Originally code named "Project Dream," the game was originally designed for the Super Nintendo. The main enemy was to be a pirate named Captain Blackeye (who makes cameo appearances in both Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie) who caused trouble for a youthful hero named Edison. Upon the debut of the Nintendo 64, the game was rebuilt using a modified engine of the Super Mario 64 game. The first game in the series, Banjo-Kazooie was released for the Nintendo 64 in 1998, following a great deal of hype.
In 2000, Banjo-Kazooie's long-time known sequel, Banjo-Tooie was released for the Nintendo 64. It introduced larger worlds, more intricate puzzles, a robust multiplayer mode, improved presentation overall, and the ability for the two heroes to split up and work independently.
In 2001, Rareware was purchased by Microsoft, leaving the Banjo-Kazooie franchise up in the air. Despite being owned by Microsoft, Rareware continued to develop Banjo-Kazooie games for handhelds in the form of Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge and Banjo Pilot.
In 2006, Rareware revived the Banjo-Kazooie series with a trailer for a brand new game in the long dormant series. Aptly titled "Banjo-Threeie" by fans, the trailer later evolved into a use of vehicles and racing game elements, along with a new art style. Thus was the creation of Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts for the Xbox 360.
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts was released at the end of 2008, it was a big departure from what the original games were and it had a very mixed reception from fans and critics, in the end the game did not sell well.
In addition to the Xbox 360 game, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts, Microsoft and Rare released both Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie on the Xbox Live Arcade in 2008 and 2009. They had updated graphics and the two games connected in the form of the stop and swap feature.
The future is unclear for the Banjo-Kazooie franchise.
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