As the Xbox 360 console celebrates its 20th anniversary, Perfect Dark Zero, a launch title from Rare, receives renewed attention for its multiplayer strengths despite its flaws. Released on November 22, 2005, the game earned a Metascore of 81 and featured innovative modes like DarkOps. The article highlights its troubled development and contrasts it with the recent cancellation of a Perfect Dark reboot.
Background and Development
Perfect Dark Zero originated as a GameCube project before shifting to Xbox and undergoing a last-minute HD upgrade for the Xbox 360 launch. This turbulent process contributed to its mixed reputation, with critics noting issues like uninspired mission design, a poppy narrative shift from the original Perfect Dark, and awkward character models, including the infamous 'Wall Guy' meme. Despite these, contemporary reviews praised its multiplayer components, leading to an overall Metascore of 81 in an era of generally higher scores.
Multiplayer Highlights
The game's multiplayer stood out as a highlight, supporting up to 32 players and offering traditional deathmatch alongside unique DarkOps modes. Onslaught involved teams alternating between attacking and defending bases, leveraging weapons' secondary functions like sentry deployment from the laptop gun or radar scrambling with the sniper rifle. Infection, a standout 32-player mode, featured one-life gameplay where defeated players became infected skeletons, forcing survivors to manage budgets for weapons and strategize holds or evasions. These elements made it a top Xbox Live experience until Gears of War's release.
Legacy and Recent Context
The title's multiplayer drew from the GoldenEye and Perfect Dark lineage, emphasizing objective-based play that suited its loose controls and gadget-heavy weapons, such as the CMP's hologram decoy or the starter pistol's grenade-like magazine. Included in Rare Replay for Xbox One, it retained fan interest. Reflecting on its 20th anniversary, the piece argues the series' fractured identity may have influenced the recent Perfect Dark reboot cancellation, yet sees potential in Zero's ambitious ideas for future exploration.