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Yooka-Laylee--PlayTonic's spiritual successor to Banjo-Kazooie
News reported by 
(Editor)
February 10, 2015, 21:29
 
UPDATE: Kickstarter is live, funded, and up until Tuesday, June 16th! Let's hit some stretch goals!


PlayTonic site link

Go check it out! There's only a couple nuggets of info (and a mysterious piece of art), but apparently Edge will be releasing a new issue on Thursday with the first look at this new game, "Project Ukelele." My guess is some sort of Hawaiian-themed 3D platformer? I'm down.


If you’ve made it this far towards our fine internet abode, then you’ve probably worked out that we’re a new game developer, formed by some blokes who did those games you may or may not have liked as a nipper.

However, if you’ve stumbled here by accident in search of non-sexual relationship advice, allow us to explain what on Earth is going on…

Playtonic’s the name, and fun games, unique characters and absolutely-frickin-amazing worlds to explore are our game. Or at least they will be, once we eventually get around to releasing our first project instead of faffing around on WordPress.

Ahem. Currently we’re a sextet of artists, programmers and designers – sort of like The Pussycat Dolls with computer science degress – with one thing in common; we were all once core member of famous UK studio Rare, where we helmed franchises such as Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong Country and Viva Piñata.

We’ve got the bloke who programmed Donkey Kong Country, the character designer behind Banjo and Kazooie, and the artist who made your console fit to burst with lavish environments across a decade’s worth of adventure games.

Together, our all-star ensemble is aiming to build its debut game, ‘Project Ukulele’, into a worthy spiritual successor to those fondly remembered platforming adventures we built in the past.

By now, you might be thinking, ‘hold on mate, didn’t you make similar claims after drinking too many shandies in the pub in 2012, you muppet?’ Perhaps. But this time it’s real! We’re making a real, proper, actual game. Look: we even managed to trick convince Edge magazine to do us some pages!

You can read all about our venture and see the first artwork for our game in Edge issue 277, which is on sale from February 12.

So what’s next? Well first of all you need to know that our journey is at an early stage – we’ve barely left the Shire and Sean Bean’s still an alright guy.

Over the coming months we’ll reveal more about our project and future growth plans, and we very much intend to get you involved and listen to your views on our game’s direction. You’ll ultimately shape the destination of our project and we plan to continue exchanging sweet glances across cyberspace at you until we get there.

So go on then – follow us on Twitter, slap your thumbs up on our Facebook and sign up for updates. ‘ Cos it’s time to get this wagon rolling…



(well, it definitely has Rare's quirky sense of humor and unusual vernacular)

What do you think?

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02/10/15, 21:29   Edited:  04/05/17, 22:56
 
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@Hero_Of_Hyrule

Last I heard it was going to be digital only on the Switch presumably to avoid the pricing issue. Other systems have physical and digital copies cost the same.

@J.K. Riki

Too true. Remember that great victory over the Nazi's where they were all 'Let's exterminate people we perceive as being inferior' and we were all 'Hey! We love you, but you can't do that' and it was then and there they realized they were in wrong and closed down their extermination camps.

Posted by 
 on: 03/27/17, 03:54   Edited:  03/27/17, 03:59
@Stephen

Lets do our best collectively to keep off topic stuff out of here. That part of the thread has gone on long enough.

In general, this game releases in less than 3 weeks. Pretty cool that day is finally coming…even if it's not for us Switch users yet. Who is getting it on Switch despite the wait?

I will be.

Posted by 
 on: 03/27/17, 04:44
Yeahhhh let's get back to conversations about the actual game.

I'll get it on Switch because my only other option is Steam and my laptop probably can't handle a game like that. Plus I don't mind waiting, have enough going on ZELDA right now anyway.

Posted by 
 on: 03/27/17, 04:48   Edited:  03/27/17, 04:49
@Zero

I think despite the release delay, the idea of having it on the handheld will go far with me.

Posted by 
 on: 03/27/17, 04:54
@DrFinkelstein

Yeah, crazy to think we're only 3 weeks out. Banjo Tooie was the last game like this, right? I've been for over 15 years.

Posted by 
 on: 03/27/17, 04:55
Stephen said:

Too true. Remember that great victory over the Nazi's where they were all 'Let's exterminate people we perceive as being inferior' and we were all 'Hey! We love you, but you can't do that' and it was then and there they realized they were in wrong and closed down their extermination camps.

Except no one did that so you have zero way to know if it works or not from your absurd, extremist example. But I have known racists (and worse) and seen them change because of growing to loving someone who was part of a group they once hated; because of relationships and compassion. You can knock it all you'd like. Spit on the truth if you wish, it works and will continue to work whether you like it or not, do it or not, mock it or not. I've seen it with my own two eyes, so nothing you say can convince me otherwise. I've seen it, time and again. Love works. Hero_Of_Hyrule is correct, logic or destroying them with arguments fails. Shaming them CERTAINLY fails. It makes them hate harder. You cannot change a heart that way. You can through love. There may be other ways, but it is the surest I've found after much study and searching.

