The story of the game follows Joanna Dark, a bounty hunter working with her father and a computer hacker, as she joins the Carrington Institute agency to prevent a rival corporation from gaining possession of an ancient artifact which endows individuals with superhuman powers.

Both the co-operative and multiplayer modes support split screen, system link, and the Xbox Live online service.

Upon release, Perfect Dark Zero sold more than one million copies worldwide and received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised its graphics and numerous multiplayer modes.

After its release, the game was supported with downloadable content, expanding its multiplayer mode with new maps and new types of computer-controlled bots.

The combat features mechanics such as an evasive dodge roll and a cover system in which the gameplay switches to a third-person perspective, allowing the player to aim strategically without taking damage and be more aware of the surroundings.

The respawn procedure is also altered substantially, as if one player dies, the other has to find and revive the partner's corpse to bring it back to life.

The player is cast as Joanna Dark, a bounty hunter working with her father Jack and computer hacker Chandra Sekhar.

Before dying to his injuries, which were inflicted by Killian, Zeigler tells Joanna and her father that they must find a scientist named Dr. Eustace Caroll.

The pair fight their way out of the complex, but their extraction is interrupted by Zhang Li's daughter, Mai Hem, who kills Jack before Joanna escapes in a hovercraft.

Joanna and Chandra decide to pursue Zeigler's lead and seek out Dr. Caroll, who works aboard a research platform on the Pacific Ocean.

[20] The game's renderer engine employs more advanced graphic technologies than was possible in the previous console generation, including parallax mapping, ambient occlusion, subsurface scattering, and high dynamic range.

[23] The cover mode was designed to enhance the stealth aspect of the game and the third-person perspective was needed to allow players to see the character they were playing.

[13] The idea of bringing the game into a total third-person perspective was rejected as the shooting "works better" in first-person view, explained Tilston.

[19] For this reason, the team implemented moves such as climbing obstacles or, more specifically, the combat roll, which makes players harder to hit since it breaks the game's auto-aim lock.

[31] When Rare was purchased by Microsoft in September 2002, several images of Joanna Dark were released, but few other official announcements were made in the following years.

[34] Prior to its release, Microsoft arranged a deal with Tor Books to produce novels set in the Perfect Dark universe.

[35] A six-issue comic book series written by Eric Trautmann and illustrated by Cold FuZion Studios was also announced.

[38] The game was playable at the Xbox 360 Zero Hour Launch event, alongside Rare's Kameo: Elements of Power and Activision's Call of Duty 2.

[42] During the Japanese launch weekend, Perfect Dark Zero became the second best-selling Xbox 360 game with roughly 15,000 units sold, behind Namco's Ridge Racer 6.

[44][45] As of October 2006, Perfect Dark Zero had sold more than one million copies worldwide,[46] eventually joining Microsoft's "Platinum Hits" game selection.

The bug fixes included code to prevent an ongoing problem where players could walk through the air, an issue where some weapons could make use of rapid fire, and a map-exiting glitch, among others.

[69] Writing for GameSpot, Greg Kasavin felt that Perfect Dark Zero "champions the Xbox 360 with its excellent assortment of single and multiplayer game types, as well as its incredible good looks and dynamic, intense action".

[70] Charles Onyett of IGN praised the game's replay value,[61] but also criticised single-player aspects such as the weak artificial intelligence of enemies, commenting that "they never display any advanced assault tactics".

Kasavin was impressed with the amount of lighting and motion blur effects, and noted that the "excellent character animation helps make the guns feel as powerful as they look".

[60] Bryn Williams of GameSpy considered the graphics as a "stunning look at what the 360 hardware is capable of", but also admitted that the animation "is a little too slow and sometimes creates an unwelcome sense of cartoonishness".

[72] IGN credited the attractive gun models, explosions, and sprawling vistas, but felt that some areas such as the South American Ruins can unnecessarily look too shiny.

In the single player campaign Jack's [computer-controlled], but co-op lets you take direct control of his actions, making the experience a much more engaging affair all-round".

GameSpot stated that "the excellent weapon selection, flexibility of options, high-quality maps, and smooth online performance ... make for a rock-solid competitive shooter".

[73] 1Up.com reviewer Che Chou also praised the multiplayer, but observed that "constantly roll-dodging to avoid enemy fire at close range [...] combined with the exceptionally slow movement speed of your character [...] can occasionally be highly frustrating for beginners".

[74] Edge said that the game "falls short", especially when compared to Halo: Combat Evolved, a successful first-person shooter that was released as a launch title for the original Xbox.