Banjo-Tooie is a 2000 platform game created by Rare and released by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64 console. It is the second game in the Banjo-Kazooie series and follows the first game, Banjo-Kazooie. The game tells the story of Banjo and Kazooie, who work to stop the witch Gruntilda and her two sisters. The witches plan to turn the people living on the game’s island into vapor. The game includes larger worlds than the first game, where players must solve puzzles, jump over obstacles, collect items, and defeat enemies. It also has a Widescreen format and a multiplayer mode that allows up to four players to compete in mini-games from the main story.
Development of the game began in June 1998, right after the first game was released. Some features were removed because of time limits and the limitations of the Nintendo 64 hardware. This game was the last Banjo-Kazooie title released by Nintendo before Rare was bought by Microsoft. When it was released, Banjo-Tooie was praised for its graphics and large worlds, but some critics noted that the game’s frame rate was not always smooth. In 2009, a version of the game made by 4J Studios was released for the Xbox 360 as an Xbox Live Arcade title. The game was also included in the Rare Replay collection for the Xbox One in 2015. On October 25, 2024, the game was re-released on the Nintendo Classics service, which was its first return to a Nintendo console.
Gameplay
Banjo-Tooie is a single-player platform game, similar to its predecessor Banjo-Kazooie. The main characters are controlled from a third-person perspective, meaning players view the action from the side. The game uses many of the same gameplay features as Banjo-Kazooie, but it includes more three-dimensional worlds filled with platforming challenges and puzzles. Puzzle-solving plays a larger role in Banjo-Tooie than in the first game. Players earn collectible items, such as golden jigsaw pieces called Jiggies, by completing challenges and exploring. These items help unlock new areas of the game.
In Banjo-Tooie, players must collect a specific number of Jiggies to access a temple where a character named Master Jiggywiggy lives. Inside the temple, a single puzzle board is used instead of searching for incomplete boards across the overworld as in Banjo-Kazooie. After solving a time-based puzzle, Master Jiggywiggy grants access to a new world. Each puzzle requires more Jiggies than the one before.
Musical notes return in the game, but now they teach new moves from a character named Jamjars, who replaces Bottles as the instructor. All moves from Banjo-Kazooie are available immediately in Banjo-Tooie, and players can learn additional abilities, such as first-person aiming, new types of eggs, and the option to play as Banjo and Kazooie separately. Items like empty honeycomb pieces and Jinjos also return, keeping their original functions. Mumbo Jumbo is a playable character who can use magic spells to help the duo. Humba Wumba, a Native American shaman and Mumbo’s rival, takes over Mumbo’s role of transforming Banjo and Kazooie into different forms. Small magical creatures called "Glowbos" are needed to pay for the shamans’ services.
A new feature in Banjo-Tooie is the direct connections between its worlds. Unlike Banjo-Kazooie, where the duo was transported between worlds through special doors in Gruntilda’s Lair, most worlds in Tooie are physically linked to each other. A train named Chuffy allows players to travel between worlds with stations. These connections require players to backtrack and solve puzzles across multiple worlds, which are central to the game’s challenges.
The game also includes a multiplayer mode where up to four players can compete in modified versions of the single-player challenges. These include first-person shooting, kickball, bumper cars, and other minigames.
Plot
Two years after Gruntilda's defeat, Banjo and Kazooie are playing poker with Mumbo Jumbo and Bottles. Outside, two of Gruntilda's sisters, Mingella and Blobbelda, use their large HAG 1 digging machine to enter Spiral Mountain. They destroy the boulder trapping Gruntilda, finding that she has turned into a living skeleton while underground. Seeking revenge, Gruntilda destroys Banjo's house with a spell before fleeing with her sisters. Mumbo sees Gruntilda's return and escapes with Banjo and Kazooie, but Bottles does not listen to their warnings and is killed by the blast. The three remaining friends decide to defeat Gruntilda, and at Bottles' ghost's request, they agree to find a way to bring him back to life.
Following the witches' trail, Banjo and Kazooie arrive at Jinjo Village. King Jingaling, ruler of the Jinjos, explains that his people were scared away by the HAG 1 and scattered across the Isle O' Hags, the game's overworld. He gives the two a Jiggy as a reward for rescuing his people. Meanwhile, Gruntilda's sisters introduce her to a device called the "Big-O-Blaster" (B.O.B.), which can take "life force" from any target. They test B.O.B. on King Jingaling, turning him into a zombie. Gruntilda plans to charge B.O.B. long enough to blast the entire island and use the stolen life force to restore her body. Gruntilda's henchman, Klungo, is sent to stop Banjo and Kazooie, but after losing to them multiple times and being beaten by Gruntilda, Klungo decides to leave her. Banjo and Kazooie continue their journey, meeting new allies such as Bottles' drill sergeant brother Jamjars, who teaches them new moves, and the Native American shaman Humba Wumba, a bitter rival of Mumbo who helps the duo with new magical transformations.
Inside Gruntilda's fortress, Cauldron Keep, Banjo and Kazooie compete with Mingella and Blobbelda in the Tower of Tragedy Quiz, a trivia game show hosted by Gruntilda where losing competitors are crushed under one-ton weights. The two sisters are crushed after losing to Banjo and Kazooie, but Gruntilda escapes. Banjo and Kazooie then reverse the effects of B.O.B., bringing back King Jingaling and Bottles, who celebrate at Bottles' house with Klungo. At the top of the fortress, Gruntilda attacks Banjo and Kazooie with the HAG 1. During the battle, Gruntilda accidentally drops her most powerful magic spell inside the HAG 1 cockpit, causing the machine to explode and leaving her as only a living skull. Banjo and Kazooie return to Bottles' house with Jamjars, Mumbo, and Humba Wumba, only to find the celebration has ended without them. The group instead plays a game of hacky sack with Gruntilda's head, who vows revenge against Banjo and Kazooie once again.
