Editing Banjo-Kazooie (universe)

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{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Banjo-Kazooie'' (universe)}}

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|caption    = [[File:BanjoKazooieSymbol.svg|50px]]

|publisher = Nintendo<br>THQ<br>[[Microsoft]]  

|originconsole = Nintendo 64

|firstinstallment = ''{{s|wikipedia|Banjo-Kazooie}}'' (1998)

|interwikipage = Banjo-Kazooie (series)

The '''''Banjo-Kazooie'' universe''' ({{ja|バンジョーとカズーイの大冒険|Banjō to Kazūi no Daibōken}}, ''Banjo and Kazooie's Great Adventure'') refers to the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series' collection of characters, stages, and properties hailing from the series of 3D platformers created by the UK-based development studio [[Rare Ltd.]] The games feature the titular duo, [[Banjo]] and [[Kazooie]], collecting various items in sandbox-like environments in order to progress. They are often considered to be the most popular and recognizable titles Rare has ever developed, next to the original ''[[Donkey Kong (universe)|Donkey Kong Country]]'' series.

[[File:Banjo and Kazooie.png|thumb|left|150px|Official artwork of Banjo and Kazooie from ''Banjo-Tooie''.]]

With the massive critical and commercial success of ''Donkey Kong Country'' in 1994, a game recognized for its pre-rendered CG graphics created on {{s|wikipedia|Silicon Graphics}} workstations, developer Rare wanted to produce more titles utilizing this advanced graphics technology as their groundwork. Among the new games in production was ''Project Dream'' (also known as ''Dream: Land of Giants''), a role-playing game which was to be Rare's magnum opus on the SNES. Inspired by other action-adventure titles like Nintendo’s own {{uv|The Legend of Zelda}} series, this game would have starred a human boy named Edison and his dog companion Dinger in a pirate-themed fantasy adventure to stop the ambitions of Captain Blackeye and his band of pirates. However, as the SNES neared the end of its lifespan and the game's size and scope increased, it was eventually decided to move production to the upcoming [[Nintendo 64]] console.

In an attempt to appeal to a more mature audience, the game's fantasy themes were de-emphasized and its pirate themes strengthened. As development progressed, the team decided that Edison was losing his relevance and replaced him with a different protagonist. He was first swapped for a rabbit, and eventually a honey bear, whom they gave a backpack to store his items. The development team soon realized their game was becoming too ambitious, so they chose to retool it into a linear 2.5D platformer. When the team saw an early build of Nintendo's ''[[Mario (universe)|Super Mario 64]]'', they realized it would set the standard for 3D gaming and make ''Dream'' look outdated in comparison. As a result, they once again restarted its development, restoring the fantasy themes and using ''Super Mario 64'' as their basis. This new iteration was what eventually became ''Banjo-Kazooie''.

While designing a moveset for the titular [[Banjo]], the team experimented with various ideas on how to improve and expand upon Mario’s moveset in ''Super Mario 64''; namely, the ability to double jump and run faster. The concept of wings and legs sprouting out of the backpack emerged from this goal, thus birthing the idea for a separate character living in Banjo’s backpack: a red-crested breegull named [[Kazooie]]. Variation was added to the gameplay through the shaman Mumbo Jumbo, who transforms Banjo into different creatures and objects with unique abilities. With the game's pirate themes gradually diminishing, the role of antagonist was passed from Captain Blackeye to a green witch named Gruntilda. To help promote the upcoming title, Banjo was added as a playable character in ''Diddy Kong Racing'' in November 1997.

''Banjo-Kazooie'' was initially released in June 1998 to strong sales and critical acclaim, with praise to its detailed graphics, dynamic soundtrack, and improvements over the foundation laid by ''Super Mario 64''. Along with other recognizable titles such as ''[[GoldenEye (universe)|GoldenEye 007]]'', {{uv|Perfect Dark}}, ''Donkey Kong 64'', and ''Conker's Bad Fur Day'', the game cemented Rare's reputation as a top-tier developer for the platform. The eponymous duo became mascots for both the company and the Nintendo 64 itself; owing to this success, a direct sequel titled ''Banjo-Tooie'' was released in November 2000, featuring a more elaborate plot with a darker tone, Mumbo Jumbo as an additional playable character, multiple new gameplay styles, and a large interconnected world. The duology confounded the gaming world for many years with the mysterious "Stop 'N' Swop" feature, originally intended to use an unintentional quirk of the N64 hardware to transfer data between different cartridges for unlocking special bonuses, that was removed at the last minute both at Nintendo’s behest and due to newer N64 models making it infeasible.

While the ''Banjo-Kazooie'' intellectual property was initially a second-party Nintendo franchise, and Banjo and Kazooie were marketed as "Nintendo characters" alongside first-party creations such as [[Mario]] and [[Link]], the property was transferred in full to [[Microsoft]] upon its purchase of Rare on September 24th, 2002. However, since Microsoft had no stake in the handheld gaming market, Rare was permitted to develop two spin-offs for the Game Boy Advance: ''Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge'', a "midquel" with a time-travel plot that takes place between the two N64 games, and ''Banjo-Pilot'', an airplane-based racing game retooled from a ''Diddy Kong Racing'' sequel following the 2002 acquisition.

