Rare has taken to their website to lift the lid on the many ways they’re celebrating the 20th anniversary of Banjo-Kazooie. If that doesn’t make you feel old, then I don’t know what will. Unfortunately for series fans like myself, these plans don’t extend to a new game as yet as Rare is still deeply committed to Sea of Thieves.
Fingers crossed for a Battletoads-like announcement next year, perhaps?
I digress, Rare has managed to honour the bear and bird duo with a heap of cool trips down memory lane, merchandise tie-ins and even a cheeky little nod in their current project, Sea of Thieves.
After posting the embedded-above masthead from their original website, Rare followed up on the previously announced First 4 Figures collaboration which would bring Banjo-Kazooie to life with startling clarity. They announced that the pre-orders for this top-tier statue will open July 6.
The pre-orders open at 7 pm UK time, which would mean pre-orders open for us 4 am on the morning of July 7. Here’s a tease of what the esteemed toymakers have been cooking up for Rare fans.
Rare has also announced that a Banjo-Kazooie figurine will be joining the Totaku range, which isn’t a huge surprise as we’ve already seen the Gold Hoarder from Sea of Thieves immortalised in this miniature range. It’s not yet ready for its reveal according to the team, though its silhouette can be seen in the above header image.
For those who’ve got on board the Sea of Thieves boat, you’ll soon be able to stop by any Shipwright in the game to pick up an exclusive Bear & Bird Figurehead for your vessel. It’s majestic and it’s almost enough to make me get back into the game on its own. The price of the attachment is, appropriately, 1998 gold. It’s worth noting that it’s available for the month of July only.
Of course, Sea of Thieves has already paid homage to the incredible works of the honey bear and his buzzard companion. Rare has taken that ancient cave painting and chucked it on the front of a limited-edition shirt for all of us to buy. It can be picked up from the Sea of Thieves store.
Last but not least, Rare is teaming with LootCrate once again off the back of successful runs with Battletoads, Conker and Sea of Thieves to bring us a bunch of Banjo-Kazooie goodies in July’s crate. It’ll be paired with Altered Beast, Mass Effect and Super Mario so it’s in great company, to say the least.
Based on the sneaky look Rare give us on their blog, it looks as though there’s a neat Banjo-Kazooie license plate included. Very cool. Head over to LootCrate to secure your monthly crate if you’re looking to celebrate the bear and bird’s birthday in style.
So there you have it, a heap of goodies that will surely send any dyed in the fur Banjo-Kazooie fan broke.
