Rare has been kicking around for about 25 years, and despite having a low or two recent years, it has had a great impact on gaming. Known for being a bit camera shy, Rare tends to hold its secrets close to its chest. That’s not to say it hasn’t let people take a peek behind closed doors every now and then — I remember getting those awesome DKC and Diddy Kong Racing promo tapes in the mail and getting so pumped.
To celebrate the company’s wild history, EDGE magazine interviewed a few Rare staff heads for a massive eight-page retrospective. Some of this info may have been revealed in the past, but a lot of it sounds new. For example, did you know that every single level in DKC was designed on Post-it notes and assembled like jigsaw puzzles? Or that Banjo was supposed to go solo before Kazooie was conceived in order to justify the magical wings and legs that popped out of Banjo’s backpack? How about that former NOA boss Minoru Arakawa thought that Conker’s pissing on anthropomorphic flames was downright hilarious but former NOA chairman Howard Lincoln did not?
When asked what he’d put on the tombstone if the company abruptly kicked the bucket, Rare head of design Gregg Mayles cleverly answered, “Two big eyes on the top.” Sweet. Check out the article summary over on DK Vine or grab the latest issue of EDGE to discover other juicy nuggets.
EDGE gets a one-on-one Scribes with Rare [DK Vine]