A third console entry was greatly contested within Rare, as the team initially struggled to find a central focus. Concepts for this third game included an expanded remake of the first game with certain gameplay segments altered, and a game focusing more directly on the duo's rivalry with Gruntilda wherein they would compete in a series of rapid-fire challenges. None of these ideas came to fruition; instead the team landed on the concept of constructing vehicles to traverse large, sandbox-like hub worlds and complete missions. This became the foundation for ''Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts'', released for the Xbox 360 in November 2008, which prominently features a 3D editor in which the player can construct a multitude of vehicles ranging from four-wheelers to hovercrafts to biplanes. The character designs were also tweaked, becoming more angular and cuboid to match the building-block aesthetic, and the environments and hub worlds were designed to complement the themes of construction. Though it received mostly positive reviews from critics, it was highly polarizing due to its deviation from the traditional 3D platforming formula of the original duology. The game became infamous in the following years as fans felt their expectations were subverted, and in the meantime Rare temporarily shifted focus away from its original properties to develop games for the Kinect starting in 2010.

Between 2008 and 2010, ''Nuts & Bolts'' was followed up by downloadable HD remasters of the two N64 titles on Xbox Live Arcade (while also implementing a retooled Stop 'N' Swop feature), as well as Banjo and Kazooie's guest appearance in the Xbox 360 version of ''{{s|wikipedia|Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing}}''. ''Banjo-Kazooie'' series characters also appear as downloadable skin packs in all versions of ''Minecraft''. Finally at E3 2015, Rare shifted focus back to its intellectual properties when they announced ''{{s|wikipedia|Rare Replay}}'', a compilation of thirty titles from Rare in celebration of their 30th anniversary as a development studio. Released exclusively for the Xbox One in August 2015, this collection features all three home console installments in the ''Banjo-Kazooie'' series, including achievements, developer interviews, and remixed challenges. However, apart from these rereleases, the ''Banjo-Kazooie'' series has stayed largely dormant since the release of ''Nuts & Bolts''. In that time, the majority of the original creative team had split away from Rare to form an independent studio, {{s|wikipedia|Playtonic Games}}; they crowdfunded and released a spiritual successor titled ''{{s|wikipedia|Yooka-Laylee}}'' in 2017, with a sidescrolling sequel currently in development.

Banjo & Kazooie were a particularly popular character request for the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series as far back as the release of the [[Super Smash Bros.|original Nintendo 64 installment]]; on an official Japanese poll regarding characters for a potential sequel, they placed eighth, above characters such as [[Marth]] and [[Meta Knight]].<ref name="N64">https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/PostResult2.html</ref> Similarly, after the release of ''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]'', [[Masahiro Sakurai]] noted in response to a fan that Banjo & Kazooie could be considered a natural inclusion, but including them was "unlikely for a variety of legal and financial reasons".<ref name="melee">[https://www.sourcegaming.info/2016/04/29/duflupdate/ The Definitive List of Unused Fighters in Smash | Source Gaming]</ref> The duo were meant to cameo as a [[trophy]], but had to be cut for similar reasons.<ref>[https://twitter.com/PushDustIn/status/1138759804208291841 PushDustIn on Twitter:] In an old Nintendo Dream (from 2002) Sakurai confirmed that Banjo & Kazooie were planned to be a trophy in Melee. However, since Rare is a company in England it became difficult for them to approve the trophies and still have Melee on schedule. Joanna Dark was also mentioned.</ref>

Ultimately, the duo would finally be included as DLC fighters for ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'', roughly 17 years after the Microsoft buyout. Rare was aware of the long-running demand and worked closely with Nintendo in developing Banjo & Kazooie for ''Ultimate'', including their designs, moveset, and music selections.<ref name="twitter">[https://twitter.com/RareLtd/status/1138488551841181701 Rare Ltd. on Twitter:] You asked. We listened. Nintendo were listening too, and we were happy to work with our old friends to make this one a reality. Banjo and Kazooie are coming to Super #SmashBrosUltimate!</ref><ref name="collab">{{cite web |url=https://www.rare.co.uk/news/rare-adventures-at-e3-2019 |title=Rare Adventures at E3 2019 |accessdate=2019-06-28 |author=Adam Park |date=2019-06-27 |publisher=Rare}}</ref> Phil Spencer, head of the Xbox brand, stated in an interview following the reveal that he was open to including the characters in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series for a long time (even stating as such on his Twitter account<ref>[https://twitter.com/xboxp3/status/584023190692737024 Phil Spencer on Twitter:] I think it would be cool if Banjo was in the next SSB DLC. We've worked with Nintendo on Rare IP before, no issues.</ref>), and doing so as part of ''Ultimate''{{'}}s [[Fighters Pass]] was an "easy deal to make" due to Microsoft's ongoing third-party relationship with Nintendo.<ref name="spencer">{{cite web |url=https://kotaku.com/xbox-boss-phil-spencer-says-banjo-in-smash-was-an-easy-1835418742 |title=Xbox Boss Phil Spencer Says Banjo In Smash Was An Easy Deal To Make |accessdate=2019-06-11 |author=Stephen Totilo |date=2019-06-11 |publisher=Kotaku}}</ref> Series composer Grant Kirkhope was first hinted about the prospect of Banjo and Kazooie in ''Super Smash Bros.'' when Davide Soliani, creative director of the Switch-exclusive ''Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle'' which Grant also composed for, emailed Kirkhope asking for his contact information on behalf of Nintendo. Kirkhope immediately became skeptical about the context but did as he was told and composed a new arrangement of Spiral Mountain after finally realizing that Banjo and Kazooie would be in ''Super Smash Bros Ultimate''.

