An insider has claimed that a Banjo-Kazooie game is currently an "active project" for Xbox, although it's likely to be some time away as the project was reportedly only greenlit in early 2022.

The past decade and a half has been a rough time for Banjo-Kazooie fans, as the bear-and-bird duo haven't appeared in their own game since 2008's Nuts & Bolts. Fans have held out hope that the pair would finally make a return at some point, and it seems that the Jiggies are finally starting to fall in place for a grand comeback.

Earlier this month, Xbox head Phil Spencer noted that he knew how much Banjo-Kazooie fans wanted a new game in the series, hinting that it could be on the cards at some point in the future. Well, that comeback might actually already be in the works, at least according to gaming insider NateDrake.

As pointed out by Twitter user IdleSloth84_, ResetEra user and gaming insider NateDrake recently claimed in a thread that a new Banjo-Kazooie game is currently in the works at Xbox and is an "active project" that was greenlit in early 2022. Although rumours of a new Banjo entry have been swirling for years now, it's worth noting that NateDrake did actually claim a new project was in development in 2022, which lines up with his statement about when it was greenlit.

"It's still an active project, but it didn't get the green light until early last year. There is a lot to do and development can change a lot (abandoned ideas, internal reboots, etc.)"

Beyond suggesting that a new game exists, NateDrake didn't give too many details about it, only saying that there's a lot left to do for the project and that development plans can change. With that in mind, it seems like we won't be seeing or hearing about the rumoured Banjo game for quite some time, which makes Spencer's message about "hearing" fans make a little more sense.

One thing does seem certain, though - it's very unlikely that Rare is working on the project. Nothing has been said about a potential developer, but Rare is busy with Everwild and Sea of Thieves as it is, let alone adding a new Banjo to the pile. Some fans have suggested that Toys for Bob (who worked on Crash Bandicoot 4 and is now owned by Microsoft) would be a good fit for a Banjo game, but we'll have to wait and see if this rumour pans out first.

Posted: Jan 02, 2024 1:28 pm
Related Forum: Xbox Forum

Source: https://www.thegamer.com/new-banjo-kazooie-reportedly-active-project-in-development-microsoft-xbox/