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There have been the highs (Conker’s Bad Fur Day) and the lows (Perfect Dark Zero) for developer Rare. Going from what was essentially a second-party position to a Microsoft-owned developer, the company has gone through some dramatic changes, and yet with the announcement of a Viva Pinata sequel and a third game in the Banjo series, we find ourselves in familiar but somehow new territory.

1UP recently spoke with Rare’s Gregg Mayles about how Rare has always set itself apart from the rest of the game development world, where the inspiration for Banjo’s new game mechanic came from, and how things have changed between being Microsoft owned and developing for a single system rather than dragging games through several generations. (See: Perfect Dark and Kameo)

So for Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts, did the idea of making your own vehicles, which is a central game mechanic, evolve from coming up with new things to do with Banjo? Or was that a separate idea that made you think, “Hey, this works for Banjo“?

It came from a separate idea. It came from a very simple idea of wanting to combine pieces with different abilities. The beauty of the concept was [that] the player could combine those pieces in any order they wanted to, and at the end of it, whatever they created, you’d put into the game. It would just work. The player wouldn’t need to calculate very complicated processes; the software would do that. And no matter what you built, the size, the weight, the shape, you’d be able to put it in the game, and it would just work. But until Xbox 360, we’d never had a piece of hardware that’s been capable of doing that. So that’s where the idea in its infancy came from. It’s been around for a while, and at the same time, we were considering doing a new Banjo game but didn’t want to just do what we’d done previously.

The platform-game genre…has probably not had a lot of games in it recently. Obviously, Super Mario Galaxy has come out and it’s very nice, but it’s quite traditional in its approach, and apart from that, there probably aren’t too many major releases in that genre. So we thought, ‘If we’re going to reenter that genre, we need to do something that’s going to make people look twice at it,’ rather than just dismissing it as, ‘It’s Rare, there’s going to be millions of things to collect, and everything’ll have googly eyes.’ We had to do something different, so we wanted to take a different approach to platform games.

We looked at how traditional games have approached that — the designers create the abilities, we give them to the player, and the player can only use the abilities as we’ve defined. So we thought, “Can we approach that from a different direction, where the players actually get to define their own abilities so they can choose how they want to complete whatever task they’ve been set?” And then, suddenly, we had this concept sitting here, this idea of approaching platform games from a different direction, and then we brought the two together. The result is the new Banjo game.

For the full interview, head over to 1UP.

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We’re over four months into the year, but Shane Kim still believes that 2008 will be another landmark year for Xbox 360. Speaking with GI.biz at yesterday’s Microsoft event, the head of Microsoft Game Studios pointed to the exclusives we’ll be seeing this year as proof of his claim.

“What we’re really trying to communicate is that this is going to be another landmark year for Xbox 360,” Kim said.

“Mainly because we are really focused on the strategy of tremendous exclusive content. Titles like Gears of War 2, Fable 2, Banjo, et cetera. as well as the continuing leadership we have in the online space with Xbox Live.”

He claimed the battle between Xbox 360 and PS3 in Europe was a “horse race no matter what,” but also said, “I understand that Sony has declared leadership already. We’ll let the data speak for itself.”

Kim admits that Europe has always been a dominant market for Sony, and claims that with that in mind, any progress Microsoft has made is great progress. Japan, however, has few bright spots for the 360.

“Look, we’ve acknowledged for a long time that we probably wouldn’t win in Japan and that it was going to continue to be a tough market for us.

“We took some different steps in this generation - our partnership with Sakaguchi-san produced two very well-received and critically reviewed titles in Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey. Unfortunately, it remains a difficult market for us.”

With that in mind, Microsoft isn’t about to give up on that market. Kim knows it’s critical and that there’s nowhere to go but up.

“I’m not going to go out and say our hope is to win in Japan because that’s not realistic. Do I think we have room for progress and improvement? I absolutely do.

“So, no, the battle is not over.”

