There’s no shortage of beloved 3D platforming franchises that have been dormant far longer than their fans would have liked, but few of them have seen the sort of demand for a comeback as Banjo-Kazooie. The Rare-developed series has been MIA for over a decade-and-a-half, and even though there’s been no official word on its return, from leaks claiming that a reboot is in the works to the head of Xbox acknowledging the demand for one, hopes have been high that Banjo could actually return in the not-too-distant future.
It seems, however, that that return might be farther off in the future than some may have expected. Journalist Jez Corden touched on the topic of a new Banjo game during a recent episode of the Xbox Two podcast, where he claimed that as of right now, contrary to prior claims, a new Banjo game isn’t actually being worked on.
“It’s not,” Corden said on the topic of whether a new Banjo title is in development. “I can tell you right now, categorically, there is no Banjo game as of this podcast.”
Earlier this year, prominent leaker NateTheHate claimed that a new Banjo game had been greenlit by Microsoft in early 2022, before later adding that following being greenlit, the project would go on to be “reworked from its original vision and scope”, and that it was still in early development.
Microsoft itself has, of course, yet to communicate anything related to the future of the Banjo franchise in an official capacity, but if it is true that the series indeed does not have a new instalment in the works, it’s likely that the company is going to maintain its radio silence.
