Banjo-Kazooie not cancelled ... so what is?

by Justin McElroy { Nov 12th 2007 at 12:56PM }

On a recent episode of the 1UP Yours podcast, EGM's Shane Bettenhausen shared the rumor that "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 canceled." That had a lot of people turning their eyes towards a new Banjo Kazooie game, which, though announced sometime in the Nixon administration has been receiving zero buzz.

Now Rare has come out to confirm that, if a Microsoft title is due for the chopping block, it's not Banjo Kazooie. So that has us wondering: Was Bettenhausen off the mark? Or is there another long-in-the-works title we're just not thinking of?

Tags: 1upyours, banjo-kazooie, banjokazooie, egm, microsoft, rare

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Mikor @ Nov 12th 2007 1:02PM

I can't recall if Alan Wake was to be published by MS or not. Haven't heard anything from that in a long time.

Your Ad here 555-1923 @ Nov 12th 2007 1:10PM

According to AW forums that are somehow alive Alan wake is still in the works

A quote from the FAQ:

Lasse Seppänen, producer on Alan Wake, says quality is priority number one in the production of Alan Wake. "We're not tied to a schedule, we don't have to aim at a monolithic release date. If we can make a better game by giving it more time, that's the way we'll go. That doesn't mean, however, that we'd mean to be working on Alan Wake five years from now."

ruibing @ Nov 12th 2007 5:02PM

I think it's Alan Wake, there has been no hype for it since MS was raving about DX10 years back.

Your Ad here 555-1923 @ Nov 12th 2007 1:04PM

I think they are talking about Too Human but that can't be it no one was excited about that game anyway.

Talking about Banjo 3 WTF Rare? More Banjo less Perfect Dark.

okenny @ Nov 12th 2007 1:31PM

It can't be Too Human for three important reasons:
1) Too human 1 is practically done, their working on 2 at the moment.
2) If you listen to the podcast, they said a first party title; Too human is second party. It's being published by Microsoft but they don't own the IP.
3) I along with many other people are waiting for that game ---big time---

This weekend I was actually browsing GameVideos and IGN looking for juicy details and videos on Too Human. If you haven't looked at it since the 1up bashing last year... look again.

What do I think is getting canceled? The Neogaf people are voting Alan Wake. I'm thinking it's going to be Fable 2.

Marty @ Nov 12th 2007 1:33PM

I wouldn't mind seeing Too Human canceled... it just looked like another lame beat 'em up game anyway.

elmersglue @ Nov 12th 2007 1:52PM

Im actually really excited for too human. The potentially amazing story line is really what's keeping me interested.

FidliousWong @ Nov 12th 2007 2:53PM

As a Norse Mythology fanboy who has already suffered at the hands of Ah My Goddess, unless Baldur dies in Too Human, I'm calling bullshit on the whole affair.

terrancommando @ Nov 12th 2007 1:05PM

Halo wars?

Marty @ Nov 12th 2007 1:22PM

That's what I was thinking too, but to be honest, I can't imagine people being too excited over this. RTS games on consoles just aren't as much fun, and taking an FPS and making it into an RTS has never proven successful. The genres (and their fans) are too different.

Crono (NDF - Knight of the Old School) @ Nov 12th 2007 2:04PM

Actually, Halo is a case of RTS turned FPS. Now they're trying to release the game Bungie originally wanted to with Halo Wars.

Shockgamer @ Nov 12th 2007 1:06PM

Might as well be, unless they're planning on pulling a Conker/Jak 2.

Doug Kaplan @ Nov 12th 2007 1:08PM

Killer Instinct? Never announced they were working on a sequel but maybe.

Beatz @ Nov 12th 2007 1:09PM

Is Microsoft developing Duke Nukem Zero Hero?

Vilhelm @ Nov 12th 2007 1:11PM

It's not Alan Wake (a Remedy employee debunked that one) and it's not Too Human (not a first-party game). So that leaves us Halo Wars (not likely) and the unnamed Peter Jackson/Halo project.

Your Ad here 555-1923 @ Nov 12th 2007 1:21PM

Wait, there was going to be a "Peter Jackson's Halo the official game of the Movie" game?

Anyway I also suspect is Halo wars but my only prove is that the trailers shown were all pre-rendered meaning that there isn’t a game yet but then again how hard is for ensemble studios to make a Halo RTS game I mean they could just slap Halo stickers all over the Age of empires 3 engine I mean it worked for that star wars.

Also a Halo 3 RTS would be a watered down age of empires, only 3 civilizations to choose from? Suckage.

Phranctoast @ Nov 12th 2007 2:16PM

There was a halo rts mod for c&c created already that Bungie got yanked. If a bunch of people could put something like that together already, Bungie should have no problem.

