<s>
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
is	O
a	O
2005	O
kart	O
racing	O
video	O
game	O
for	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
(	O
GBA	B-Device
)	O
and	O
the	O
fourth	O
instalment	O
in	O
Rare	O
's	O
Banjo-Kazooie	B-Application
series	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
plays	O
similarly	O
to	O
the	O
Mario	B-Application
Kart	I-Application
series	O
by	O
Nintendo	O
:	O
the	O
player	O
races	O
one	O
of	O
nine	O
playable	O
characters	O
around	O
tracks	O
,	O
attacking	O
other	O
racers	O
with	O
bullets	O
and	O
collecting	O
power-ups	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rare	O
and	O
Nintendo	O
announced	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
at	O
E3	O
2001	O
under	O
the	O
title	O
Diddy	B-Device
Kong	I-Device
Pilot	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
this	O
point	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
sequel	O
to	O
Rare	O
's	O
Diddy	B-Application
Kong	I-Application
Racing	I-Application
(	O
1997	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
featured	O
characters	O
from	O
Nintendo	O
's	O
Donkey	B-Application
Kong	I-Application
and	O
Mario	B-Application
series	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Company	O
politics	O
and	O
Nintendo	O
's	O
concerns	O
about	O
quality	O
delayed	O
Diddy	B-Device
Kong	I-Device
Pilot	I-Device
past	O
its	O
planned	O
release	O
date	O
in	O
March	O
2002	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
THQ	O
,	O
which	O
made	O
a	O
deal	O
with	O
Microsoft	O
to	O
publish	O
Rare	O
's	O
GBA	B-Device
projects	O
,	O
released	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
in	O
January	O
2005	O
to	O
mixed	O
reviews	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
critics	O
praised	O
its	O
detailed	O
visuals	O
,	O
they	O
believed	O
it	O
lacked	O
originality	O
and	O
labelled	O
it	O
an	O
inferior	O
clone	O
of	O
Mario	B-Application
Kart	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
is	O
a	O
kart	O
racing	O
game	O
featuring	O
characters	O
and	O
environments	O
from	O
the	O
Banjo-Kazooie	B-Application
series	O
of	O
platform	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
plays	O
similarly	O
to	O
the	O
Mario	B-Application
Kart	I-Application
series	O
by	O
Nintendo	O
:	O
the	O
player	O
,	O
controlling	O
a	O
character	O
in	O
their	O
vehicle	O
,	O
must	O
race	O
opponents	O
around	O
tracks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
is	O
distinguished	O
from	O
other	O
kart	O
racing	O
games	O
because	O
the	O
player	O
controls	O
airplanes	O
instead	O
of	O
go-karts	O
,	O
allowing	O
them	O
to	O
move	O
up	O
and	O
down	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
Grand	O
Prix	O
,	O
players	O
must	O
participate	O
in	O
a	O
Champion	O
Challenge	O
—	O
an	O
aerial	O
dogfight	B-Device
against	O
a	O
boss	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rare	O
developed	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
for	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
(	O
GBA	B-Device
)	O
for	O
nearly	O
five	O
years	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
beginning	O
,	O
Rare	O
was	O
a	O
second-party	O
developer	O
for	O
Nintendo	O
and	O
was	O
known	O
for	O
creating	O
games	O
in	O
Nintendo	O
's	O
long-running	O
Donkey	B-Application
Kong	I-Application
franchise	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
such	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
originally	O
titled	O
Diddy	B-Device
Kong	I-Device
Pilot	I-Device
,	O
a	O
sequel	O
to	O
Rare	O
's	O
1997	O
game	O
Diddy	B-Application
Kong	I-Application
Racing	I-Application
,	O
and	O
would	O
feature	O
characters	O
from	O
Nintendo	O
's	O
Donkey	B-Application
Kong	I-Application
and	O
Mario	B-Application
franchises	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
it	O
could	O
be	O
played	O
using	O
the	O
GBA	B-Device
D-pad	B-Device
,	O
Diddy	B-Device
Kong	I-Device
Pilot	I-Device
allowed	O
players	O
to	O
control	O
the	O
characters	O
by	O
tilting	O
the	O
system	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
cartridge	O
contained	O
the	O
same	O
accelerometer	O
technology	O
used	O
in	O
Kirby	B-Application
Tilt	I-Application
'	I-Application
n	I-Application
 '	I-Application
Tumble	I-Application
(	O
2000	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rare	O
chose	O
to	O
focus	O
on	O
planes	O
rather	O
than	O
cars	O
because	O
