Banjo-Kazooie Nuts & Bolts Preview
Build Vehicles from 100 Parts with Rare's New Xbox 360 Video Game
Ten years ago on the N64, Rare published one of its most acclaimed games, Banjo-Kazooie, featuring a bear (Banjo) and bird (Kazooie) duo who had the ability to turn into a number of creatures, such as a crocodile, termite or bee, in order to fight the evil witch Gruntilda and her minions. Now, the popular series returns on the Xbox 360, but this time ditching the series' traditional platformer elements and requiring gamers to build vehicles to traverse the different worlds.
Vehicle Building 101
According to details provided by Microsoft, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts will feature over 100 different vehicle parts that gamers can collect throughout their adventure and put together in Mumbo's Motors workshop to build different vehicles. Vehicle parts not only include traditional parts like engines, body panels, and wheels, but also more unique parts like "Mumbo Bombos," springs, and egg guns.
A seemingly unlimited number of combinations of vehicle parts are possible, meaning that the game can be experienced in a number of different ways. Gamers will quickly find, however, that not all their combinations will work -- some vehicles they build may be too heavy on one side, thus causing the vehicle to topple over, or may be too heavy to be able to fly.
Thus, for gamers who tire of vehicle building, Rare (the game's developer) will also be including a number of pre-built vehicles such as the Banjo 4x4, Banjo Boat, and Banjo Plane so that gamers can get on with their adventure without any of the gimmicks.
Item Collecting Returns
Of course, some things never change, and the item collecting that was so prevalent in the original Banjo-Kazooie games returns in Nuts & Bolts. Once again, in order to progress to the next level, players must collect special "Jiggies" (puzzle pieces) by completing certain tasks in the game. Honeycomb pieces will again be used to replenish players' health, while collectable musical notes will now serve as a currency to buy vehicle parts.
As Banjo and Kazooie will now be spending the majority of their time in vehicles, however, most of the moves that players were able to learn and execute in previous games will no longer be at the duo's disposal in Nuts & Bolts.
Multiplayer & Online Action
Additionally, those who can't "bear" to play the game only by themselves will be able to take their custom-made vehicle creations online with Xbox Live to compete in online races and other challenges against gamers from all over the world. For those gamers without an online connection, a co-op mode will allow gamers to play through the game with a friend, while other offline multiplayer options will allow gamers to participate in activities similar to those found online.
Outlook
In all, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts is shaping up to be a very interesting twist on an already established series. This may upset gamers who were hoping for another traditional platformer game, but it also serves to bring new gamers into the fold who may be turned off by traditional platformer games.
The biggest question, however, is whether the vehicle building makes the game too gimmicky, or whether it is actually a step forward for the popular series. Only time will tell, but hopefully gamers will find a fun and unique experience when the game releases this November. Gamers looking for other original, yet cheaper, gaming options may be interested in Microsoft's new Xbox Live Community Arcade.
Banjo & Kazooie concept art
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Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts Screenshot
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Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts Screenshot
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Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts Screenshot
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Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts Screenshot
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