The folks over at Videogaming247 came across this lovely little link to Rare’s site that gives you the full story on the new Banjo-Kazooie 3: Nuts & Bolts game, that has taken Gamer’s Day by storm. Usually, storylines for games make one pretty drowsy, therefore they are best suited for bedtime reading. Not this one though, for once I found this backstory a pretty interesting read. You be the judge though.

Build a better bear car - It’s Honey Bear and Breegull time again! Join them as they take to the sky, sea and land to save Spiral Mountain…It’s been a long time coming, but Banjo and Kazooie are back in action - and so, to their exasperation, is dedicated arch-foe Gruntilda. The stakes have been raised, and Grunty’s out to redevelop Spiral Mountain into tower blocks and shopping malls. Banjo and Kazooie’s future is on the line!

Tired of the feuding between bear, bird and witch, a new player has stepped in: the mysterious Lord of Games (LOG), said to have been involved in creating every videogame ever released. He whisks the rivals away to his creative HQ in Showdown Town, and into an elaborate series of challenges held within his hand-made worlds. The winner gets the ownership deeds to Spiral Mountain, the loser an eternity of toil in LOG’s videogame factory. The game is on!

However, things are a bit different this time around. The core gameplay mechanic - and the method by which worlds are traversed, challenges tackled and progress made - is the creation and customisation of vehicles, using components found, bought and won throughout Showdown Town. From wheels and weapons to springs and wings, all of which can be combined in any number and style, there’s a staggering level of experimentation and personalisation for those willing to dabble. If you can imagine it, you can probably build it. But any adventurer with less confidence, experience or time on their hands can still jump in and take on the game with a pre-built range of vehicles. The Lord of Games might be heavy-handed, but he’s big on equal opportunities.

However, it’s not all change in Banjo-Kazooie country, as Banjo will still compete for Jiggies to unlock new destinations and hoard the musical notes that serve as legal tender. Familiar figures on hand to help include everyone’s favourite shaman down at Mumbo’s Motors and newly appointed tourist information officer Bottles; new faces on the block include porcine police chief Pikelet and overly competitive braggart Trophy Thomas. Outside Showdown Town you might just meet them all again, persuaded by LOG to turn thespian and act out hilarious themed roles in different worlds. You’ll also have to take on Grunty’s shiny army of mechanical Gruntbots, riding roughshod over Banjo’s efforts to save the day.

For the first time in the Banjo universe there’s also the opportunity to go online with players across your own world. Combine this with the riveting new solo adventure, and it looks like 2008 really will be the Year of the Bear. You might want to book a seat. When the comedy rattles and clanks die down, the garage door rolls up and Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts finally purrs into view, you’ll be glad you did.

Via: Videogaming247

Following this morning’s news of all the goodies featured in Banjo-Kazooie 3: Nuts & Bolts, we now have a trailer hot off the Gamer’s Day showroom floor in all of its HD glory.

The game will feature several unique features aside from traditional platforming elements. Players will have the ability to create vehicles with parts they discover around the games many levels. Some of the vehicles created within the game will include a helicopter, a 4 wheeled kart, and a hovercraft. Each vehicle is made up of unique combinations that will really show off some of the new gameplay elements Rare has incorporated into this title. There will be a total of 1,600 parts to be found, including weapons that can be attached to vehicles. This may sound a bit heavy on the vehicle side of things, but rest assured that there is a heavy emphasis on platforming.

The hub world is known as Showdown Town and will feature 6 levels. Showdown Town is the largest world that Rare has ever created and will feature side-missions and challenges. Every level will have its own unique introduction and feature a lot of humor. The Nutty Acres level begins with a credits spoof of 1980’s soap opera Dallas.

