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Joanna Dark Actor Had Recorded "Entire Chapters" Before Perfect Dark Reboot Was Canceled

We spoke to Joanna Dark actor Alix Wilton-Regan who shared what she could about the now-canceled reboot.

www.thegamer.com

Perfect Dark Reboot "Delivered Several Milestones That The Client Was Happy With" Before It Was Cancelled

via The Intiative

"I was as shocked, surprised, and devastated as everyone else was when the funding was pulled, and the studio was closed," Wilton-Regan tells me. "I did not see it coming. I was absolutely blindsided when the project was defunded." The actress, known for her roles in Mass Effect, Dragon Age, and Cyberpunk 2077, says she found out the news "at the same time as everybody else."

Of the development process, Wilton-Regan tells me, "We were basically recording bits and bobs throughout '23. We were also doing lots of performance capture for it in '24, and we were even recording more stuff for it in '25. To my knowledge, we were pretty far along. I'd done entire chapters of this universe." She adds that the game "had delivered several milestones that the client was really happy with," but in practical terms, she didn't know exactly how far along development was.

In a career spanning 16 years in video games, this was a first for Wilton-Regan, and it's left potential long-term scars. "I've never experienced in my career before what I experienced with Perfect Dark. And I guess now that I know that it can happen, you become really frightened that the same thing could happen again," she tells me. There was, however, one thing keeping her going — Lara Croft.

"The saving grace for me when Perfect Dark fell apart was that I'd already been shooting Lara for about a year as well," she says. "I was playing Joanna over here, and I was playing Lara over here, which was wonderful and genuinely one of the most creatively exciting times of my life. And I just felt so relieved that I still had Lara, but I also felt really frightened about losing Lara. I'm still frightened of losing Lara."

 

[Hero_Select]

It must really suck to be working on something for so long and then just get blindsided with a rugpull.

We don't know how well the game would have turned out if they were allowed to finish but if they got it right the return of Perfect Dark would have been awesome. I remember renting it and Goldeneye so much back in the olden days.

 

[semiconscious]

She adds that the game "had delivered several milestones that the client was really happy with"...

'the client', eh?...

 

[RainblowDash]

That's too bad

 

[kpopSuperstar]

I really want a level based fps like Perfect Dark, Goldeneye and Timesplitters, thats not another retro shooter, but more like a double-a game. 10 minute levels that you can perfect.

 

[Sand Dan Glokta]

It sucks that she won't get the catharsis of being involved in a large project that was successful that she took part in--but let's be real here; the game was most definitely coming out to be either extremely mediocre or an actual dumpster fire. All in all its disappointing yes but its for the better that this game was cancelled.

 

[JonSnowball]

'the client', eh?...

Yes, this is how voice actors and performance work functions in the industry. They aren't employed as part of the studio, they're under contract for a role. The client in this instance would have been Spread My ButtCheeks Inc.

 

[POKEYCLYDE]

If Perfect Dark flopped (which it looked like it was going to), being associated with it might do more harm to her career than the slight loss of income an abrupt cancelation caused.

 

[TransTrender]

I'm sure that or something like it happened but after the project was canned and we find out they only had a vertical slice, it just speaks to the dysfunction of what was happening in that studio. It's not like much of that would be usable.

 

[Plague Doctor]

Did she put some bass in her voice to match that square jawed face?

 

[Loomy]

'the client', eh?...

Yeah. To her - a contractor - the studio was a client.

 

[Gamer79]

Why make her fat and ugly ?

 

[MayauMiao]

I remember renting it and Goldeneye so much back in the olden days.

Come on, this Rare isn't Goldeneye era Rare.

 

[Hero_Select]

Come on, this Rare isn't Goldeneye era Rare.

It's not Rare at all. I like the IP and it's a shame it didnt get a fair shot at a revival.

 

[MrCunningham]

That's not really a big surprise. Most VO sessions are usually done over the course of a week or so. Maybe they would bring back the actor to record a few additional lines, if they need to. But I generally think the story is nailed down before all of the heavy level design work really begins.

 

[Kenneth Haight]

 

[Shubh_C63]

You see that's why so many companies spend months/years on just conceptualizing phase so they don't throw even more money and effort away like that.

Sad part is they did took years for conceptualizing and still failed. lol

 

[pqueue]

we basically know nothing about the game, so hard to work up two shits about this.

 

[Buggy Loop]

Edit wrong thread

 

[Sgt.Asher]

I am surprised they hired a woman for John "it's maam" Dark.

 

[JayK47]

In a perfect world, I would love to see another Perfect Dark game. But no, we have woke developers who can't seem to do shit right. Will probably be shelved forever.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Jawanna Dark

 

[ADiTAR]

"I wish more women were men"
"Sorry buddy, climate change is more important than rescuing your daughter"
"I let him get away because he's a trans black 2 spirit kid"..."It doesn't matter how many people they killed"

 

[semiconscious]

Yeah. To her - a contractor - the studio was a client.

so, the game that the client was working on "had delivered several milestones that the client was really happy with"? i mean, isn't it more a matter of whether or not microsoft was really happy?...

 

[T.v]

You did a job and got paid for it. Getting attached is a rookie mistake.

 

[ShaiKhulud1989]

I still can't understand why MS decided to shatter the game instead of selling it to (presumably) 2K. PD leads ended up in 2K anyway.

 

[StueyDuck]

Well, that would make sense, wouldn't it?

Most mocap and VA is done earlier in development, usually.

 

[Loomy]

so, the game that the client was working on "had delivered several milestones that the client was really happy with"? i mean, isn't it more a matter of whether or not microsoft was really happy?...

The client in this case is either The Initiative or Xbox Game Studios. Assuming she was doing the work through an outsourced contractor, then it would have been The Initiative. If she was working directly with The Initiative, it was either them or Xbox Game Studios.

 

[Elginer]

It sucks that she won't get the catharsis of being involved in a large project that was successful that she took part in--but let's be real here; the game was most definitely coming out to be either extremely mediocre or an actual dumpster fire. All in all its disappointing yes but its for the better that this game was cancelled.

So very sad but also true.

 

[ChuckeRearmed]

All it needed was an attractive female lead

 

[Exede]

Im so glad this game got cancelled...
That's not Joanna Dark Microsoft!

 

[Tertullian]

The C-H-I-N can't win

 

[Hyet]

I honestly think I could have been a good game, shame they axed it.
And yes, she needed a redesign.

 

[GamesDontSuck]

It is a shame it got cancelled. Hopefully the franchise gets another reboot in years to come.

speaking of years to come,
Something tells me that more of this game will get leaked as the years pass by.

 

[ADiTAR]

If Nintendo released Metroid Prime 4 knowing full well it's rushed and a turd, Microsoft could've released Perfect Dark.

 

[Signalis]

She should just take it on the chin, plenty of games get cancelled all the time

 

[violence]

Tens of hours wasted.

 

[clem84]

The design of the main character was bad, but the footage we saw looked very promising. I hope this game will be saved somehow.

 

[winjer]

At least she got paid. So it's not a total loss.

 

[RAIDEN1]

The only way this franchise get's revived is if another studio buys out the IP already, or there is some sort of fan made project.....otherwise this ends up like Deus Ex

 

[roosnam1980]

 

[violence]

It's probably not true, but the word is she modeled the voice after the Theranos CEO. This was before the fraud of course.

 

[AJUMP23]

That is how production works. In stages.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

In another universe rare is still under Nintendo and putting out bangers. Sucks man.

 

[Sticks]

 

[Moriarty1889]

That fucking chin though….

 

[Leopold]

Nintendo should buy the game rights and release it.

 

[Sevyne]