Banjo-Kazooie Composer Says Bringing Back the Series Would be “Brutally Hard”

Earlier this month, Xbox boss Phil Spencer made headlines with a reference to Banjo-Kazooie while talking about dormant franchises. In an interview with Windows Central, Spencer said “Banjo fans, I hear you,” before pointing out that the company is always looking for the right development team to bring back older games. Following those comments, Banjo-Kazooie composer Grant Kirkhope weighed in on the possibility of a new team bringing back the series. On Twitter, Kirkhope noted that the next game would have to be “perfect” to satisfy fans.

“Honestly, any team taking on BK has an uphill battle from the start. To make something that pleases the hard core fans is pretty near impossible to do. There’s no leeway, if it’s not perfect, it’ll get hammered. People really want it, but will be brutally hard to please,” wrote Kirkhope. 

In a follow-up Tweet, Kirkhope noted that he would “of course” be willing to return as the composer on a new game, should it ever happen. Kirkhope continues to create music for video games, and most recently provided the soundtracks for Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle and its sequel Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope. 

Banjo-Kazooie’s Nintendo History

Banjo-Kazooie is one of the most beloved video games of the Nintendo 64 era. The game was an immediate success upon its release in 1998, and a sequel appeared on the system just two years later. Rare’s bird and bear pair seemed positioned as the next big icons of the gaming industry, but things changed in 2002. That year, Rare was purchased by Microsoft, with the company taking over the rights to franchises like Banjo-Kazooie, Conker, Jet Force Gemini, and Perfect Dark. 

Despite the sale, Banjo and Kazooie would return in a pair of Game Boy Advance games: Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty’s Revenge and Banjo Pilot. Those two games would mark the last time the characters would appear on a Nintendo system for more than a decade. However, in 2019 the characters would return to a Nintendo platform, this time as a DLC fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. In 2022, Microsoft would also re-release the original Banjo-Kazooie through Nintendo Switch Online. 

Banjo-Kazooie on Xbox

Since Rare’s purchase by Microsoft, just one new Banjo-Kazooie game has been published by the company: 2008’s Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts. Both N64 games were brought to Xbox platforms, but fans haven’t had anything to look forward to in quite a long time. With Xbox acquiring Activision earlier this year, many fans have been hoping that developer Toys for Bob will begin work on a new Banjo-Kazooie game. The studio has a knack for all-ages platformers, and has also found success with bringing back dormant franchises; under Activision, Toys for Bob helped resurrect both Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon. 

While we don’t know who will be the next developer on the series, one thing is for certain: they’ll have a very difficult task pleasing fans after all these years! 

Would you like to see a new Banjo-Kazooie game? Do you think Toys for Bob would be a good fit? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!