Want more lovely details for the new Viva Pinata game Trouble in Paradise that Chris was talking about yesterday? Look no further folks because here they are:

• There will be over 100 different Piñatas in the sequel, including a chicken called ‘Cluck Norriss’, a Yeti (hey, that’s my dog’s name!), gorillas and moose that during Christmas time changes into a reindeer
• You can quickly go from one landscape to the next such as snowy winter wonderlands to deserts to catch these animals and share them with the whole wide world
• There is a special in-game card that will give you infinite amounts of money and will unlock every item in the game
• The game starts in a green control area where you can jump straight into the action without a tutorial so that you do not have to do all the weeding and fertilizing if you do not want to
• All help missions are optional
• Jump straight into the sandbox and play with your garden as you see fit
• You will start with more upgrade tools and money than you did in the first game, that way all you have to do is start enticing Piñatas into your garden and send them off to special parties and birthdays
• Cooperative play will feature the game and you can tend your gardens with pals and while this is only for direct play with the Xbox 360 at this point, Rare is working around the clock to implement this feature on XBL.
• In co-op mode, only the main player will have full control over the game and will not be able to build new houses or other constructions, but can help with tending the garden thus gaining a form of magic for every uselful act than can be used to turn objects in the garden into different things

Sounds like loads of fun. More details, like with Fable 2 and Banjo-Kazooie 3 will be released later this afternoon so check back with us as more detail emerge.

Via: Videogaming247

Loads of new Banjo-Kazooie 3 information has surfaced this morning including the subtitle for the game which is Nuts & Bolts. While the game will not be shown to mainstream gaming press until later this afternoon, NeoGaf and the Danish gaming site Gamereactor have gotten at look at the highly anticipated Xbox 360 tile coming this November.

Here are some lovely details from NeoGaf describing the vehicle creation editor:

• Building vehicles is basically like playing with LEGO. You can always jump in and out of the vehicle editor and come right back to the game with the new design.
• Parts are easily placed and moved around. You don’t have to worry about connecting the motor with the wheels for example. Just place everything so they stick together and don’t get in the way.
• Vehicle designs can play a large role in missions. We saw one where you had to collect coconuts from a field and got a small truck that could suck them up. Unfortunately you couldn’t fit all the coconuts in the truck and had to back and deliver them in a large barrel. We were then shown how you could create a helicopter with a hook, that could pick up this large barrel, fly to the coconut field and fly low to scoop the coconuts in the barrel.
• Physics are awesome in this game and everywhere! With one design I placed the foot-in-a-box weapon behind a propella, and when I tried to use it, the foot/boot couldn’t get past the propella… well, until I used it enough times to actually kick the propella off the vehicle!
• Pixel art… imagine the possibilities (Rare already had an example of this, paying homage to a certain plumber)
• Multiplayer is great fun with the ability to either chose from pre-fabricated or own vehicle designs. It still needs some polish here and there, but showed great promise.

While attending a at recent press day at Rare, Gamereactor got the goods on a few of the multiplayer aspects of Nuts & Bolts and were given a glimpse of one of the six gaming worlds called ‘Nutty Acres’. Gamereactor, like NeoGaf, were also privy to the vehicle design and I have posted their take on it as well.

Here is a a bit from that piece translated by the wonderful folks over at Videogaming247:

“The best part of the day by a mile was when Rare had arranged some duels between the journalists. Although Salvatore Fileccia [head programmer] wasn’t willing to divulge too much about the game’s online capabilities, we got the opportunity to engage in four different duels over the local network.

The first was a kind of ‘King of the Hill’ where we had to keep inside a circle that constantly moved. Two others were races, [the last being] some sumo-wrestling, where we had to push each other out of a ring. After we first had played the games only using the pre-made vehicles, we then were given the opportunity to create our machines, our own ultimate weapons, in an attempt to win the levels.

When Fileccia jumps into to the first of six gaming worlds, namely Nutty Acres, we see the game open up. The palm island is designed after an idea to make the world look artificial. The grass is sewn together with a huge needle and a huge glass case surrounds the island.

Regarding vehicle design, Gamereactor stated:

“Fileccia wanted to show us how important [vehicle design] was for the game and its many missions. On the top of the island he had a mission whereby he had to collect 15 coconuts from a nearby orchard before the time ran out.

He was given a pre-made car to help him, that has the ability to suck up the coconuts. However, as there isn’t enough space to suck them all up he has to go backwards and forwards to unload. Until in the end, he jumped out of the car and instead leapt into a helicopter [that he had made earlier] which can grab onto a large barrel with a hook enabling him to scoop all the coconuts in and began collecting nuts like it was Christmas.”

