As Nintendo’s answer to subscription services, Nintendo Switch Online brings some of its best franchises to subscribers through the platform. However, last year, Nintendo Switch Online surprised many by adding an age-restricted expansion to its service titled the Mature Collection. The Mature Collection featured two titles at launch; Turok and Perfect Dark. Now, a recent rumor swirling around about the latter’s reboot makes the Mature Collection make a lot more sense.
Granted, the addition of the Mature Collection to Nintendo Switch Online was exciting, but it was also confusing as to why Nintendo chose now to finally bring Perfect Dark to players. However, if a recent rumor is to be believed, the new Perfect Dark game could be coming to the Switch 2.
Related
Perfect Dark: Joanna Dark’s Past Explained
Joanna Dark’s triumphant return looks to be something closer to an immersive-sim than a throwback to Perfect Dark’s old-school shooter origins.
A Job Listing Has Ignited Rumors of a Perfect Dark Multiplatform Release
The job listing in question comes directly from The Initiative, the developer behind the Perfect Dark reboot. This listing was shared on the GamingLeaksAndRumors subreddit by user Jasonvsfreddyvs, with the job description clearly stating “multiple platforms.” While these multiple platforms could simply just mean Xbox and PC, there is also the chance that the Switch 2 and the PS5 could be included as well.
Xbox Moving Away From Exclusivity Could Also Point to a Perfect Dark Switch 2 Release
Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has made it abundantly clear in the past few months that the future of Xbox is not one built on exclusive titles. Not even Halo is off the table anymore in terms of receiving ports to other platforms. Despite the first game originally launching for Nintendo, the reboot of Perfect Dark was planned to be a Microsoft exclusive. However, the company’s push toward multiplatform titles could further point to Perfect Dark coming to the Switch 2.
The original Perfect Dark was released for the Nintendo 64 in 2000.
If these rumors turn out to be true, it only makes sense for this new iteration of Perfect Dark to be released on a Nintendo console when that’s how the series began in the first place. Also, if Perfect Dark is able to run on the Switch 2, then that may say a lot about the console’s power. It’s hard to imagine a graphically complex game like the Perfect Dark reboot running on the Switch, but the next generation of the console has been rumored to have a lot more power than its predecessor. One major rumor about the Switch 2 is that it could have 12GB of RAM, and if that’s the case, then that would make it more powerful than the Xbox Series S. Of course, this is merely a rumor so far, but if Nintendo’s new console features games like the new and improved Perfect Dark, then it will need much better specs.
Perfect Dark’s Release Plans Will Hopefully Be Revealed Soon
Originally announced at the 2020 Game Awards, Perfect Dark and its production had been incredibly silent following the event. Reports from last year claiming that Perfect Dark was in trouble didn’t exactly bring the most promising of updates, either. Despite those initial reports, Perfect Dark actually revealed a gameplay trailer in June 2024 at the Xbox Games Showcase, which bodes well.
Nintendo is hosting a Nintendo Direct event for the Switch 2 on April 2, where there will hopefully be surprising launch title announcements.
As of now, there is no way to confidently say whether Perfect Dark will actually launch on Switch 2 or not. It’s not entirely impossible, though. Although it could just be a mere coincidence, Nintendo Switch Online’s Mature Collection and the announcement of the Switch 2 feel as though it could be a strategic move to get fans of the original Perfect Dark excited. Only time will tell, but Perfect Dark coming back to Nintendo would be quite exciting.
