Banjo & Kazooie (SSBU)

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This article is about Banjo & Kazooie's appearance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. For the characters in other contexts, see Banjo and Kazooie.

Banjo & Kazooie in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Universe	Banjo-Kazooie
Availability	Downloadable
Final Smash	The Mighty Jinjonator

“	Banjo-Kazooie are Raring to Go!	”
—Introduction Tagline

Banjo & Kazooie (バンジョー&カズーイ, Banjo & Kazooie), formatted in their reveal trailer as Banjo-Kazooie, are a playable fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. They were announced alongside the Hero during the E3 Nintendo Direct on June 11th, 2019 as the third downloadable fighter from the Fighters Pass. They are the first third party representative from Microsoft and were released on September 4th, 2019. Although they are a team, they are collectively classified as Fighter #73.

Chris Sutherland's portrayals of Banjo and Kazooie from Banjo-Kazooie, Banjo-Tooie, and Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts were repurposed for Ultimate.

Attributes

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Banjo & Kazooie work in tandem with each other, most similarly to Duck Hunt. Being a bear, Banjo gives the pair a heavy weight, being as heavy as Snake and R.O.B., while Kazooie's Talon Trot move from their original game helps give them a surprisingly fast dashing speed. Kazooie also helps the pair's aerial recovery, as they can midair jump twice, with good speed during each jump as well. Banjo's large frame does make them a fairly big target, but their overall mobility is above average given their heavyweight status. This is further bolstered by both Wonderwing and Shock Spring Jump being excellent recovery tools that do not put them into a helpless animation.

Banjo & Kazooie's arsenal makes use of the majority of moves from their first two games, Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie. Banjo's Claw Swipe and Kazooie's Rat-a-Tat Rap comprise their neutral attack. Their down tilt, Beak Barge, acts a pseudo-crawl, while their forward smash is Breegull Bash, a slow but powerful move that highlights a comical maneuver in their home game. The duo have original moves as well, with up tilt being a long ranged kick assisted by Kazooie, and down smash covering both sides simultaneously much like Palutena's down smash.

Their moveset in the air also combines old and new moves. Banjo shows off a haymaker punch in his forward aerial. Kazooie's Wing Whack, which she performed solo in Banjo-Tooie, is used as a wide range, high-lag neutral aerial. Rat-a-Tat Rap makes a second appearance in their back aerial moveset, while Kazooie uses a wing clap move as their up aerial which deals decent damage but low knockback. Beak Buster makes an appearance as their down aerial, being a stall-then-fall.

The pair's ground game is varied, which some attacks like forward and up tilt coming out very quickly and having long range, while their smash attacks are more akin to their heavyweight status, containing much more start up and/or end lag, but being strong punishing tools if used effectively. This is also true of their air game, as Banjo's forward air is powerful but has 15 frames of start up lag and moderate ending lag, while Beak Buster is quick but highly punishable if it misses.

Banjo & Kazooie's special moves have lots of options among them. Their neutral special, Egg Firing, sends eggs out of Kazooie's mouth with a downward arc, dealing decent damage at the expense of a fairly slow rate of fire. Holding the button transitions into Breegull Blaster, which enables Banjo to move around freely holding Kazooie as a "gun", much like Mega Man's arm cannon shots, with low damage but faster, and constant projectiles, all while being able to move and jump freely. Wonderwing functions as an invincible dash attack, which can make it punishable on shields and misses, but it does incredible damage and knockback if it connects, especially if hitting early, and its armor lets the duo pass through any projectile and attack their opponent. It also functions as an excellent recovery option with its horizontal speed and distance. However, the move runs on a limited stock of five golden feathers, which don't regenerate until losing a stock, so its usage must be carefully considered. Shock Spring Jump makes an appearance in their up special, enabling the pair to gain excellent vertical distance with a brief charge while also gimping opponents below as the pad falls. Rear Egg, their down special, is a quirky move that gives them a strong defensive option when opponents are behind them, and the grenade egg is catchable and throwable. Overall, their four specials give them impressive utility with both physical and projectile options.

Banjo has a strong grab game, using above average reach to clinch his opponents. Each of their grabs have vastly different functions as well. Back throw is a useful KO tool at the edge, much like Mario's back throw, and down throw buries opponents in the ground, setting up reads, combos, and even KO set ups.