it	O
wanted	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
stand	O
out	O
against	O
other	O
GBA	B-Device
racers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nintendo	O
aimed	O
to	O
release	O
Diddy	B-Device
Kong	I-Device
Pilot	I-Device
on	O
4	O
March	O
2002	O
,	O
but	O
became	O
concerned	O
with	O
its	O
quality	O
around	O
the	O
time	O
of	O
Space	O
World	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
programmer	O
recalled	O
that	O
Nintendo	O
felt	O
the	O
tilt	O
was	O
not	O
working	O
well	O
,	O
that	O
the	O
GBA	B-Device
LCD	B-Device
only	O
functioned	O
as	O
intended	O
when	O
aligned	O
with	O
a	O
light	O
source	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
a	O
racing	O
game	O
with	O
planes	O
was	O
pointless	O
without	O
a	O
3D	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
Microsoft	O
did	O
not	O
compete	O
in	O
the	O
handheld	O
market	O
,	O
the	O
buyout	O
did	O
not	O
affect	O
Rare	O
's	O
plans	O
to	O
produce	O
GBA	B-Device
games	O
,	O
but	O
it	O
lost	O
access	O
to	O
Nintendo	O
's	O
Mario	B-Application
and	O
Donkey	B-Application
Kong	I-Application
intellectual	O
property	O
(	O
IP	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
developing	O
the	O
GBA	B-Device
port	O
of	O
Donkey	B-Application
Kong	I-Application
Country	I-Application
2	I-Application
,	O
Rare	O
staff	O
were	O
told	O
they	O
needed	O
to	O
finish	O
Diddy	B-Device
Kong	I-Device
Pilot	I-Device
,	O
but	O
would	O
have	O
to	O
retool	O
it	O
using	O
elements	O
from	O
the	O
Banjo	O
series	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Banjo	O
was	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
IPs	O
Rare	O
retained	O
after	O
the	O
Microsoft	O
buyout	O
,	O
so	O
the	O
project	O
was	O
retitled	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
IP	O
change	O
came	O
to	O
light	O
in	O
July	O
2003	O
when	O
Microsoft	O
trademarked	O
the	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
title	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Staff	O
who	O
developed	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
64	I-Operating_System
(	O
N64	B-Operating_System
)	O
Banjo	O
games	O
had	O
little	O
involvement	O
,	O
but	O
the	O
lead	O
designer	O
supervised	O
to	O
make	O
sure	O
the	O
content	O
was	O
in	O
line	O
with	O
the	O
N64	B-Operating_System
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Both	O
the	O
Diddy	B-Device
Kong	I-Device
Pilot	I-Device
prototypes	B-Application
and	O
the	O
final	O
game	O
use	O
a	O
Mode	O
7-style	O
game	O
engine	O
,	O
but	O
at	O
one	O
point	O
Rare	O
switched	O
to	O
one	O
that	O
rendered	O
environments	O
using	O
voxels	B-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rare	O
quickly	O
discarded	O
the	O
voxel	B-Algorithm
engine	O
due	O
to	O
frame	O
rate	O
problems	O
that	O
arose	O
when	O
characters	O
and	O
weapons	O
were	O
added	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
11	O
August	O
2003	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
announced	O
it	O
would	O
collaborate	O
with	O
THQ	O
to	O
publish	O
Rare	O
's	O
GBA	B-Device
projects	O
,	O
including	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
,	O
Banjo-Kazooie	B-Device
:	I-Device
Grunty	I-Device
's	I-Device
Revenge	I-Device
(	O
2003	O
)	O
,	O
Sabre	B-Device
Wulf	I-Device
(	O
2004	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
It	O
's	O
Mr.	O
</s>
<s>
THQ	O
released	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
in	O
North	O
America	O
on	O
11	O
January	O
2005	O
and	O
in	O
Europe	O
on	O
18	O
February	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
prototype	B-Application
of	O
Diddy	B-Device
Kong	I-Device
Pilot	I-Device
leaked	O
online	O
in	O
2011	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Metacritic	O
,	O
a	O
video	O
game	O
review	B-Application
aggregator	I-Application
,	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
received	O
"	O
mixed	O
or	O
average	O
reviews	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
reviewers	O
thought	O
the	O
game	O
lacked	O
originality	O
and	O
believed	O
placing	O
the	O
characters	O
in	O
planes	O
was	O
not	O
enough	O
to	O
set	O
it	O
apart	O
from	O
other	O
kart	O
racing	O
games	O
on	O
the	O
GBA	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
NWR	O
believed	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
lacked	O
what	O
made	O
Rare	O
's	O
prior	O
racing	O
games	O
R.C.	O
</s>
<s>
Pro-Am	O