And the wacky thing is that time and again the greatest minds and parables of history have supported it and begged others to try it and we ignore them and think we can manage it some other way.

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."
-Martin Luther King, Jr.

“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it--always.”
- Mahatma Gandhi

“When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.”
- Jimi Hendrix

“Love is not affectionate feeling, but a steady wish for the loved person's ultimate good as far as it can be obtained.”
- C.S. Lewis

“Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time.”
- Maya Angelou

So go, if you will, and argue against love. Argue against these great minds, argue until you run out of breath and are buried under 8 feet of soil. Love will persist, and will remain the cure to the darkness inside us all.

Peace.

Posted by 
 on: 03/27/17, 05:42
Did you miss the part where we're not talking about that anymore?

Posted by 
 on: 03/27/17, 07:08
I'm so torn. I loved games like this on N64, but I also feel I grew super tired of them. I honestly can't tell if I'm going to love this game or not.

On the flip side, I bet my kids will love it regardless.

Posted by 
 on: 03/27/17, 08:36
@DrFinkelstein

I'll be getting this on Switch for sure! The delay will be nothing to be concerned about when I can play this portably!

Plus it's my only option but whatever I'd get it on Switch regardless.

Posted by 
 on: 03/30/17, 02:13
Read today that some reviewers who got to play the final game early leaked that it has major performance issues. Was sad to hear that, but guess we'll see.

Or, some will see. I won't, given that the Switch version has yet to be given even a remote launch timeframe and I may be waiting until 2018 or later to play the darn thing. #stillbitter

Posted by 
 on: 03/31/17, 21:55
I went with the Switch version on Kickstarter, so I'll be waiting to play this as well. I'm really looking forward to it, though. I read a preview yesterday that talked about how vibrant and expressive the characters are. That's a big reason why I like the Banjo-Kazooie games, so it was an encouraging read. The dialogue I've seen in screenshots is pretty funny, too.

Posted by 
 on: 04/01/17, 21:54
In case you guys haven't seen it:

Here's a little teaser for the Yooka-Laylee rap that is going to be in the game as one of the game's achieved stretch goals.

Here's the actual rap (completely different from the teaser) along with what I assume is the cinematic that plays along with it in-game.

Don't watch the second video if you don't want any spoilers whatsoever (but there's fewer spoilers in it than were in the DK rap), and it's completely safe to check what I've spoiler marked if you know what this game's stretch goals were.

Posted by 
 on: 04/02/17, 01:07   Edited:  04/02/17, 01:08
@J.K. Riki

That's kind of a bummer to hear. I watched a video of some IGN editors playing (what I assumed to be) the final build of the game, and it looked to be running fine IMO. Guess we'll know the truth one way or another soon enough!

Posted by 
 on: 04/03/17, 23:52
Reviews are coming in with quite the spread, anywhere between 2 and 9.

Posted by 
 on: 04/04/17, 20:14
@mrbiggsly
Are the PC reviews generally scoring higher than the console versions? From what I understand much of the negative criticism stems from the game running like crap on the consoles. Not sure if that makes me less confident in the Switch version because it too is a console (and a comparatively low power one at that), or more confident since Playtonic presumably will handle that version themselves, like they would have the Wii U version.

Posted by 
 on: 04/04/17, 20:25
@r_hjort No they are not.

I haven't read a whole lot of reviews but outside of the tech issues it sounds like a lot of the complaints revolve around the gameplay just feeling a bit mediocre and dated.

The dated part we probably all expected on some level, I mean, it's trying to riff off of the N64 era platformers so of course the target gameplay is somewhere at that level. But there is always a question when going backwards... do you really go all the way back to that era, or do you fake it but still modernize in ways that people probably won't realize because they forget what things were actually like? I think many developers choose the latter, but it sounds like maybe Playtonic chose the former. Another related question is, if someone had never played Banjo-Kazooie and you handed it to them in 2017, would they enjoy it? How much of that era's greatness demanded experiencing things during that era? In other words, how many of us REALLY want an N64-era platformer in 2017 as opposed to just thinking we do?

I dunno.

A shame about the reviews, but I think it could still be fun. Not much else like it on the market either way.

Posted by 
 on: 04/04/17, 20:54   Edited:  04/04/17, 20:55
@Zero
I wrote a long reply here, but your site ate it. I'll just say "well, that's discouraging then".

Posted by 
 on: 04/04/17, 21:03
@Zero

I play BK every five years or so, and it's held up nicely IMO. The characters and writing are fun and the gameplay is pretty tight actually. And the music is terrific.

Posted by 
 on: 04/04/17, 21:14
@TriforceBun

I agree with this, minus a few of the levels/jiggies. Mostly, though, still fun! I'd like to give DK64 a shot again one day, to see how that holds up too.

Posted by 
 on: 04/04/17, 23:33
@Zero To me, this is like asking "Do people still want 2D games?" as well as saying that retro-styled games are dated, for just two examples.

For me, good gameplay is never dated. But I also don't care for the fluff and flash of modern games, so this is getting into a whole other can of worms.

Posted by 
 on: 04/05/17, 00:20
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