The pair is not without weaknesses. Banjo & Kazooie present a large hitbox, and they are susceptible to combos. Their overall mobility is unorthodox, with their excellent run speed being offset by their slow dash speed tied for fifth worst, their high vertical recovery options being hampered by their poor air speed, and the lowest traction in the game alongside Mii Gunner. Their powerful smash attacks all contain very harsh lag, either startup, endlag, or both. The eggs shooting out from Egg Firing have a slow fire rate on their own and weak power when the pair transitions to Breegull Blaster. If the pair runs out of golden feathers, they lose a lot of options both offensively and defensively. Rear Egg is quite situational, and the explosion itself is not very powerful. It's also difficult to run backwards to grab the grenade and use it as a throwing item, and opponents can grab it and use it against them. Shock Spring Jump requires slight charge time to make their recovery strong, which is brief but can leave them vulnerable. Also, some of their attacks, like Kazooie's up aerial, are extremely weak, and do not have a lot of combo potential either.

Overall, Banjo & Kazooie have a lot of specialized tools to accommodate different opponents and playstyles. Their egg projectiles can be used in a multitude of ways, and their recovery is extremely strong with many different ways to get back onto the stage. The pair must find ways to land their laggy finishing moves, as all of them, including their forward aerial, smash attacks (except up smash, which starts quickly) and Wonderwing dash, all have high amounts of start-up lag. Due to their recent release, their current tournament viability is unknown.

Moveset

• Banjo & Kazooie can perform two midair jumps, both of which are based off the Feathery Flap.
• Banjo's initial dash animation has him sprinting a brief distance. His dashing animation has Kazooie transition into the Talon Trot, in which she carries Banjo on her back while running. Both animations are aesthetic and do not affect the function of the duo's dash.

