by Paul on May 17th, 2008

I’ve just been reading KazooieBanjo’s blog. Excellent blog, with some good thoughts. If Rare were to make ‘more of the same’ we would all be pleased and you may get some new people buying it too, but once the dust has settled and people look back on it there will be a lot of critical negativity and it will effect Rare long-term because they wanted to play safe and keep the fans happy, rather than trying something new. Playing safe will only appeal to a small section of the videogame market. Sure, part of me was upset that we won’t be getting a new and improved version of the old-style collectathons, but I realised fairly quickly that if I’m ever in that mood B-K and B-T are still sitting there in the drawer, it’s not like they’ve gone anywhere (and let’s not forget that if the demand for an updated HD version of Banjo-Kazooie does have some legs on it, then there’s nothing to stop Rare re-making them for the Xbox Live Arcade).

In my opinion Rare are doing the right thing. If it does turn out to be a steaming pile of Bantha doo doo then I’ll be the first to put my hand up and admit I was one of the believers from the start, but I’m not worried about that because I’m pretty convinced that most of you will actually sit and play the game and take it all back. At least give Rare the benefit of the doubt and have a bit of faith rather than slagging them off purely because they dared to try something new.

Don’t forget that at the end of the day Rare is a business and they cannot function in this industry and remain at the front of the pack in terms of their creative output if they just cater for the fans making the same style of games continuously. They need to try new things and take chances. That’s the only way the industry as a whole will evolve.

I feel it is important to point out to you all that B-K:N&B is still a platformer / adventure game at heart. From what I’ve heard and seen the majority of Showdown Town will play in a similar fashion to the original B-K games so you won’t be disappointed on that front. The vehicles replace the moves so rather than Talon Trot up a hill, you’ll build your own vehicle to get to the top instead. I can understand some of the concerns, but the way in which some of you have immediately assumed the worst (for example, stating that it’s just a racer, despite repeated replies from Rare telling you that it isn’t) is just downright rude and appalling.

The changes Rare have made are the things that make me so excited, and glad that Rare are taking these chances … the ability to build your own vehicle is amazing! The only limit is your imagination! If they had gone down the pre-set vehicle route with no customisation then of course I’d be far less interested, but making your own is a whole different kettle of fish … multiplayer airbourne dogfights over Live with you guys? Wow! My first job will be to build a souped-up Spitfire and unleash some Torpediles on yo ass.

Categories: Features