Crash Bandicoot 4 developer Toys for Bob has expressed interest in reviving the Banjo-Kazooie franchise in some way. Speaking to YouTube channel Canadian Guy Eh, studio head Paul Yan mentioned that the team would love to work on Banjo-Kazooie.
“There’s so many, and that’s one of the exciting possibilities of being independent,” said Yan when asked what IP the studio would like to work on since its independence from Activision.
“One company we’d like to work with is one we’re already working with; Team Xbox,” Yan continued. “They’ve been a great partner and they also have a very interesting roster of characters that Toys for Bob could have a lot of fun with. The honey bear is the first one that comes to mind. I think we all can agree Banjo’s been hibernating long enough, right?”
Toys for Bob announced its separation from Activision back in March. During its time with the publisher, the studio had worked on quite a few titles, including the Spyro Reignited Trilogy, Skylanders, and Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time. Shortly after achieving its independence, Toys for Bob announced that it had reached an agreement with Microsoft.
Microsoft confirmed that it would be publishing the first game by the studio back in May 2024. While details about this title haven’t yet been revealed, considering the studio’s pedigree, it will likely be a 3D platformer in the vein of classics from the Nintendo 64 era of gaming.
Toys for Bob has proven its pedigree when it comes to developing fun 3D platformers with Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time. Back in April 2024, a developer had revealed that more than 5 million copies of the game had been sold.
As for Banjo-Kazooie, composer of the original game, Grant Kirkhope, believes that we are unlikely to see a new game in the franchise any time soon. Through posts on social media, while Kirkhope said that he would love it if the franchise came back, he remains unsure about whether there is a market for that genre anymore.
“I’ve said it before … but .. I have zero hope for another Banjo game, plus all you die hard fans would instantly hate it and slag it off no matter how good it was, it never works,” wrote Kirkhope.
Xbox’s VP of games marketing Aaron Greenberg had previously also spoken about the Banjo-Kazooie franchise, mentioning that he understands how much the franchise means to its fans. The statement came after some dismissive remarks by Greenberg during an event where he said that “nobody cares” about Banjo-Kazooie anymore.
Currently, the only ways to play Banjo-Kazooie are on the Nintendo Switch thanks to its range of classic games available through witch Online, and Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S through Rare Replay, which included the classic platforming titles as part of the collection.
Banjo and Kazooie are also available as playable characters in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. The duo was released as a single character that uses moves based on both Banjo’s and Kazooie’s abilities as part of Challenger Pack 3 back in 2019.
