on the discarded project.

"Happy to announce I joined 2K as VP, Head of Creative at a new studio with Darrell Gallagher!" Brian Horton, who had previously worked at Insomniac Games before moving to Perfect Dark in late 2024, wrote on LinkedIn.

• Read more: Perfect Dark almost found a new home at GTA publisher Take-Two, but has now been abandoned

Gallagher also shared his new career move on LinkedIn:

"I'm excited to share that I will be joining 2K as SVP, Studio Head, where I'll be building a new studio and leading an ambitious opportunity unlike anything I've taken on before. I've spent my career believing in what's possible when great people come together with a bold vision. I can't wait to get started with the exceptional team at 2K!"

It's unclear what the new studio will be working on, and whether or not it'll be a fresh IP under the 2K Games banner. In its financial reports, parent company Take-Two says that it expects to deliver 29 non-mobile games from now until March 2028.

However, it's unlikely that this new project in particular is among that slate; the cut-off date for the pipeline is May 2025, many months before the recent announcements.