Banjo-Kazooie heading to the Xbox LIVE Arcade.

It's something that has been rumored for a while. Since 2002, Rareware, the studio behind the Donkey Kong Country and Banjo Kazooie series has been exclusively developing for the Microsoft home platforms, with the Nintendo handhelds being the only exception. It seems that now Rareware's classic titles are now making the jump over to the Xbox systems, with Rare revealing that the original Banjo Kazooie for the Nintendo 64 will be releasing on the Xbox LIVE Arcade, likely before Banjo Kazooie Nuts n' Bolts releases.

Rare was scarce on details, but they did mention that the game will feature slightly touched up visuals, possibly a smoother frame rate and an XBLA leader board. Apart from that, the game will remain "untouched". There were also hints that the "Stop n' Swap" feature will make a return, but it's currently unconfirmed.

This could also mean that future Rare Nintendo 64 games will appear on this service, such as Conker's Bad Fur Day, Perfect Dark and of course, Golden Eye 007. Are Rare's games locked to Microsoft now or does Nintendo have an announcement to make as well? Unfortunately, we can't make any assumptions that it's Xbox only, but we'll keep you posted.