Nearly 25 years later and we’re still getting new behind the scenes details of the classic Nintendo 64 game Banjo-Kazooie. ComposerGrant Kirkhope interacts with fans quite a lot online via Twitter, and in a recent discussion it was revealed one of his early works for the bear and bird was quite different than what fans know today.
The specific song in question is Treasure Trove Cove, which plays in the level of the same name. When the game hit shelves in 1998, the theme got stuck in the heads of players, but it didn’t always sound the same. We’re not talking about a rough draft or an early version that was later slightly changed, but an entirely new piece altogether. In the social post, a fan shared a video from E3 1997 — talk about timing — that showed an early look at Banjo-Kazooie. The footage featured the titular duo exploring Treasure Trove Cove but instead of the song everyone knows today, the music was different. Kirkhope said it was his first idea for the level.
In the year between that early E3 and Banjo-Kazooie’s release date, Kirkhope wrote a new track, and the game shipped with it the following June. Another fan asked if the original track was ever used for anything else in the future, to which Kirkhope responded no. Who’s to say it couldn’t resurface in a new game in a few years? Perhaps in another Mario + Rabbids game or a Banjo-Threeie.
