Banjo-Kazooie gets huge PC overhaul with built-in randomiser

From the makers of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’s Ship of Harkinian port, comes Banjo-Kazooie like you’ve never seen it before.

It’s hard to believe the last time we saw the bear and bird in their own game was Banjo-Kazooie Nuts & Bolts for the Xbox 360 in 2008.

Spiritual successors like Yooka-Laylee have come and gone and Banjo-Kazooie did make a comeback for Super Smash Bros Ultimate in 2018, but a brand-new game feels like a pipe dream at this point.

Luckily the fans have done it again. Banjo-Kazooie is back and this time with a new PC port titled Lighthouse.

As mentioned earlier it’s made by the same team behind the Ship of Harkinian port for Ocarina of Time, which added a suite of new features to the Nintendo 64 game.

Banjo-Kazooie Lighthouse is largely the same, and shouldn’t be confused with a different PC port from earlier this year, which only added modernisations like better resolution and framerates.

Nintendo

What makes this port special is features you wouldn’t find in a normal copy of Banjo-Kazooie, including a mode all good games should have in official ports; a randomizer.

Randomizers are one of the prime reasons why you should give emulation a go if you’re able to. They can make a playthrough more challenging, comedically hilarious or just give you a different experience if you know a game inside and out. The recently released Halo: Campaign Evolved features a randomized mode called Campaign Remix and it’s the best addition to the remake.

READ NEXT: How to unlock Halo: Campaign Evolved's 'Campaign Remix' mode

Banjo-Kazooie’s randomised mode can be tailored to your liking, but it can change the locations of all of the game’s collectibles. This makes the hunt for jiggies, music notes and jingos harder especially if you’ve got a good memory of where they’re usually located.

It should go without saying, but the mod also lets you tamper with the visuals just like the other port.

Really you can’t go wrong with either of them. If you want a more authentic experience on your PC you should go with the first PC port released, but if you’d like to switch it up a bit the Lighthouse port is definitely for you.

All you need to do is download and install it through GitHub, but like all PC ports you’ll need a ROM of the game in order to get it working. You can rip this from your own physical copy and you should never download a ROM you’ve found on the internet. You wouldn’t steal a bear and bird would you?

Banjo-Kazooie is just one of many Nintendo 64 games getting fantastic PC ports this year, and there’s plenty more to come. As the game industry quickly leaves physical media behind, it’s nice to know the classics are still getting looked after and preserved in new and fun ways.

READ NEXT: Xbox disc-to-digital program confirms retro 360 era catalog release window