The reason I really wanted and 360... and it's looking pretty terrible.

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/872/872701p1.html

Why is Banjo so square? Why is the focus on vehicles? Why does Banjo even have Kazooie in his backpack if he can just fly a damn plane to wherever he needs to go?

I'd be fine if they make the character designs less horrid and not played up the use of vehicles to the degree they have, but the odds of that happening are really low.

I was really expecting Banjo-Threeie. Instead we seem to be getting GTA: Spiral Mountain.

I bet they screw up the vehicles as well. It seems impossible to make a game with decent vehicle controls that isn't a straight up racing game. And even then, it's only about a 40/60 chance.

I think its too soon to expect too much or too little for the ol' bear and bird but the visuals look crisp and colourful just like the original (even though they are dated now) so i say to have faith!

Video footage here: http://gamevideos.com/video/id/18831

I've always thought Banjo Kazooie's character designs were pretty bad, and this new stuff is just a step in a different direction but not an improvement. Plus, now it's fully evident that Banjo's on the Xbox, because the trailer is filled with explosions and blaring guitars, with a fresh level of grit on everything. Hello, teens! This is the game you want!

Don't feel bad. If the game wasn't like this, you'd be collecting crap off of cliffs and ledges until you have 100 of item X, just like the old Banjo games... and games have progressed far beyond that now. Honestly, I had little patience for it even back then. That's not to say there wasn't good things about Banjo Kazooie, I just think it's got enough going against it already before Rare went bad.

EDIT: One more video that shows a Banjo game that is closer to what we expect:
http://kotaku.com/5008885/banjo+kazooie-hot-new-bird-on-bear-action?autoplay=true

The more I read , the more I get pissed off.

Interview
Spiral Mountain: Yeah, that's great. Is the number of worlds confirmed as 6, or do you have some lying in wait for us?
Gregg Mayles: So lets take Nutty Acres as an example. There are 6 doors into Nutty Acres, each door leads to a different 'act' in Nutty Acres. Each act features a varying amount of Jiggies to be won. Some acts only have 1 Jiggy whereas others have several. If the act door is open you can enter it, the order you tackle them in is only controlled by which doors are open around town. Jiggies control pretty much all progress
Mundo Rare: Pretty much like DKR, isn't it?
Gregg Mayles: Yes, it's more like DKR than the other Banjo games, but I'd say there is even more freedom. You visit Nutty Acres Act 1 and see stuff you will be doing in Act 3 and Act 4. It's very clever like that. We don't set up different stuff per Act, you see stuff in earlier acts and then get to do things with that stuff later. Hard to explain, but you'll like it!

Or how about this gem?

Interview
Donkey Kong Universe: What would you say the traditional platforming/vehicle usage ratio is in the overall scope of the game?
Gregg Mayles: I knew someone would ask that! Mmm...I would say around 80% vehicles, but just a rough guess.

I am all for innovation. I want developers to take risks, but to change the genre of the game entirely? Worst of all, it wasn't even a change meant from the start!

Interview
Roysten's Fishbowl: What do Banjo and Kazooie lend to the vehicle building process, considering that it was originally a separate concept?
Gregg Mayles: Good question. Not a lot. Originally we had Banjo and Kazooie placing the parts together. But it was soooooooooooooooo slow. We had to sacrifice their involvement to get the building process as fast and fluid as possible. A shame, but gameplay comes first. The building process is done
'magically' using Mumbo's Magic Wrench. It's a bit like a magic wand

They were developing a completely seperate game and stuck the characters in and proceed to call it a direct sequel when it has virtually no aspects of the original aside from characters. All those moves that Banjo and Kazooie could do? Egg spitting, flying, talon-trot, wonderwing? All gone. Now Kazooie attacks with a magic wrench. No more rolling or pecking baddies.

As I said, I am always psyched for developers to go new directions with their series, but in this case, they aren't so much developing a new chapter of a series but rather injecting their characters into a game that was developed seperately and calling it a sequel. :|

Now I hope we never see a Blast Corps or JFG sequel. I already suffered at the hands of the Conker remake and the Perfect Dark prequel and Banjo looks like it'll be adding to this.

Well, it seems Microsoft's purchase of Rare is just the gift that keeps on giving.