(	O
1988	O
)	O
and	O
Diddy	B-Application
Kong	I-Application
Racing	I-Application
great	O
,	O
while	O
VideoGamer.com	O
wrote	O
that	O
removing	O
Nintendo	O
characters	O
and	O
the	O
tilt	O
controls	O
prevented	O
the	O
game	O
from	O
bringing	O
innovation	O
to	O
the	O
kart	O
racing	O
genre	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
often	O
labelled	O
a	O
clone	O
of	O
Nintendo	O
's	O
Mario	B-Application
Kart	I-Application
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
critics	O
generally	O
felt	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
was	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
better	O
Mario	B-Application
Kart	I-Application
clones	O
—	O
Cubed3	O
and	O
IGN	O
both	O
called	O
it	O
the	O
second-best	O
GBA	B-Device
racer	O
after	O
Mario	B-Application
Kart	I-Application
:	I-Application
Super	I-Application
Circuit	I-Application
(	O
2001	O
)	O
—	O
they	O
wrote	O
that	O
players	O
would	O
be	O
better	O
off	O
playing	O
a	O
game	O
from	O
that	O
series	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Eurogamer	O
thought	O
players	O
should	O
try	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
before	O
deciding	O
to	O
buy	O
it	O
,	O
and	O
GameSpy	O
and	O
VideoGamer.com	O
said	O
there	O
was	O
no	O
reason	O
to	O
have	O
it	O
when	O
better	O
games	O
like	O
Mario	B-Application
Kart	I-Application
and	O
Konami	B-Application
Krazy	I-Application
Racers	I-Application
(	O
2001	O
)	O
were	O
already	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
GBA	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
IGN	O
,	O
on	O
the	O
other	O
hand	O
,	O
argued	O
that	O
the	O
similarities	O
to	O
Mario	B-Application
Kart	I-Application
were	O
not	O
necessarily	O
a	O
bad	O
thing	O
as	O
it	O
allowed	O
for	O
balanced	O
game	O
design	O
,	O
and	O
GameSpot	O
called	O
the	O
game	O
entertaining	O
and	O
favorably	O
compared	O
it	O
to	O
the	O
original	O
Super	B-Application
Mario	I-Application
Kart	I-Application
(	O
1992	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Eurogamer	O
and	O
VideoGamer.com	O
also	O
questioned	O
how	O
appealing	O
the	O
game	O
would	O
be	O
to	O
players	O
,	O
noting	O
characters	O
such	O
as	O
Banjo	O
were	O
relatively	O
obscure	O
and	O
would	O
likely	O
only	O
be	O
recognised	O
by	O
those	O
who	O
played	O
the	O
N64	B-Operating_System
Banjo	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reviewers	O
said	O
that	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
,	O
as	O
a	O
Mario	B-Application
Kart	I-Application
clone	O
,	O
was	O
fine	O
gameplay-wise	O
,	O
but	O
disagreed	O
over	O
whether	O
this	O
was	O
enough	O
to	O
make	O
it	O
a	O
successful	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
IGN	O
argued	O
Banjo-Pilot	B-Device
improved	O
upon	O
the	O
kart	O
racing	O
formula	O
because	O
of	O
its	O
new	O
features	O
and	O
believed	O
its	O
planes	O
controlled	O
better	O
than	O
go-karts	O
,	O
VideoGamer.com	O
said	O
the	O
game	O
modes	O
were	O
unfulfilling	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reviewers	O
from	O
Cubed3	O
,	O
GameZone	O
,	O
IGN	O
,	O
and	O
NWR	O
praised	O
the	O
controls	O
as	O
intuitive	O
and	O
simple	O
,	O
although	O
IGN	O
believed	O
they	O
"scream[ed]"	O
for	O
compatibility	O
with	O
an	O
analogue	B-Device
stick	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reviewers	O
singled	O
out	O
the	O
multiplayer	O
mode	O
as	O
a	O
highlight	O
,	O
with	O
GameSpot	O
and	O
GameZone	O
respectively	O
calling	O
it	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
strongest	O
feature	O
and	O
the	O
GBA	B-Device
's	O
best	O
since	O
The	B-Application
Legend	I-Application
of	I-Application
Zelda	I-Application
:	I-Application
Four	I-Application
Swords	I-Application
(	O
2002	O
)	O
,	O
although	O
Eurogamer	O
wrote	O
it	O
was	O
challenging	O
to	O
find	O
others	O
who	O
owned	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
difficulty	O
of	O
opponent	O
AI	B-Application
enraged	O
VideoGamer.com	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Cubed3	O
and	O
GameSpot	O
respectively	O
compared	O
them	O
to	O
that	O
of	O
a	O
low-end	O
N64	B-Operating_System
game	O
and	O
a	O
Mode	O
7	O
Super	B-Application
NES	I-Application
game	O
,	O
Eurogamer	O
felt	O
they	O
were	O
impressive	O
and	O
used	O
the	O
GBA	B-Device
's	O
otherwise	O
subpar	O
3D	O
capabilities	O
to	O
the	O
fullest	O
and	O
GameZone	O
called	O
them	O
eye-catching	O
.	O
</s>