Fox318 @ Nov 12th 2007 3:06PM

@Phranctoast

Bungie is not making Halo Wars. Ensemble Studios is.

Mark @ Nov 12th 2007 3:48PM

Your Ad here, there has actually been some gameplay videos. The most recent was released a few months ago, I think in August (although I am not 100% sure on that). Here is a link to that video: http://media.xbox360.ign.com/media/857/857436/vids_1.html

I think it looks pretty cool myself. Normally, RTS games have been pretty poor on consoles, but lately with C&C3 and that LOTR game, there have been a few very good RTS games on the 360. Granted, it's still probably better to play on the PC, but it's actually playable and fun now on a console (something that was never really captured with any previous console RTS games).

So, if they can pull off the control scheme properly (ala C&C3), it could be a really fun game. Since they have shown some gameplay videos, the chance of Halo Wars being the cancelled game seems less likely...although I wouldn't count on anything, as we have seen a lot crazier things happen.

We do know, though, for sure that the "big game" is not:

- Banjo kazooie (confirmed by RARE as shown above)
- Alan Wake (not a first party title to my knowledge anyways, but the developer has confirmed their game is not the game to be cancelled)

it still could be:
- Halo Wars
- Too Human (probably not, since it's not a 1st party...but they could be referring to it still in the podcast since it's being published by MGS)
- Fable 2 (imo, this is definitely not the game...but I'm just trying to list all the games I can think of)

Please feel free to add to this list of possible games, even if we're just speculating right now.

Cyro @ Nov 12th 2007 1:12PM

Love the picture....

Clack @ Nov 12th 2007 1:45PM

Ditto.

rikimaru @ Nov 12th 2007 1:17PM

Oh please Rare! Make another great Banjo-Kazooie game! Xbox 360 needs a good colorful, fun platformer.

I'm sort of getting bored with all the same dirty war, multiplayer FPS, movie licensed crap, and boring sports titles that keep coming out these days. I miss fun games.

I totally want a Wii now that Super Mario Galaxy is here. That game looks like so much pure giddy fun.

Carlos @ Nov 12th 2007 10:23PM

I recommend Ratchet and Clank: Future Tools of Destruction, but I I'm not sure if it will play on the 360...

Mr Khan @ Nov 12th 2007 2:39PM

Yeah, all 360 needs to round out its library are *good* platformers, they just can't seem to get 'em

a lot like Wii's lack of good action games

Psaakyrn @ Nov 12th 2007 8:09PM

Wii lacking action games? If anything, they're lacking in RPG games..

Jeff @ Nov 12th 2007 1:19PM

I hope it was Fable 2. Fable 1 sucked. Lionhead sucks. So on and so forth.

okenny @ Nov 12th 2007 1:36PM

Shane also said a key executive of microsoft games studio would be let go as well and this is why I i think it may be a Peter Molenuex + Fable 2 pair. Microsoft owns Lionhead outright so they satisfy the first party thing requirement well and Peter has been preaching dreams so far. I think it's bad though that they would Axe something so big so and it would be a fantastic loss.

Grant @ Nov 12th 2007 5:29PM

i don't think anyone would axe Molynuex.
The guy is a gaming fore father.

LAZoftheTamarinds @ Nov 12th 2007 1:21PM

Thank God! I want to see a next gen Banjo game. I just wished it came out sooner since I been waiting for it 7 years since Tooie came out. So that's good.

The bad is now I'm stuck wondering what title got cancelled. Let the speculation begin!

Jake @ Nov 12th 2007 1:23PM

Here are the official announced games that they are publishing:

Alan Wake
Banjo-Kazooie 3
Fable 2
Halo Wars
Kingdom Under Fire: Circle of Doom
Lost Odyssey
Marvel Universe Online
Ninja Gaiden 2 (Co-published with Tecmo)
Too Human

My money is on Alan Wake because it has been so quiet. Too Human is an obvious guess for many but hands-on impressions of recent builds have been quite positive and indicate they have a decent product that is close to finished. If this game weren't so far along or had poor hand on impressions I would be more likely to pick it.

Kingdom under Fire, Halo Wars, and Marvel Universe Online could be cancelled, but they didn't have enough hype I don't think to be called "major".

Should we be worried that it is Fable 2? I haven't personally been impressed from what they have showed so far and it is the only game on the list that is already a major franchise, based on its exceptional Xbox sales.

There are rumored titles as well like Perfect Dark, the Peter Jackson thing, PGR5, Gears 2, etc. I would think that they aren't talking about a game that was not yet "officially" in development though.

Or this whole article is false and we are wasting our time. That is always a very real possibility.