When more is shown to the press today in San Fransisco sometime later this afternoon, we will be sure an update you.

Thanks to Videogaming247 for the translation from Gamereactor.

Links: Gamereactor, NeoGaf

In addition to all of the gorgeous screenshots from Rare’s two new games, Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise and Banjo-Kazooie 3, several other games have been discovered, although the details are shaky at best. The first and only simple one to wrap your head around is Scene It? 2. No real need for an explanation there, although I’d hope that if this is simply an expansion pack to the original that there will be some sort of DLC alternative where you can simply download this new content. But don’t count on it.

The other two games are called Ninja Blade and Lips. Your guess is as good as mine, but here goes my prediction: Ninja Blade will be something related to that rumored Xbox 360 Wiimote-rip off, which will work where you swing the 360mote like a sword. Lips will have something to do with the Xbox Live Vision cam where it tracks your lips.

Okay, that second guess is pretty stupid, but what the hell else could something called Lips be?

You didn’t think those first screens of Banjo-Kazooie 3 were the only thing uncovered by some intrepid NeoGAF members, did you? Good, because next up we’ve got a sequel to one of my personal favorite Xbox 360 games, Viva Pinata. Subtitled Trouble in Paradise, it looks like you’ll be tending to more gardens with a similar interface to the original game.

The one thing I pulled from these screenshots was that there is both a shovel and a watering can that seem to be working simultaneously. Could that mean we’ll be seeing some sort of co-op mode? We should be finding out the official word this week. In the meantime, we’ll keep our eyes peeled for more screenshots.

Microsoft will be holding a Gamers’ Day event this week where a number of games will be unveiled, but thanks to a PR screw up, the internet is on fire this morning with, among other things, the first screenshots of Banjo-Kazooie 3.

You can click on the thumbnails below to get a look at them, or head to NeoGAF, whose members you can thank for tracking down all of these wonderful things.

It’s important to note, though, that even while the screenshots might make Banjo 3 appear to be a racing game, Rare has clarified that the game is most certainly not a racing game.

We haven’t revealed the gameplay mechanic yet,” George Kelion, Rare community manager, told Eurogamer. “It’s not a racing game, and people are honestly better off waiting until tomorrow when we are going to be talking about it extensively before drawing their own conclusions.

“The honest truth is that people don’t know the half of it yet. The game is not just a graphical showcase.”

It certainly could be; the game looks absolutely gorgeous. I’m excited to hear exactly what Rare’s got in store, but these are good enough for now.

Apparently Microsoft will give Banjo-Kazooie 3 fans what they have been wanting come Gamer’s Day. Microsoft UK confirmed to Videogaming247 this morning that assets will be released on Tuesday, May 13 at 8am PST - which is noon for those of us close to the Eastern Seaboard, stuck in the middle of the Appalachian Mountains, or fighting off mosquitoes in the Mississippi Delta.

Not only will Banjo-Kazooie 3 (working title) assets be shown, but a plethora of other Xbox 360 related goodies will be released as well, so please be sure and look us up four days from now.

Thanks: Videogaming247

Doubtful that Banjo-Kazooie 3 (or Banjo Threeie, whatever it might be called) will make it out in time for this year, Rare would like you to know that it’s true – or at least that’s currently the plan. Community manager George Kelion responded to a NeoGAF thread talking about the new Banjo game and stated, “The game is scheduled for a Holidays 2008 release - barring the coming of the four horsemen of the apocalypse, you should be playing Banjo 3 before the end of the year (providing you buy the game, that is).”

That’s definitely good news for longtime fans of the series like me. I’ve been waiting for a new Banjo game for years, thinking that it would never come. Now, let’s just hope it turns out a little better than Perfect Dark Zero and Kameo did.

