Decades after the release of their original game, Banjo and Kazooie gained widespread attention for their playable appearance in Nintendo's Super Smash Bros.

[4] The game that would become Banjo-Kazooie began in early development as Dream: Land of Giants, in which players would control a sword-wielding boy named Edson battling pirates.

[5] Later in development, Rare decided to heavily rework the premise, and the player character was initially changed to a rabbit before settling on a bear named Banjo.

[6] According to Rare, "We wanted the characters to primarily appeal to a younger audience but, at the same time, give them enough humour and attitude not to discourage older players.

[13] Banjo and Kazooie returned in Banjo-Tooie, working to prevent Gruntilda from draining the life force from the Isle O' Hags and get revenge for the death of their friend Bottles.

[16] In Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts, Banjo and Kazooie must compete with Gruntilda for ownership of Spiral Mountain in a contest organized by the Lord of Games.

[22] Banjo and Kazooie also appear as a single playable fighter via downloadable content in the 2018 crossover fighting game, Super Smash Bros.

[23] Phil Spencer, head of the Xbox brand, stated that negotiating the characters' inclusion was an "easy deal to make" due to their strong third-party relationship with Nintendo.

[24] The characters were released on September 4, 2019 alongside a stage based on Spiral Mountain and Banjo-Kazooie musical arrangements, including one by original composer Grant Kirkhope.

[26] Rare studio head Craig Duncan explained that he had met with Nintendo at E3 2018 to discuss the characters' inclusion, then connected their teams because they thought it seemed like a great opportunity.

[37] Gus Turner of Complex Networks listed Banjo and Kazooie as one of the best-forgotten video game heroes, and further stated that "Rare's animal duo caught on in a big way with N64 gamers.

Ultimate, Banjo and Kazooie were a popular choice for inclusion in the roster,[42] and were suggested for addition by fans as well as gaming websites, including Screen Rant,[43] IGN,[44] Metro,[45] and Paste.

[49][50] Cecilia D'Anastasio of Kotaku said that Banjo and Kazooie's appearances in Smash Bros. are puzzling, criticizing their slow moves and lag, and deemed that the characters aren't as good as they seem.

[51] Bryce Johnson of Screen Rant put Banjo and Kazooie in eighth on his ranked list of Super Smash Bros.