HyperMegaTech's Super Pocket handheld Rare Edition, launched this month, ships with a surprise for fans of Rare's Banjo-Kazooie beyond the device's curated library of 14 classic titles.
In addition to the included games, players and preservationists have uncovered a hidden music player that contains more than 20 previously unused tracks tied to the Banjo-Kazooie series.
The discovery was reported on social media by Banjo-Kazooie series speedrunner and glitch hunter TSR Stormed, who has dumped the audio into a public YouTube playlist.
According to TSR Stormed, the music player becomes accessible after unlocking one of the Stop 'n' Swop items following game completion and houses a large collection of unheard beta tracks, many of which resemble early level themes for locations later seen in Banjo-Tooie.
Tracks identified in the collection include early iterations of themes for Mumbo Mountain, Freezeezy Peak, and Treasure Trove Cove.
The compilation also contains music for scrapped or reworked areas — such as a Funfair that likely influenced Witchyworld, a discarded lava-themed area related to later Hailfire Peaks content, and an Atlantis-like composition with echoes of Jolly Roger's Lagoon in Tooie.
Grant Kirkhope, the original composer for Banjo-Kazooie, acknowledged the find and indicated he believes the discovery is authentic.
He also noted that he could not immediately recall the precise contents of the archive, a reasonable caveat given Banjo-Kazooie's original release on Nintendo 64 in 1998.
Beyond the hidden audio, the Super Pocket Rare Edition introduces a few gameplay and presentation tweaks to accommodate the handheld form factor: a dedicated tiptoe button replaces analogue-stick input for stealth movement, and the game's opening menu swaps the original Game Boy image for a Super Pocket emblem.
These changes were highlighted alongside coverage from outlets including VGC and Time Extension; in Time Extension's review of the hardware, the Super Pocket Rare Edition received a 9/10 and was described as a solid portable option for taking Banjo and Kazooie on the road.
For preservation-minded players and fans of Rare's soundtrack work, the Super Pocket's buried music player is a concrete example of how contemporary re-releases and dedicated hardware can surface archival material.
The ripped tracks are currently available to listen to via the playlist posted by TSR Stormed, and outlets such as VGC have documented the find.
In addition to the included games, players and preservationists have uncovered a hidden music player that contains more than 20 previously unused tracks tied to the Banjo-Kazooie series.
The discovery was reported on social media by Banjo-Kazooie series speedrunner and glitch hunter TSR Stormed, who has dumped the audio into a public YouTube playlist.
According to TSR Stormed, the music player becomes accessible after unlocking one of the Stop 'n' Swop items following game completion and houses a large collection of unheard beta tracks, many of which resemble early level themes for locations later seen in Banjo-Tooie.
Tracks identified in the collection include early iterations of themes for Mumbo Mountain, Freezeezy Peak, and Treasure Trove Cove.
The compilation also contains music for scrapped or reworked areas — such as a Funfair that likely influenced Witchyworld, a discarded lava-themed area related to later Hailfire Peaks content, and an Atlantis-like composition with echoes of Jolly Roger's Lagoon in Tooie.
Grant Kirkhope, the original composer for Banjo-Kazooie, acknowledged the find and indicated he believes the discovery is authentic.
He also noted that he could not immediately recall the precise contents of the archive, a reasonable caveat given Banjo-Kazooie's original release on Nintendo 64 in 1998.
Beyond the hidden audio, the Super Pocket Rare Edition introduces a few gameplay and presentation tweaks to accommodate the handheld form factor: a dedicated tiptoe button replaces analogue-stick input for stealth movement, and the game's opening menu swaps the original Game Boy image for a Super Pocket emblem.
These changes were highlighted alongside coverage from outlets including VGC and Time Extension; in Time Extension's review of the hardware, the Super Pocket Rare Edition received a 9/10 and was described as a solid portable option for taking Banjo and Kazooie on the road.
For preservation-minded players and fans of Rare's soundtrack work, the Super Pocket's buried music player is a concrete example of how contemporary re-releases and dedicated hardware can surface archival material.
The ripped tracks are currently available to listen to via the playlist posted by TSR Stormed, and outlets such as VGC have documented the find.
