Retro|Spective 104: Banjo Kazooie

[Neon Ignition]

The History in Games:
1998 - Banjo Kazooie
2000 - Banjo Tooie
2003 - Banjo Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge
2005 - Banjo Pilot
2008 - Banjo Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts

Overview:
Two years on from Nintendo's true birth of the 3D platformer, N64 owners saw the first game to come along deemed to live up to the standards that had been set. Rare delivered B&K which utilised the same hub world system but expanded the collectables aspect and increased the visual fidelity on offer. Two years later, following the success of the first game, they returned with a sequel that was well received but suffered from bloat due to an over-focus on collectibles, something that was increasingly bogging down Rare titles. Soon after the Megaton on Microsoft buying Rare landed and the franchise span out into the ether. The two games that followed hit on Nintendo handhelds, Microsoft still open to Rare carrying out third party handheld releases at the time but it would be years later until the bear and bird returned again in the hugely divisive Nuts & Bolts that resulted in the cauldron lid being placed over the pair. They've remained under utilised ever since, their biggest shining hour being their recent cameo appearance in Super Smash Bros - back in Nintendo's wing.











Share your thoughts and memories of Banjo Kazooie!

[vanpeebles]

Nuts and Bolts was superb, I could spend hours just making stuff. First N64 one was great as well. They are on Rare Replay now

[Neon Ignition]

Banjo is one of those franchises I wish Nintendo still owned, it's so sad to see it languishing. The fact that it managed to drag itself into Smash shows how wasted by MS it's been. That being said, B-K stands easily at the top of the pile. A great title and the padding in Tooie does get in the way of it (though nowhere near as much as DK64).

Grunty's Revenge was actually pretty good considering it was an attempt to squeeze the same structure onto GBC hardware. Pilot was something of a mess though.

Nuts and Bolts... I just can't get on with it no matter how often I've tried. At best it felt like a poor imitation and at worst was an unwieldy turn off. Rare really shouldn't have messed with the formula for the characters attempted revival.