Back in 2013, Microsoft offered a brief glimpse of a secret project: a spy-themed game internally called Project Ranger. This title was being crafted by Blue Tusk Studios, which later became known as The Collective. Though abandoned more than a decade ago, a new report is shedding light on what was envisioned as Xbox’s alternative to the popular Uncharted series.
The YouTube channel, Did You Know Gaming, hosted by Liam Robertson, has released an in-depth retrospective on Project Ranger. Microsoft and Black Tusk originally had high hopes for this game. While the initial 30-second preview showcased Shanghai, the overall design was described as “Uncharted with spies,” promising a third-person action shooter with missions spanning diverse global locations.
The game concept drew inspiration from the Mission: Impossible film franchise, with a dash of James Bond-style gadgets available for the player character to utilize against adversaries. Intriguingly, there was consideration for incorporating Kinect features, potentially enabling players to use voice commands to receive guidance from the main character’s handler. However, these control options were designed to be accessible even without Kinect hardware.
Despite the seemingly appealing concept, the report suggests the project was “never fully secure.” Development ultimately ceased in 2014 when Microsoft acquired the Gears of War intellectual property and reassigned The Collective to focus exclusively on that well-known franchise.
Interestingly, Microsoft’s now-defunct Perfect Dark reboot, before its cancellation due to company-wide restructuring, would have covered similar ground. The initiative was under cooperative development by The Initiative and Crystal Dynamics. However, The Initiative has since closed its doors, while Crystal Dynamics has undergone several rounds of layoffs. Attempts to rescue the Perfect Dark reboot through a deal with Take-Two reportedly failed because the two companies could not agree on who would own the game’s intellectual property.