Note: All numbers are listed as base damage, without the 1v1 multiplier.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack		Claw Swipe / Rat-A-Tat Rap (Flurry)	2.2%	A combination of the Claw Swipe and the Rat-A-Tat Rap. If the Neutral Attack button is held, Banjo will swipe 3 times. If mashed, he will swipe twice, leading into Kazooie's pecking flurry before finishing with an upward shoulder bash. The first hit starts at frame 4, making it the duo's fastest ground attack. The third hit of the regular neutral attack launches opponents vertically, which can allow it to set up juggles due to its reasonably low ending lag. Forward aerial is a consistent followup especially if opponents miss a tech on platforms, though this can be airdodged out of. Unlike other neutral attacks, Banjo will not repeat the first hit if the attack button is held down.
			2.2%
			3.7%
			0.4% (loop), 1.6% (final hit)
Forward tilt		Beak Bayonet	9% (beak), 7% (close)	Banjo takes Kazooie out of his backpack and jabs forward with her beak. Can be angled. Deals more damage and knockback at the beak. It has decent range and a quick startup (7 frames), making it a useful spacing option. Based on the ability learned in Banjo-Tooie.
Up tilt			10%	Kazooie lifts Banjo upwards while he kicks up. It is somewhat slow on startup for a tilt (11 frames), however it has impressive knockback, being able to KO grounded opponents under 150%. The move also has a fairly large hitbox above Banjo which can make for an effective anti-air, and despite its power it has fairly low ending lag, which combined with its vertical launch angle can allow it to set up for juggles. However, it has a very short horizontal hitbox, making it difficult to hit grounded opponents who aren't directly touching the duo.
Down tilt		Beak Barge	6% (beak), 5% (close), 3% (late)	While crouching, Kazooie pokes her head out and pecks her opponent. Acts as a pseudo-crawl. It is a semi-spike with good range and its low angle makes it a good edgeguarding tool. Conversely, its power and speed are poor, being the duo's slowest tilt attack at 12 frames. Is capable of crossing up against shields.
Dash attack		Forward Roll	12% (clean), 8% (late)	Banjo rolls forward into his opponent, similarly to Donkey Kong's dash attack. Hits on frame 9 and sends the duo a respectable distance, allowing it to punish distant attacks. However, it is equally punishable on shield.
Forward smash		Breegull Bash	16%	Banjo grabs Kazooie by her legs and slams her against the ground. Moderately slow (19 frames) and has high ending lag, but very powerful, KOing at around 100% from center-stage. Its hitbox is wide enough to hit aerial opponents above and in front of the duo. Based on an unlockable move from Banjo-Tooie.
Up smash		Bill Drill	1% (hit 1), 1.5% (hits 2-7), 3.5% (hit 8), 13.6% (total)	Banjo ducks as Kazooie drills with her beak facing upward, hitting multiple times. Powerful enough to KO at around 110%. It comes out decently fast (frame 9) and can act as a decent anti-air, though it has very high ending lag and mediocre horizontal range. Based on the ability from Banjo-Tooie, although here it is an upwards attack as opposed to a ground one.
Down smash			15%	Kazooie slams her wings downwards, similar to Palutena's down smash. Both the front and back hits deal the same amount of damage and knockback. Hits on frame 13 and has the fastest interruptibility out of the duo's smash attacks, while having good power despite its speed, being able to KO at the edge at around 85%. As a result, it is the duo's most reliable smash attack for quick punishes.
Neutral aerial		Wing Whack	0.8% (hits 1-7), 4.1% (hit 8)	Kazooie rolls with her wings spread out. Functions similarly to Ivysaur and Piranha Plant's neutral aerials. Deals decent damage but has rather slow startup (frame 10) and surprisingly high landing lag for an aerial of its kind (15 frames). The looping hits can drag opponents downwards for followups, though this is difficult due to the move's aforementioned landing lag and the looping hit's unpredictable launching trajectory. Auto cancels from a full hop. Based on the ability used by solo Kazooie in Banjo-Tooie.
Forward aerial			15% (clean), 12% (late)	Banjo throws a delayed overhead with his fist, similar to Dr. Mario's forward aerial. It's tied with down aerial as the duo's slowest aerial attack with 15 frames of start-up and 11 frames of landing lag. However, it has a slightly disjointed hitbox, autocancels in a short hop, and is very powerful, being able to KO Mario at 115% from the edge of Battlefield. It can be followed up from neutral attack, up throw or down throw.
Back aerial		Air Rat-a-Tat Rap	1.6% (hits 1 and 2), 4.8% (hit 3)	Kazooie pecks behind the pair 3 times. The first hit comes out on frame 8. Has good overall range and startup, making it a reliable aerial for edgeguarding. The first two hits use the autolink angle; however, it has extremely high landing lag (18 frames), making combos from the first two hits read-dependent. Auto cancels from a short and full hop.
Up aerial			1.6% (hit 1), 5.8% (hit 2)	Kazooie claps her wings upwards, functioning similarly to Sonic's up air. Hits twice, with the first hit leading to the second. Has a wide hitbox with good range, with the first hit being able to hit grounded opponents if performed while the duo are falling. Additionally, it is very fast in general, as the first hit begins at frame 7, while also being interruptible extremely early; this allows the duo to perform up to four up aerials while using their jumps, similar to Meta Knight's up aerial strings. Easily juggles into itself at low percents, and can even lead into other aerials such as forward air. However, it has very low hitstun due to its low damage, making the move easily escapable. Additionally, the first hit may occasionally launch opponents away from the second hit, and the move is extremely weak, having almost no KO potential even at high percents.
Down aerial		Beak Buster	10% (dive), 2% (landing)	A stall-then-fall where Kazooie dives downward with her beak. Meteor smashes at the start of the move, with the later hitboxes dealing horizontal knockback. The move has a very weak landing hit that has little use apart from granting minimal protection. The move lasts for an extremely long time, usually making offstage use an inevitable self-destruct, though it is possible to recover if it is used from high enough. It is mostly useful for returning to stage quickly, as the non-meteor smashing hitbox is unable to KO past realistic percents. However, the meteor smashing hitbox can be used for followups on grounded opponents at high percents, and can act as a powerful sacrificial KO offstage.
