Phil Spencer said, “When we find the right team, and the right opportunity, I love going back to revisit stories and characters that we’ve seen previously.”
As he discusses bringing back previous games, Xbox CEO Phil Spencer is well aware that many of you out there are itching for a new Banjo-Kazooie game.
The series Banjo-Kazooie is a little strange. It featured two adored N64 platformers, a couple of gorgeous Game Boy Advance titles, and no official sequel until Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (2008), which is essentially Tears of the Kingdom before Tears of the Kingdom—albeit one that wasn’t executed quite so flawlessly. And while it doesn’t have the largest fan base in the world, it certainly has a passionate one; certainly passionate enough to get the attention of Spencer. In a recent interview with Windows Central, Spencer spoke about a range of topics, including Game Pass on other platforms, as well as looking back at certain titles Microsoft could revive.
Spencer said:
“You’ve seen from our history that we haven’t touched every franchise that people would love us to touch – Banjo fans, I hear you. But it is true that, when we find the right team, and the right opportunity, I love going back to revisit stories and characters that we’ve seen previously.”
The Xbox CEO also discussed past Blizzard titles in particular, a topic he has previously shown interest in, pointing out that:
“Really what I’d want to do is work with Blizzard’s leadership to see where they have passion. I say all this, but I’m not at all suggesting that Blizzard doesn’t have passion for reviving franchises too, I know that from my visits to the team. They absolutely have the passion in this area. There’s a lot of excitement for possibilities that we can all do together. But also, I want our fans and customers to know that I don’t bring up games just to tease to no end … if people have watched how we’ve teased things in the past. There’s usually some kind of reconciliation of those hints later on … I’m not one to try and lead people on. It might not happen on the timeline that people would love, but usually when I tease, there’s something there.”
It’s still unclear whether we’ll see a new Banjo game or any other long-ago, dormant titles, but at least Spencer has seen your tweets. Well, at least Smash Bros. has the musical bear, right?