Development
Banjo-Tooie was developed by Rare and designed by Gregg Mayles, who had previously worked on Banjo-Kazooie, and Steve Malpass. The game’s development began in June 1998. Some features that were removed during the creation of Banjo-Kazooie, such as certain game worlds and a multiplayer mode, were later added to Banjo-Tooie. A planned additional world set in a castle was canceled due to time limits, but materials from it were used to build Cauldron Keep. The game includes about 150 characters, such as enemies and non-playable characters.
Rare originally planned to include a mode called "Bottles' Revenge," where a second player could control an undead version of Bottles and take over enemy characters, including bosses, to challenge Banjo and Kazooie. Players would switch roles if the enemy defeated the main characters. This idea was canceled because the developers did not have enough time to fix issues with controlling bosses, even though they admitted the mode worked well. Only one boss, "Old King Coal," could be controlled when the mode was canceled. This idea later inspired the "Counter-Operative" multiplayer mode in Perfect Dark.
Rare also planned a feature called "Stop 'N' Swop," which would have allowed players to transfer data from Banjo-Kazooie to Banjo-Tooie to unlock bonuses. However, the Nintendo 64 system’s hardware limitations made this impossible. Despite this, Rare included some of the planned bonuses in the game. The "Stop 'N' Swop" feature was later added in the Xbox Live Arcade re-release.
The music for Banjo-Tooie was composed by Grant Kirkhope, who had previously worked on Perfect Dark, Donkey Kong 64, and Banjo-Kazooie. Since Banjo-Tooie was larger than its predecessor, Kirkhope had double the memory space in the game’s cartridge for music and sound effects. Kirkhope had to pause his work on Banjo-Tooie to focus on other projects, but he finished the music on time. Like Banjo-Kazooie, the game’s music changes dynamically based on the player’s location. Kirkhope combined two MIDI files to create different music transitions as players moved through the game.
The game was initially planned for release in the fourth quarter of 1999 but was delayed. It was shown at the 2000 Electronic Entertainment Expo and first released in North America on November 20, 2000. Japan and Europe received the game on November 27, 2000, and April 12, 2001, respectively. The game supports the Nintendo 64 Rumble Pak.
The Nintendo 64 version of Banjo-Tooie was added to the Nintendo Classics service on October 25, 2024. This marked its first re-release on a Nintendo console since Rare was acquired by Microsoft in 2002.
Reception
When Banjo-Tooie was released, it received praise from critics and sold 1.49 million copies worldwide by 2008. GameRevolution said Banjo-Tooie had fewer repeated tasks than Donkey Kong 64 and was a good follow-up to Banjo-Kazooie. Nintendo Power described Banjo-Tooie as "the perfect mix between Donkey Kong 64 and Banjo-Kazooie," noting that it required less backtracking between levels compared to Donkey Kong 64. The publication also mentioned that the only issue was how Rare handled the "Stop 'N' Swop" bonuses. N64 Magazine editor Mark Green said Banjo-Tooie included "clever puzzles and enjoyable running and jumping moments," but it did not feel as fresh or exciting as earlier Rare platform games.
The game’s graphics were praised for their detailed textures, long visible distances, and shadows that appeared as the game played. However, some critics noted that the game’s speed sometimes slowed down during certain parts. Despite this, many agreed that these slowdowns did not hurt gameplay or reduce the game’s quality. GameRevolution called the game "beautiful," though it did not match the level of admiration for its predecessor. The game was also praised for its humor, with Edge saying its characters were "impossible to dislike."
The game’s large worlds were highlighted as a key feature. GamesRadar said Banjo-Tooie required players to spend a lot of time to complete, as keeping track of tasks and revisiting areas needed either a strong memory or taking many notes. Similarly, GamePro noted that the game’s size could make it easy for players to become lost or forget their goals. GameSpot praised the game’s level design and the way it required players to collect Jiggies to progress. However, Edge suggested Rare should have added more new ideas instead of following the style of Super Mario 64.
At the GameSpot Best and Worst of 2000 awards, Banjo-Tooie won the Best Platform Game award and was a top contender for Best Sound and Best Nintendo 64 Game. At the 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, it received nominations for Game of the Year, Console Game of the Year, and Console Action/Adventure awards.
Xbox 360 version
An Xbox Live Arcade version of Banjo-Tooie, created by 4J Studios, was released for the Xbox 360 on April 29, 2009. This version includes smoother animation and high-definition graphics. It also supports the "Stop 'N' Swop" feature, which connects with the Xbox Live Arcade version of Banjo-Kazooie, allowing players to unlock special items from the original Nintendo 64 version of Banjo-Tooie and new content for the Xbox 360. Using "Stop 'N' Swop" items in the Xbox Live Arcade version of Banjo-Tooie also unlocks extra rewards in the "L.O.G.'s Lost Challenges" downloadable content for Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts. The Xbox Live Arcade version of Banjo-Tooie received mixed to favorable reviews from video game critics, with an average score of 73 out of 100 on Metacritic. In 2015, this version became one of the first games compatible with the Xbox One, and it was later included in the Rare Replay video game collection. In 2019, the version was improved to display native 4K resolution on the Xbox One X.