Grab			—	Banjo grabs the opponent.
Pummel			1.4%	Kazooie pecks the opponent's head.
Forward throw			5.4% (hit 1), 3% (throw)	Kazooie kicks the opponent forward. Very low knockback growth even at very high percents, making it mostly used for sending opponents offstage. Overall, it is the duo's least useful throw.
Back throw			11.4% (throw), 8% (collateral)	Banjo spins the opponent around three times and then throws them, similar to Mario's back throw. Nearby opponents will be knocked back by the spinning opponent. Acts as the duo's KO throw and is very powerful, KOing at around 105% at the sides of the stage.
Up throw			5.4% (hit 1), 3% (throw)	Kazooie pecks the opponent upward. One of Banjo's best throws in terms of combo versatility, allowing for more consistent followups when down throw would otherwise be ineffective, most notably at very low percents. Can combo into aerials.
Down throw			5.6%	Banjo slams the opponent down into the ground, burying them. Works like other burying throws such as R.O.B.'s and King K. Rool's: it is ineffective and easily escapable at very low percents, but grants a read followup based on the opponent's reaction at mid percents, and guaranteed followups at extremely high percents. Its follow-up ability, however, is somewhat limited if the opponent mashes well due to the low base burying time; generally forward aerial is the most reliable followup.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Banjo kicks behind, then in front of himself before getting up.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Banjo kicks around himself before getting up.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Banjo claps behind, then in front of himself. Notably one of the only attacks to use a "slap" sound effect, the other being Peach and Daisy's neutral attacks.
Edge attack Edge getups			10%	Banjo pulls himself up before performing an inwards swipe.
Neutral special		Egg Firing/Breegull Blaster	5.4%-3.8% (egg), 2.4% (Breegull Blaster, shots 1-6), 1.6% (Breegull Blaster, shots 7-12), 0.8% (Breegull Blaster, shots 13+)	For Egg Firing, Banjo gets down on all fours while Kazooie spits out an egg. These eggs will obey gravity, bounce off the ground and linger for quite some time (around the length of half of Final Destination) before breaking on their own, and become weaker as time passes. It is rather slow to fire, making the projectile mostly suited for stage control. If the special button is held, the duo will instead perform the Breegull Blaster, where Banjo takes Kazooie out of his backpack and uses her in a manner similar to a Super Scope. In this mode, pressing either attack button will cause Kazooie to quickly fire smaller, weaker straight-flying eggs that travel a third of Final Destination; subsequent eggs gradually travel shorter distances and deal less damage. These smaller eggs cause minimal flinching at long range and weak vertical knockback up close. Banjo can move and triple jump freely while in this mode, and can turn around (the latter is not possible while firing). Crouching or shielding will put Kazooie away. Due to the mechanics of this move, Egg Firing can only be done repeatedly if the player button mashes, since holding the button transitions into the Breegull Blaster.
Side special		Wonderwing	22% (clean), 16% (late)	Kazooie covers Banjo with her wings while they charge forward. It is only usable up to 5 times per stock, denoted by the amount of Golden Feathers above their heads; each successful use consumes 1 Golden Feather, and interrupting the move before the hitbox begins will not use up a feather. To compensate, it has a large amount of strengths: the move grants full invincibility from the start of the dash (frame 18) to the end, including immunity to Final Smashes, deals a high amount of damage and knockback (including the weaker late hit), can KO at the edge at 60%, and works very well as a horizontal recovery option, as it does not cause helplessness and travels an excellent amount of horizontal distance. However, the duo can be grabbed during the dash, and its high startup and ending lag makes it punishable if it misses or is shielded. If they attempt to use it without any feathers remaining, they simply stumble over; an aerial use will cause them to fumble in midair, and using it close to the ground will cause Banjo to land face first in his floored animation.
Up special		Shock Spring Jump	3% (Pad)	Spawns a Shock Spring Pad underneath the duo, launching them upward. The longer the special button is held, the more height they gain. Slows the duo's descent upon starting up if used in the air. Mid-air jumps and airdodges are still usable as the duo aren't put into a helpless state. The pad itself acts as a projectile after its use, like Sonic's Spring Jump, which can gimp recoveries; unlike that move however, the Shock Spring Pad cannot be used again by opponents or the duo.
Down special		Rear Egg	9.22%	Banjo bends over, and Kazooie appears out of Banjo's backpack, firing a Grenade Egg from her rear behind the duo. The Grenade Egg has a fixed timer of around two seconds, and has a floaty, slightly unpredictable bouncing trajectory which varies based on where the egg lands when it hits the ground. Only one Grenade Egg can be fired at a time; if the move is used while an egg is already active, Kazooie will pop her head out from Banjo's backpack and shake her head profusely. Can be picked up, thrown and dropped like an item, similar to Hand Grenade. Grenade Eggs do very little knockback, although their short fuses allow for creative item play. Using the move in midair will stall the duo slightly and makes it easy to catch an aerial egg, and can be used to stall in midair much like Snake and his C4.
Final Smash		The Mighty Jinjonator	10% (initial hit), 54.3% (total)	The duo summons the Jinjonator statue in front of them, dealing damage to anyone it hits. A cutscene then shows the Jinjonator bursting from the statue while Banjo and Kazooie watch in awe, before the opponent is tackled multiple times by the Jinjonator, followed by a final tackle that is accompanied by multiple Jinjos. Notably, it can only hit one opponent, much like Dede-Rush.

