Banjo-Kazooie

Banjo-Kazooie is a platform game series developed by the British studio Rare. The games focus on the two title characters―Banjo, a male brown bear; and Kazooie, a large female breegull who is typically seen riding in Banjo's backpack―both of whom are controlled by the player. The games generally involve the pair in conflict with the evil witch Gruntilda Winkybunion. The eponymous first game in the series was released in 1998 to critical acclaim and was followed by Banjo-Tooie (2000), Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (2008), Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge (2003), and Banjo-Pilot (2005), a spinoff kart racing game.

The franchise debuted on the Nintendo 64, while subsequent entries in the series also released for Game Boy Advance and Xbox 360. The three main titles were also included in the Xbox One compilation Rare Replay. The franchise has been largely dormant since the release of Nuts & Bolts; its characters, however, have made occasional appearances in later crossover titles such as Sega's All-Stars Racing series and Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. series.