Banjo and Kazooie make no appearance in ''Super Smash Bros.'' on the Nintendo 64, but appeared on a poll held on the official website regarding a potential sequel, ranking eighth place out of 20.<ref name="N64"/>

Based on responses from fan questions confirming that Banjo would not be appearing in ''Super Smash Bros. Melee'',<ref name="melee"/> a popular [[List of rumors#Rare characters rumor|rumor of Banjo being cut from the game]] manifested, claiming that Banjo (along with James Bond from ''{{uv|GoldenEye}} 007''<ref name="bond">https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/flash/syukeiken/return526.html</ref>) was planned for inclusion but ultimately cut because Sakurai could not secure the rights from Rare. However, Sakurai only said that the characters would be difficult to include, not that he had planned to include them.

The flagship franchise of Rare makes its long-requested ''Super Smash Bros.'' debut as the third DLC franchise in the [[Downloadable content (SSBU)|Fighters Pass]], being officially announced in the [[E3]] 2019 Nintendo Direct alongside the {{SSBU|Hero}} from the {{uv|Dragon Quest}} series. In addition to one new fighter, the series is represented with a stage with multiple cameo appearances, several music tracks, and several Spirits. All of the representation from this series was released on September 4th, 2019 as part of the version 5.0.0 update and its associated new content.

*73. '''{{SSBU|Banjo & Kazooie}}''': The easy-going honey bear and his snarky breegull sidekick debut together as the third newcomer from the Fighters Pass. Like {{SSBU|Duck Hunt}}, Banjo & Kazooie work in tandem for their attacks, utilizing abilities taken from their Nintendo 64 outings such as [[Egg Firing]] and [[Wonderwing]] and even summoning [[The Mighty Jinjonator]] for their Final Smash. They were released alongside Spiral Mountain and its music tracks on September 4th, 2019 as part of Challenger Pack 3.

*'''[[Spiral Mountain]]''': a stage based on Banjo & Kazooie's homeland, which has appeared in every ''Banjo-Kazooie'' title thus far. In the background, Bottles, Mumbo, and Gruntilda will cameo. The stage was released in September 24th, 2019 as part of Challenger Pack 3.

====Original tracks====

*'''Spiral Mountain''': A faster-paced orchestral arrangement of the Spiral Mountain theme arranged by Grant Kirkhope, the original composer of ''Banjo-Kazooie''.<ref name="musicsite">[https://www.smashbros.com/en_US/sound/index.html Music | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for the Nintendo Switch System | Official Site]</ref>

*''Banjo-Kazooie'' is the first third-party universe, and the first character-based universe overall, to consist solely of a playable character that originated outside of Japan.

**Additionally, it is also the first character-based universe to be created outside of Japan, being created in the United Kingdom.

*''Banjo-Kazooie'' is one of three primary third-party universes with games published by Nintendo worldwide, as Nintendo published the Nintendo 64 versions of both the first installment and ''Banjo-Tooie''; the other two are {{uv|Final Fantasy}} <!--Nintendo published Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles for the GameCube worldwide, hence why it's listed here.--> and {{uv|Bayonetta}}.

*''Banjo-Kazooie'' is the first third-party universe to belong to a current console rival of Nintendo, in this case Microsoft; however, Rareware was once a second-party subsidiary of Nintendo, and Banjo debuted in the ''{{uv|Donkey Kong}}'' franchise via technicalities.

*''Banjo-Kazooie'' is the second third-party universe with a playable female character, the first being {{uv|Bayonetta}}.

*''Banjo-Kazooie'' is the fifth third-party universe to debut on a Nintendo console, and the only one to debut on a Nintendo console other than the NES (being the Nintendo 64). The others, which all debuted on the NES, are {{uv|Mega Man}}, {{uv|Final Fantasy}}, {{uv|Castlevania}}, and {{uv|Dragon Quest}}.

*Despite being owned by Microsoft, ''Banjo-Kazooie'' did not debut on a Microsoft platform. Coincidentally, the {{uv|Metal Gear}} and {{uv|Bayonetta}} universes did debut on Microsoft platforms, specifically the MSX2 and Xbox 360 respectively.

[[Category:Banjo-Kazooie universe]]