Banjo-Pilot

Banjo-Pilot is a 2005 racing game developed by Rare and published by THQ for the Gameboy Advance. Originally titled Diddy Kong Pilot, the game shares many gameplay elements with the N64 game Diddy Kong Racing, and its remake.

Playable Characters
Note: All characters with an asterisk have to be unlocked.
 * Banjo

Top speed: 3/5

Acceleration: 3/5

Handling: 2/5


 * Kazooie

Top speed: 2/5

Acceleration: 3/5

Handling: 4/5


 * Jinjo (Purple)
 * Mumbo Jumbo

Top speed: 3/5

Acceleration: 2/5

Handling: 3/5


 * Humba Wumba*

Top speed: 1/5

Acceleration: 5/5

Handling: 5/5


 * Bottles*

Top speed: 5/5

Acceleration: 4/5

Handling: 4/5


 * Gruntilda*

Top speed: 5/5

Acceleration: 1/5

Handling: 1/5


 * Klungo*

Top speed: 4/5

Acceleration: 2/5

Handling: 2/5


 * Jolly Roger*

Top speed: 2/5

Acceleration: 4/5

Handling: 4/5

Worlds
Honeycomb/Pumpkin Cup Jiggy/Cauldron Cup Beehive/Skull Cup Feather/Broomstick Cup
 * Spiral Mountain
 * Jinxy's Dunes
 * Freezeezy Peak
 * Hailfire Peaks
 * Treasure Trove Cove
 * Clanker's River
 * Grunty Industries
 * Gobi's Valley
 * Freezing Furnace
 * Mayahem Temple
 * Steamy Vents
 * Jolly Roger's Lagoon
 * Witchyworld
 * Breegull Beach
 * Terrydactyland
 * Cauldron Keep

Story
According to Rare, there is no story to the game, although it can be assumed that Cheato the Magical Spellbook lost all of his pages and Banjo and his friends must retrieve them by completing race courses. As Grunty is still in her original form it can also be assumed this is the first game in the series, apart from possibly Diddy Kong Racing.

Grand Prix
In this mode, the first player races against other characters in a series of tracks to earn points. There are four cups that each contain four tracks with an aerial boss fight at the end. The player is given a trophy determined on his/her rank. Different Grand Prixes include the Bottles GP, the Grunty GP, the Endurance GP, and the Jinjo GP.

Quickrace
In this mode, the player can do a quick single race with any character he/she has already unlocked. The player can choose tracks from the Bottles and Gruntilda Grand Prixes.

Time Trial
In this mode, the player races against the ghost of either Bottles or Gruntilda to try and beat their best time.

Trophies
Here, the player can view the trophies that he/she won throughout the game. There is also a photo album when the player completes all of the game's challenges.

Jiggy Challenge
In this mode, the player collects six jiggies on tracks from the Bottles and Grunty Grand Prixes while trying to finish in first place. If they succeed, they can unlock Bottles, the most efficient racer in the game.

Cheato
Here, Cheato pages are used to purchase unlockables within the game.

Items
When the player hits a honeycomb, they receive an item. Items include:


 * Golden Feather- Grants the player temporary invincibility and boosted speed.
 * Mingy Jongo- Temporarily disables all other racers.
 * Turbo Trainers- Gives the player a short speed boost.
 * Saucer of Peril- Targets in on the race leader and causes them to crash.
 * Single Fire Egg- Homes in on the nearest racer in front of the player and causes them to crash.
 * Triple Fire Eggs- Gives you three red fire eggs instead of one.
 * Single Ice Egg- Dropped behind your plane and causes any plane that hits it to crash.
 * Triple Ice Eggs- Gives you three blue ice eggs instead of one.

Cameos
Many characters from Rare's previous games make minor cameos in Banjo-Pilot. Characters like Tiptup, Gobi, and Master Jiggywiggy can be seen in various tracks. Sabreman, from Sabre Wulf, and Expresso, from Donkey Kong Country, appear in Jolly Roger's Lagoon and Jinxy's Dunes, respectively. Other non-playable characters include Cheato, King Jingaling, and Roysten. Before the game's release, many fans speculated that Roysten would appear as an unlockable character, but this has since been proven false.

Artwork
Banjo-Pilot