On-screen appearance

• Hops out of Jiggy silhouette, and then takes a bow. The silhouette is a reference to the cutout wipe as the player moves from one area to another in the N64 games.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Banjo stretches and Kazooie appears out of his backpack, yawning. Based on an idle animation from Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts.
• Side taunt: Kazooie pops out of Banjo's backpack and look at each other, then Banjo strikes a thumbs up while Kazooie happily opens her wings.
• Down taunt: Banjo bows twice, saying his iconic "Guh-huh!" each time. Based on the animation Banjo performs upon opening a Note Door or collecting all ten Jiggies in a world in Banjo-Kazooie.

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  Banjo & Kazooie's up taunt.

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  Banjo & Kazooie's side taunt.

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  Banjo & Kazooie's down taunt.

Idle poses

• Kazooie pops out of Banjo's backpack, looks around, then retreats back inside.
• Kazooie pecks Banjo on the head twice. A reference to their idle animation from Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie.

• 

  Banjo & Kazooie's first idle pose

• 

  Banjo & Kazooie's second idle pose

Victory poses

• Left: Banjo throws a Jiggy in the air, catches it, jumps, and poses. Afterwards, they thumbs-up while Banjo performs his trademark laugh, similar to the beginning of Banjo-Kazooie's intro movie.
• Up: Banjo marches in place before bowing twice, ending with Kazooie poking out of his backpack. The animation is reminiscent of when the duo unlock a Note Door or collect all ten Jiggies within a world in Banjo-Kazooie, which is also the basis for their down taunt.
• Right: Both dance around while playing their respective instruments, and then end in a pose referencing the ending of Banjo-Kazooie's intro movie. The pose is also similar to the one they assume in their reveal trailer.

A remix of the jingle that plays when Banjo collects a Jiggy in Banjo-Kazooie.

• 
• 
• 

Classic Mode: Perfect Partners

Banjo & Kazooie's congratulations screen.

Banjo & Kazooie's Classic Mode comprises of opponents featured as a duo, akin to themselves being partners. The music and stage combinations reference the various worlds from the first Banjo-Kazooie game.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Duck Hunt	Spiral Mountain	Main Theme - Banjo-Kazooie	References Banjo-Kazooie's opening on Spiral Mountain. The appearance and specific color choice of Duck Hunt refers to their resemblance to Banjo & Kazooie themselves.
2	Rosalina & Luma	Tortimer Island	Treasure Trove Cove	References Treasure Trove Cove.
3	Ice Climbers	Summit	Freezeezy Peak	References Freezeezy Peak.
4	Link and Zelda	Mushroomy Kingdom	Gobi's Valley	References Gobi's Valley.
5	Fox and Falco	Luigi's Mansion	Mad Monster Mansion	References Mad Monster Mansion.
6	Diddy Kong and Donkey Kong	Jungle Japes	Donkey Kong Country Returns	References Rare.
Bonus Stage
Final	Master Hand and Crazy Hand	Final Destination	Master Hand / Crazy Hand	May reference Motzand, a disembodied hand who appears in Mad Monster Mansion.

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Banjo & Kazooie has Spiral Mountain accompany the credits.

Role in World of Light

The message that shows Banjo & Kazooie's availability in World of Light

Due to their status as downloadable content, Banjo & Kazooie do not have a legitimate role in World of Light. Instead, they are unlocked for use in the mode after freeing 10 fighters from Galeem's control. If loading an existing save file that meets this condition prior to downloading Banjo & Kazooie, they are immediately unlocked.

Fighter Battle

No.	Image	Name	Type	Power	Stage	Music
73		Banjo & Kazooie	There is no fighter battle for Banjo & Kazooie, this fighter is obtained by awaking 10 fighters after they are downloaded.

Spirits

Banjo & Kazooie's Fighter Spirit can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 coins, but only after Banjo & Kazooie have been downloaded. Unlocking Banjo & Kazooie in World of Light allows the player to preview the first spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a Fighter Spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic.