Spotted by Eurogamer

Rare has just recently put up a new website for their upcoming installment in the long-dormant Banjo-Kazooie franchise. All you have to do is go to the site with a golden puzzle piece, download the Silverlight plug-in, and you’ll get to see…a spinning golden puzzle piece! Yes, it’s just as exciting as it sounds. Luckily, a mysterious website usually means we’ll actually be given something interesting within a few weeks. Who knows? Maybe we’ll see two puzzle pieces spinning at the same time. Oh, the excitement is unbearable.

Via Banjo-Kazooie.com

I’ve been such a big fan of Banjo-Kazooie and Rare over the years, that it seems that the developer could slap me with a bag of oranges and I’d still love their games. (Unless the game happens to be called Perfect Dark Zero.) It seems I’m not the only one like this out there, as a fellow lover of the Banjo series emailed Rare’s Scribes section (basically a regular mailbag feature) and asked if we can expect the game to be a platformer or a shooter, since that’s apparently a popular genre these days. He also asked if there would be any sort of multiplayer mode included.

He got quite the response, even if it is rather vague:

“Banjo won’t be a shooter (unless we sell no copies like Ghoulies and out of desperation give him a gun for the next game) but it also won’t be a traditional platformer,” teases the head of the team. “We somewhat grandly like to think that it will be a different take on the genre. Some would say a brave gamble but I’m confident it’s the right decision, and when people see it I’m sure they will say ‘although the old games are clearly brilliant, this new one is even better. So good in fact that I am going to sell all my worldly possessions and give the money to the Banjo team’.

“We aren’t in the business of crushing little boys’ dreams so your multiplayer hopes will be answered. The ‘new direction’ that Banjo is taking should offer a multiplayer experience unique to anything currently available.

“Each year, stalwart members of the Banjo team don their rose-tinted glasses and play one game of Banjo-Tooie’s multiplayer. We eat our Christmas lunch and then play all the games back to back. We still know all the answers to the quiz even after seven years, and I’m pleased to say that I successfully defended my title this year and the others will have to wait all year before they get another shot at the champion.”

I’ve really got no idea what this new direction might be. I’m glad to hear there will be multiplayer and the game will indeed be a platformer, but hopefully they’re going to make the complete opposite of Perfect Dark Zero so that we end up with a decent game.

via 1UP

As a longtime fan of Rare’s and most everything they’ve developed (except Perfect Dark Zero, but that’s neither here nor there), so Banjo Kazooie 3 is near the top of my most anticipated Xbox 360 games. If Shane Kim’s comments to MTV Multiplayer are accurate, we’ll be seeing the game before the end of the year.

When asked about Rare’s status and where they stand in regards to making E-rated and M-rated games, Kim said, “I’m super-excited about what they’re doing with ‘Banjo.’ I think ‘Banjo’ is going to be a big hit for us this holiday.” That’s not quite the same as getting an email with the headline “Banjo This November” or anything, but hopefully Kim isn’t too far off in his estimation.

The interview also hit up several other subjects, such as the cancelation of Marvel Universe Online, whether Viva Pinata DS is still in the works (“There’s still a hint”), a future for Halo outside of Peter Jackson and Halo Wars, Ken Lobb’s enthusiasm for Crackdown, Alan Wake’s 2008 release (“not necessarily”), and a whole lot more.

You read the full interview over at Multiplayer.

You might remember way back in November, there were rumors that a first party Microsoft game had been canned. We initially worried that it might be the new Banjo game, but Rare denied that was the case. Then we reported that it looked like Marvel Universe Online was actually the canceled title. Turns out we were right, as Shane Kim confirmed to MTV Multiplayer that the game is no longer in development.

“I’ll confirm,” Kim said, “Marvel and we have agreed to end development on the MMO. It was an amicable decision…. It’s just something that we felt that, for us and for them, it would be better if we ended development. Which is disappointing, because that had a lot of promise. But sometimes you have to make these decisions.”

