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If there's any Rare game that can
claim to have rivalled the original DKC in terms of
all-out media attention, it's Banjo-Kazooie. Kept
as tightly wrapped in secrecy as all Rare games for a
large part of its development life, the game triggered
heated debates across the Internet and worldwide press
from the moment that the first mention of 'Project: Dream'
filtered through to the outside world. The true title of
what was to become another flagship product for Nintendo
was announced barely a week before 1997's E3 show,
prompting another wild rush of opinion before the public
finally got their first glimpse of the game itself.
The unusual title has been the
subject of much argument in itself, but the explanation
behind it is simple: the decision to name the game after
its main characters was made early on, so Dream had
actually been known as Banjo and, later, Banjo
Kazoo for some time when the time of the trademark
check finally came around and problems began to arise. A
minor change was needed that wouldn't cause too much
disruption to existing graphics and publicity material, so
Kazoo became Kazooie and the name hyphenated as a further
precaution.
One of the most important features in
lifting Banjo-Kazooie above allegations of
straightforward cloning is the teamwork element that needs
to exist between the two lead characters if they are to
make any serious headway in their adventures. Banjo
himself (a Honey Bear out to rescue his kidnapped sister)
is the obvious choice for any matters of brute strength,
and he also finds himself doing most of the footwork with
Kazooie (a raucous Red Crested Breegull) comfortably holed
up in his backpack. On the other hand, however, Kazooie's
long, energetic strides can easily carry the duo across
terrain that Banjo might not otherwise be able to manage,
and of course her raw flying abilities have plenty of
potential if enough feathers can be collected to provide
her young wings with the power to keep both herself and
her partner aloft. In addition to this outside assistance, the ursine and avian talents at hand complement one another perfectly, providing Banjo with at least a sporting chance in his quest to find and rescue his sister from Gruntilda the hag and her sinister beauty-draining machine - a quest in which Kazooie seems only too happy to lend a wing. Together they'll search the mysterious depths of Witch Mountain for golden jigsaw pieces, which in turn will open the pathways to higher and higher levels. And only by thoroughly exploring every last nook and cranny can the gallant duo hope to reach the confrontation at their journey's end... The game's launch is currently set for June-July '98. We bet you can hardly bear the wait, feather or not you're a fan of the genre - beakause it's great! (Sorry.)
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