• Banjo&Kazooie.png

  1,337. Banjo & Kazooie

In Spirit Battles

As a minion

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
1,338		Tooty	Banjo-Kazooie Series	•Diddy Kong •Banjo & Kazooie		3,500	Spiral Mountain	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win •The enemy shields often •Magic attacks aren't as effective against the enemy	Main Theme - Banjo-Kazooie	Banjo & Kazooie

Alternate costumes

Gallery

• 

  Banjo & Kazooie's splash art.

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  Celebratory pose at the end of their character trailer.

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  Kazooie sprinting with Banjo on Yoshi's Island.

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  An alternate costume of Banjo & Kazooie jumping on Summit.

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  Kazooie shooting eggs while Banjo is ducking on Garden of Hope.

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  Banjo using Kazooie to attack Falco on Great Bay.

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  Banjo & Kazooie, King K. Rool, Mario and Duck Hunt on Spiral Mountain.

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  Banjo & Kazooie about to be grabbed by Villager.

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  Banjo & Kazooie performing their side taunt.

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  Banjo & Kazooie running on the track of Big Blue.

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  Popping Villager's balloons.

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  Ducking with Duck Hunt sniffing the ground.

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  Shooting an egg with Mumbo Jumbo in the background.

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  An alternate costume of Banjo which resembles Boggy the polar bear.

