One of the hardest things for fans to endure in the gaming space is seeing properties that COULD be used to great effect…not be used at all by developers or publishers. Or, just as bad, being used terribly in one form or another. We can all think of examples of this across numerous teams, but the one that arguably has the loudest fanbase is Banjo-Kazooie. Ever since its disastrous third game on Xbox, once Rare was acquired by Microsoft, fans have wanted something new, and each year, they keep asking for it, only for Microsoft/Xbox to SAY they want to do something…and then never do.
One of the worst things about this is that there are multiple people and teams who would love to make a new Banjo-Kazooie title, and that includes the independent team Toys For Bob. You might recall them working with Spyro the Dragon and Crash Bandicoot in recent years, but in a special interview you can see below, studio head Paul Yan had the following to say:
“One company we’d like to work with is one we’re already working with; Team Xbox. They’ve been a great partner and they also have a very interesting roster of characters that Toys for Bob could have a lot of fun with. The honey bear is the first one that comes to mind. I think we all can agree Banjo’s been hibernating long enough, right?”
Indeed, he has, and the most recent “releases” in the franchises were the two N64 games being brought to the Nintendo Switch Online service. That’s cool, but it’s not exactly “new material.” However, with Microsoft “diversifying” where it sends its games going forward, perhaps now is the perfect time for this duo to return. Maybe even…on the Nintendo Switch 2?