“I don’t think it’s necessarily a case of what went wrong,” he continued. “I don’t know that that’s the right way to put it. For us we look at our priorities and all of the things we have to do. It’s a tough space. It’s a very competitive space. And it’s a space that’s changing quite a bit. …When we first entered into the development and agreement of the development of ‘Marvel Universe Online,’ we thought we would create another subscription-based MMO. And if you really look at the data there’s basically one that’s successful and everything else wouldn’t meet our level or definition of commercial success. And then you have to look [and say]: ‘Can we change the business model for that? Is that really viable given how far we are in development? And so forth. Does Marvel want to do that?’ There’s a whole bunch of factors.”

This marks the second MMO to get the boot under Kim’s watch – the first being True Fantasy Live Online, a game that many were quite excited for. However, Kim said that “if the right opportunity came along,” he wouldn’t hesitate to give it the go ahead.

After Shawn brought us a disturbing article from one very misguided Mass Effect critic, let’s look at an article that’s actually intended to be strange and funny. The popular faux news publication, The Onion, recently published an article about how researchers discovered that 50% of one man’s memories were explicitly Nintendo-related. The man, named Philip Jenkins, underwent a few tests that concluded he could recall moments in his life from video games faster and more vividly than those involving his family. The whole article is peppered with humorous “facts” about Jenkins, like how his brain is more responsive to the words “Banjo Kazooie” than the word “mother.” It’s definitely worth a look, since it’s somewhat refreshing to read an article about the ridiculous things gaming can do to people that’s not meant to be serious.

Via The Onion

Of all the rumors that I could possibly come across, this is one that I hope – maybe more than any other – comes true. Xbox Evolved is reporting that between “[t]alking with very reliable sources, and seeing evidence ourselves” it seems likely that Microsoft, Rare, MGM Studios and Activision have come to an agreement to bring the Rare-developed N64 game, GoldenEye, to Xbox Live Arcade prior to the release of Activision’s new Bond game.

They also mention that the game would feature updated graphics and multiplayer over Xbox Live – everything a GoldenEye fan could possibly hope for. In addition to GoldenEye, other classic Rare games including Perfect Dark and Banjo-Kazooie will eventually be released on Arcade.

There are a number of issues with bringing GoldenEye to Arcade, which I took a look at last year. Hopefully Xbox Evolved is right and the rights issues have been worked out – GoldenEye would definitely be a hit on Arcade.

Rare, developer of such titles like Viva Pinata and Banjo Kazooie, recently sent out a Christmas card featuring characters from said games in a touching holiday moment. Even more interesting though is the stocking hanging over the fireplace, reading “KI3.” This is obviously a tongue-in-cheek reference to the company’s “Killer Instinct” fighting game series, the last installment of which came out way back on the N64. Meaningless little joke or a hint that a sequel is already in the works? You decide.

I’m still having trouble figuring out why Banjo looks so sad in this picture though. I mean, it’s not like he’s the one who got Viva Pinata: Party Animals.

Via CVG

So we now know it’s not a new Banjo-Kazooie game that’s been cancelled, so just what is it? There’s no chance that a Halo game would be cancelled, and games like Too Human aren’t getting touched, either. 1UP has gotten word from an anonymous source that Marvel Online might be that game, saying that it has “hit serious, potentially stalling, development troubles.”

That’s not confirmation of a cancellation by any stretch, but it isn’t a resounding endorsement that the game is right around the corner, either. 1UP has done some digging to try and find out if the game has been cancelled, and while it’s not conclusive, Marvel fans will likely want to take notice.

Rare has contacted GamesIndustry.biz and let them know that, despite recent rumors, the latest sequel to fan-favorite series Banjo Kazooie’s has not been delayed. Rumor had it that a long-awaited first-party Microsoft game had been cancelled; whether or not this is true, it does not pertain to the new Banjo game, which I’m very happy to hear.

The rumor started when EGM exec editor Shane Bettenhausen said on this past week’s 1UP Yours podcast, “A big Microsoft first-party title that has been in the works for a very long time, that people are very excited for, sounds like it’s being cancelled.” He estimated that there was a 97% chance that the rumor would come true and that news of it might break this week.

I’m certainly glad to hear it isn’t Banjo that’s been cancelled; hopefully the rumor doesn’t come true at all, since nobody ever really likes to have a game they’ve been looking forward to be cancelled.