Trivia

• Banjo & Kazooie are referred within the game files with the codename "buddy", likely due to the fact that the duo are almost always seen paired with each other during all their appearances.
• Their reveal trailer is almost exactly like King K. Rool's trailer, where King Dedede uses a costume to fake out the Kongs, only to be attacked by the real King K. Rool. In this case, while King K. Rool was asleep at the Kong residence, Duck Hunt used a costume to fake them out, only for them to get attacked by the real Banjo & Kazooie.
  • Duck Hunt dressing up as Banjo and Kazooie may reference the perceived similarities between them, as they are both pairs consisting of a mammal and a bird. This is also referenced through their Classic Mode route.
  • Their reveal trailer also references the ending of their original game; the duo summon the Jinjonator to send King K. Rool crashing into the ground to be buried by a large boulder, the same fate met by Gruntilda.
  • The opening part is nearly identical, with the only difference being the addition of the Kongs fighting King K. Rool to the hand-drawn section.
  • This could also reference the fact that Rare Ltd. effectively contributed the designs of Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, and King K. Rool used in Super Smash Bros.
• Their introduction tagline is a reference to Rare, the company from which their video game series originated. Rare also rebooted the Donkey Kong series with Donkey Kong Country, which the setting of their reveal trailer is based on.
  • Despite this, only Microsoft is credited for their inclusion in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's copyright information under "Original Characters", as Rare is now fully owned by Microsoft. This is despite the fact that Atlus is credited separately from Sega (in spite of Atlus similarly being under Sega's ownership). While PlatinumGames are not credited for Bayonetta, the reason for this is that Bayonetta is owned directly by Sega rather than PlatinumGames.
• Banjo & Kazooie's reveal trailer holds several references to their home series:
  • The segment where they team up with Diddy Kong to fight Donkey Kong references the battle against Conga the Ape in the first level of Banjo-Kazooie. Donkey Kong is shown throwing an orange, referencing Conga's method of attack, while Diddy Kong represents Chimpy, a monkey who helps the duo defeat him.
    • Coincidentally, Donkey Kong had the ability to throw explosive oranges in Donkey Kong 64.
  • In another segment, Banjo is shown holding a Beehive and running away from bees, as a reference to the beehives in Banjo-Kazooie, which give the duo Honeycombs that restore their health when destroyed, and sometimes have bees flying around that attack the duo if the beehive is destroyed.
  • After Banjo shows off his Final Smash in the trailer, King K. Rool ends up crashing into the ground, leaving a hole where he landed, then being buried under a boulder. This is a reference to the ending of Banjo-Kazooie, where, after being defeated by The Mighty Jinjonator, Gruntilda suffers that exact fate.
  • At the end, Banjo is seen slowly walking up to Food next to an asleep giant Ivysaur, then consuming it and running away. This is a reference to an event in Banjo-Tooie, where in Mayahem Temple, they have to steal a Jiggy from the character Ssslumber by slowly walking up to it, in order to prevent him from waking up and protecting it.
• The picture revealing Banjo's pink alternate costume is a subtle nod to Freezeezy Peak; the most noticeable part is the Super Launch Star, which references the star on top the Christmas tree in the level.
• Banjo & Kazooie are the second third-party characters who fight as a team, the first being Joker and his Persona, Arsene. This was evidenced by the The Ultimate Partnership online tourney.
• Not counting ports and cameos, this marks the first physical appearance of Banjo & Kazooie in almost a decade, since the Xbox 360 version of Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing, released in 2010.
  • Their inclusion in Ultimate marks their first physical appearance on a Nintendo console since Banjo-Pilot, released for the Game Boy Advance in 2005.
• Banjo & Kazooie have the unique distinction of being the only third-party character in the game to have previously been a second-party Nintendo character, as well as the only third-party character to be created by the same company as a first-party character (Diddy Kong and King K. Rool). Banjo, in fact, debuted within the Donkey Kong franchise in Diddy Kong Racing; Kazooie was not playable, but she was mentioned in the instruction manual.
• Banjo & Kazooie are the first playable characters to originate from a non-Japanese franchise. While Diddy Kong, King K. Rool, and Dark Samus were also created by non-Japanese studios, they were done so for series that were first developed by Japanese developers.
  • They are also the first playable characters to be owned by a concurrent hardware competitor of Nintendo.
• Their stock icon is similar to their pose on the cover art of Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts.
  • Their up taunt is also based on times where Banjo stretches in the same game.
• Uniquely, when Banjo & Kazooie were listed on the official website, their page was initially grayed out and inaccessible, likely due to still being in development. This also occurred with Terry upon his announcement.
• Banjo's backpack, unlike in their home series, has a second flap at the bottom that opens up when Kazooie fires Grenade Eggs and performs the Talon Trot. According to original character designer Steve Mayles, he originally wanted to achieve this in the original game, but due to technical limitations on the N64, he was unable to add the extra joint for the backpack.
  • Steve Mayles also stated in an interview that he feels Banjo's proportions in the Ultimate model are closer to his original concept art from the unreleased SNES game, Project Dream.
• Banjo & Kazooie are the third third-party characters who do not speak with dialogue in Ultimate despite speaking in their home series, the first two being Mega Man and Pac-Man. Unlike those two, Banjo & Kazooie still use grunts, akin to their first two games.
• Banjo & Kazooie are currently the only downloadable fighters in the game to not have a game on the Nintendo Switch, although at the time of his release, Joker fit this criteria as well, as he would not appear in another Switch title until the release of Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers.
• Banjo & Kazooie are the first Fighters Pass DLC fighters to have no Mii Costumes directly related to their series.
• So far, Banjo & Kazooie are the first downloadable fighter that have more than one midair jump, being able to jump two times in the air.
• While most other characters have the announcer say "(character) wins!" at the victory screen, Banjo & Kazooie have the announcer say "Banjo & Kazooie win!". The "(character) win!" audio clip is usually reserved for the Japanese version, it is used with Banjo & Kazooie because of their two-in-one nature. Ice Climbers and Rosalina & Luma also share this distinction.
• When KOed by reaching 0 HP in Stamina Mode, Banjo uses his heavy knockback scream rather than his standard KO scream. This trait is shared with Mario, Dr. Mario and Hero.
• As well as Toon Link, Banjo & Kazooie is the only other character to travel to Tortimer Island in Classic Mode.
• Unlike Duck Hunt, Kazooie is not a part of Banjo's hurtbox; rather, she is treated as a disjointed hitbox (with the exception of Talon Trot and their up tilt). This means attacks that land on Kazooie will have no effect on Banjo. [1] The in-game tips for Banjo make note of this aspect.
• Banjo & Kazooie are the only DLC Fighter so far without an alternate costume that gives them a different model, as Piranha Plant has costumes where its pot is replaced with a Warp Pipe, Joker can change into his school uniform, and Hero alternates between four Dragon Quest protagonists.
• When Banjo successfully parries an attack, he does the same pose as the Extra Life statues from Banjo-Kazooie.
• Banjo & Kazooie are the only fighter to vocalize while dashing.
• Banjo & Kazooie are one of three characters who do not use their dashing animation on the World of Light map, the others being Meta Knight and Inkling.
• During the victory screen where Banjo & Kazooie play their instruments, they can still be heard without their victory theme.