Several storied franchises from Rare will eventually see the light of day once again, Microsoft has confirmed.
Through the latest Inner Circle podcast episode, the publisher teased the possibility of future installments of "Banjo-Kazooie," "Perfect Dark," "Battletoads" and others.
"Will there ever be another 'Banjo,' 'Viva,' 'Blast Corps,' 'Battletoads?' Yeah, someday," Microsoft Studios creative director Ken Lobb said on the Inner Cicle podcast (via GameSpot). "And I think the reason you see things like [the Battletoads trademark] revived, is because we know there's value.
"So we renewed the trademark. Does that mean it's coming this year? No. Does that mean it'll never come? Absolutely not. We have a lot of passion internally for each of the games. And we have surprises in store in the near and long future."
Lobb encapsulated Microsoft's strategy around revisiting older IP by stating those Rare franchises and others, like "Perfect Dark," give the company the ability to astonish gamers with titles they may not have otherwise expected.
"Understand that what it's really about is we want to build this suite of IP that we can add to a list of, 'Let's build some new things, let's build some recent sequels, and let's do some crazy stuff like dig back into our portfolio of IP and build some games that people love,'" he explained. "I think the best message to give to your listeners is we love the old IP as much as you do...please be patient because we can only build so much at a time."
Microsoft filed a trademark for "Battletoads" last year, but has yet to reveal what it relates to.
Xbox head Phil Spencer also teased in November that Rare's next project involves something "unique."
Rare's most recent release was "Kinect Sports Rivals" in 2014.
