Banjo-Kazooie

Banjo-Kazooie is a 1998 platform game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. Controlling the player characters, the bear Banjo and the bird Kazooie, the player attempts to save Banjo's kidnapped sister Tooty from the witch Gruntilda. The player explores nine nonlinear worlds to gather items and progress. Using Banjo and Kazooie's traversal and combat abilities, they complete challenges such as solving puzzles, jumping over obstacles, and defeating bosses. Rare conceived Banjo-Kazooie as a role-playing video game, Dream, for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System following the completion of Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995). The 15-member team, led by Gregg Mayles, transitioned development to the Nintendo 64 and retooled the game as a platformer after the role-playing format proved too complex. Banjo-Kazooie was inspired by Super Mario 64 (1996) and designed to appeal to a broad audience, similar to Walt Disney Animation Studios films. Grant Kirkhope composed the soundtrack; Banjo-Kazooie was one of the first games to feature vertical remixing, where various sound layers fade in and out depending on the player's location. Released in North America in late June 1998 and in Europe the following month, Banjo-Kazooie sold over three million copies, making it one of the bestselling Nintendo 64 games. It received acclaim from critics, who said it surpassed Super Mario 64 as the best 3D platform and adventure game. They praised the visuals, soundtrack, characters, writing, humour, and level design, but criticised the lack of originality and the camera. Banjo-Kazooie received numerous year-end accolades, including two from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences: "Console Action Game of the Year" and "Outstanding Achievement in Art/Graphics". In retrospect, Banjo-Kazooie is considered one of Rare's best games and among the best Nintendo 64 games. It spawned a series which includes two sequels, Banjo-Tooie (2000) and Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (2008), and two spin-offs, Grunty's Revenge (2003) and Banjo-Pilot (2005). Following Microsoft's 2002 acquisition of Rare, 4J Studios developed a port for the Xbox 360 in 2008, later included in the Xbox One compilation Rare Replay in 2015. It was released on the Nintendo Switch for Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscribers in 2022, marking its first rerelease on a Nintendo console.