I think just about everyone who is able to hold a video game controller knows that, when Microsoft acquired Rare back in the early 2000’s, the company never lived up to their past successes. This company’s last few games developed are Kinect Sports, Kinect Sports: Season Two and Kinect Sports Rivals. 

Pretty smelly, right?

Well, these are the same dudes that were once responsible for such classics as the Donkey Kong Country series, Golden 007, and Banjo Kazooie, to name a few. So, what in God’s name has happened to this once-great developer? 

Who knows and he won’t tell me.

However, Xbox head Phil Spencer has gone on record that the once great developer Rare will not remain a creator of only Kinect games. He said the following to CVG at Gamescom:

“I think it’s about them thinking about the next game that’s going to be the next ‘Rare game’ and really stand for what they are. I know they’ve got some great ideas. I’ve not been up to Twycross for maybe six months, but I’m planning on getting up there this fall and seeing bits for the new game. But I know they’re hard at work and Phil Harrison has been up talking to them.”

He goes on to conclude that can be much more than Kinect devs:

“I don’t want the Rare brand to mean Kinect Sports. The Rare brand can be more valuable to them, to us and to gamers than that.”

I think just about anyone on planet Earth would rather have another actual Rare game along the lines of Banjo Kazooie than another crappy Kinect game, so the fact that Xbox will at least acknowledge that that isn’t where they want the developer to remain is good news. Considering the kinect has just been dropped from a new version of Xbox One consoles, maybe the focus is coming off Kinect and this will give them more time to work on something worthwhile.

I hope.