Your Ad here 555-1923 @ Nov 12th 2007 1:46PM

If you are a Nerd, a Comic book enthusiast or a MUA follower Marvel universe online was a mayor title and it wasn't even mentioned in the E3 of this year and is in the TBA list so that must be the one.

So sad I bought my XB360 with that game in mind I'm glad dead rising justified my XB360 purchase.

Now Kingdom Under Fire: Circle of Doom and Lost Odyssey are both going to be released soon (January and February of 08) seems unlikely and as you said those tiles aren't popular enough.

PS:I wasn’t counting the Brutes lol.

elmersglue @ Nov 12th 2007 1:59PM

How many times does someone need to post about Alan Wake NOT being cancelled, as confirmed on the Alan Wake forums, http://www.alanwake.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1351

Jake @ Nov 12th 2007 1:27PM

^^^
3 civilizations? Humans, Covenant, Brute, and Flood are pretty easy picks. You could be creative with whatever race the prophets come from. You could go way the heck out on a limb and give all the wimpy shield holder/sniper race their own team. And of course one team could just consist of Master Chief. I kid.

Dadidito @ Nov 12th 2007 1:36PM

My money is on Perfect Dark.

Phranctoast @ Nov 12th 2007 1:38PM

Is Huxley first party?

gonk @ Nov 12th 2007 1:45PM

i thought that was gonna be a pc game

also wasn't it supposed to come out like 2 years ago? lol that game's been delayed a ton

Sam @ Nov 12th 2007 1:48PM

My money is on Halo Wars.
Fable 2- doubt it. There is a lot going for this game and I don't think MS wants to lost a large RPG such as that one
Alan Wake- I don't think so, even if there is zero buzz.
Too Human- Silicon Knights have worked too hard to just cancel the game now and its been in development for 10 years. Even if they cancelled it, It would probably move to another console...PS3?
Ninja Gaiden 2- No Way. It was too big a success on the original Xbox to just go away.
It has to be Halo Wars. I mean, its frickin Ensamble, the guys that do AoE! There is zero Bungie involvement and they probably screwed up doing it for the 360. Oh well.

rockintom @ Nov 12th 2007 1:54PM

It would be a sad day if Banjo 3 was actually cancelled. I would love to have a decent platformer on the 360.

Dirk Dorkelson @ Nov 12th 2007 2:02PM

Um, is it possible the rumor is wrong? It is a rumor, after all.

Crono (NDF - Knight of the Old School) @ Nov 12th 2007 2:07PM

Hush.

Your Ad here 555-1923 @ Nov 12th 2007 2:21PM

Shun the non-believer!

shhhhhhuuuuuuuuuuuuunnnnnnnnnn
Shhuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunnn

LD22 @ Nov 12th 2007 10:34PM

Blasphemer! logic has no place here!

DSK UK @ Nov 12th 2007 2:02PM

I hate to say it, but maybe APB has got axed. I've seen nothing on this game apart from a pre-rendered interpretation of what they want it to be like. Too bad if it is as this game sounded cool. Although this could open them up for Crackdown 2

samfish @ Nov 12th 2007 2:20PM

The day Microsoft gives Banjo 3 the ax is the day I go out and buy a PS3. BK3 and the other old Rare franchises are the only reason I haven't completely ruled out buying a 360 at this point. I'm already favoring the PS3 over the 360 (which about 8 months ago I'd have thought could never happen), but given my preferences in games, Banjo 3 is really going to be the deciding factor.

But if it's not canceled (maybe...who knows?), my guess is mostly likely Fable 2...but I would be surprised if it was the Halo RTS.

GoonieGooGoo @ Nov 12th 2007 4:03PM

Samfish....what planet do you live on??

Is your head stuck in the 90s....possibly playing KILLER INSTINCT?

RARE games are the only thing you've thought a 360 was worth buying for......??? BANJO 3 a DECIDING FACTOR!!! C'mon Man!!!

I hope you are kidding.....SERIOUSLY........

samfish @ Nov 12th 2007 5:20PM

What else is there on the 360 if you don't like shooters, racing "sims" and bad western-made RPGs and still doesn't completely suck?

Dead Rising. That's about it, really.

Nope, Rare's potential is mostly the only thing that's making me consider a 360. I consider XBLA pure bonus, but can't really bring myself to factor that into whether or not I end up plunking down for one.
I'm kind of old school like that.

It is sad, though, that it's ONLY Banjo 3's potential that I'm looking forward to when Rare has such a rich well they return to.

Evan @ Nov 12th 2007 7:56PM

Banjo Kazooie was a major reason I was excited about the 360. I took Viva Pinata and the Banjo Kazooie as evidence that Microsoft was serious about making the 360 a well-rounded system. But lately it seems that Microsoft has gone right back to being the hardcore-only system.