Skip to main content

Banjo-Kazooie will be playable on Switch next month

Starting next month, Nintendo Switch owners who have subscribed to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack will be able to play yet another retro classic. Developer Rare’s iconic Banjo-Kazooie will be coming to the console as an addition to the service in January 2022.

Banjo’s on a mission to rescue his sister from the envious wicked witch Gruntilda!

Foil her selfish plan to snatch the beauty from Tooty in Banjo-Kazooie, available to #NintendoSwitchOnline + Expansion Pack members in January! #Nintendo64 pic.twitter.com/pvPD4aRvwr

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) December 10, 2021

Announced in a post on Twitter from the Nintendo of America account, it’s not clear exactly when Banjo-Kazooie will be available for Expansion Pack subscribers. It’s not too much of a surprise that the platformer is being added, though, as it’s one of the most recognizable titles in the Nintendo 64’s library. Another classic, Paper Mario, was also recently added to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack’s library of games.

Banjo-Kazooie will be added to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack’s catalog in sometime in January. A specific date for the game’s arrival has not been revealed. However, with Paper Mario‘s addition this month and Banjo-Kazooie coming to the service next month, it seems like Nintendo is aiming to add games on a monthly basis.

Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack is an upgraded version of Nintendo’s basic online service, giving players access to a growing catalog of Nintendo 64 and Sega Genesis games for a bit more cash than they’d spend on the basic version. Along with access to Nintendo 64 and Sega Genesis games, users who subscribe to Nintendo’s premium online service will get access to some DLC for Nintendo’s first-party games. At the moment, Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack users will also get access to Animal Crossing: New Horizons‘ Happy Home Paradise expansion.

Editors' Recommendations

Otto Kratky
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Otto Kratky is a freelance writer with many homes. You can find his work at Digital Trends, GameSpot, and Gamepur. If he's…
The best Nintendo Switch shooter games
Samus from promo art for Metroid Prime Remastered.

While the Nintendo Switch system is home to a variety of family games, platformers, and puzzlers, it also has a lengthy list of shooters. These range from third-person online shooters, to first-person single-player campaigns, and everything in between. Some are realistic, others are sci-fi, and some even blur the lines between genres.

But with so many options, it's easy to be overwhelmed. In this list, we'll go over the best shooters on Nintendo's latest platform.

Read more
Nintendo Switch Game Vouchers: how they work and eligible games
Link stands near allied humans and Gorons in Tears of the Kingdom.

After disappearing from the store in 2019, Nintendo Switch Game Vouchers have returned to the eShop. These vouchers are a great value to those who are active Switch users and purchase a lot of their games digitally via the Nintendo online shop. By purchasing a voucher, players are able to browse a constantly expanding selection of Switch games, including many high-profile first-party titles such as Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, Splatoon 3, and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and use their vouchers to purchase games. In addition, they can also be used to preorder upcoming titles.

If you never had the chance to use them before, here's everything you need to know about Nintendo Switch Game Vouchers.
How Nintendo Switch Vouchers work

Read more
Everybody 1-2-Switch! offers silly multiplayer fun — when it works
People sit on white blocks in a room holding smartphones.

Even if you're a big Nintendo fan who follows the game maker religiously, you might not know that Everybody 1-2-Switch! is launching in three days.

The sequel to the Switch's oddest launch game -- the motion-controlled minigame collection 1-2-Switch! -- has been all but buried by its own publisher. It was surprise revealed only a few weeks ago (late in the evening for East Coasters) with an announcement tweet containing no trailer or real details. The store page for it only contained a single, confusing screenshot of real humans pumping down Joy-Cons on a flat pink backdrop.

Read more