News Articles
Monday20th Nov 2023
Video What's Going On At Playtonic, The Studio Behind Yooka-Laylee?
A Rare find
It was almost 10 years ago that a group of former Rare developers got together and established Playtonic Games. This was a team consisting of many of the minds behind Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong Country, and other such classics, so when their first title, Yooka-Laylee was released in 2017, we were relieved to see that level of creativity...
Thursday27th Oct 2022
News Kao The Kangaroo Teams Up With Yooka-Laylee In Free DLC, Out Soon On Switch
And today on other platforms
Tate Multimedia is answering one of our most burning questions — what happens when you put a kangaroo, a chameleon, and a bat together? Well, you get some free DLC for Kao the Kangaroo. This free costume pack is a crossover between Playtonic's Yooka-Laylee and the Kao. Once you download the DLC — which is available...
Monday11th Apr 2022
News Playtonic Celebrates 5 Years of Yooka-Laylee, Teases Some "Surprises"
What could it be..?
It's been 5 whole years since Playtonic's Yooka-Laylee launched (albeit Switch owners needed to wait a bit longer) and the publisher is looking to celebrate the milestone throughout the day, even teasing some "surprises". We'll be sure to keep an eye on Playtonic's feed and update on anything worthwhile, but we're absolutely...
Wednesday23rd Mar 2022
News 'Yooka-Laylee' Creator Playtonic Expands With Second Studio
"We want to broaden our reach, without going too far"
Playtonic Games, the studio behind the Yooka-Laylee series, has opened a second office in the UK town of Leamington Spa. Playtonic – which was founded in 2015 by former Rare staffers – recently gained investment from the Chinese giant Tencent. It has released two games so far,
Sunday21st Nov 2021
News Playtonic's Original Yooka-Laylee Game Is Getting A Follow-Up Title
A new adventure is on the way
In a bit of a shock announcement earlier this week, Playtonic - the UK developer comprised of former Rare veterans and known for titles such as Yooka-Laylee - revealed Chinese video game giant Tencent had acquired a minority stake in the business. If it's got you wondering what's to come, in an interview with friends...
Friday12th Feb 2021
News Yooka-Laylee Studio Playtonic Celebrates Six Years In The Biz With New Publishing Label
"Playtonic Friends had been brewing as a serious ambition for a while"
Yooka-Laylee developer Playtonic turns six this year – and is marking the occasion by showing off a brand-new logo and by launching a new publishing label which aims to bring some of the world's best Indie games to market. Playtonic Friends is the name of the new label, and it...
Wednesday18th Nov 2020
News Yooka-Laylee Teams Up With GungHo's Volta-X For A New Collab
Update: Now live
Update: The Yooka-Laylee x Volta-X collab is now live! GungHo Online Entertainment America has shared all the details you need: Introducing the playable crewmate, Yooka (with sidekick Laylee on his back) and a new story mission. You can now experience new, character-specific skills and abilities once the loveable duo join your...
Wednesday5th Aug 2020
And we would go bananas for a new entry
If there's one series we would love to see make a return, it's gotta be Donkey Kong Country. The last mainline outing was the release of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze on the Wii U in 2014, and it was then enhanced for the Switch in 2018. So, who is willing to help out on a new Donkey Kong Country game?...
Sunday12th Apr 2020
News Yooka-Laylee Is Now Three Years Old
Happy Birthday!
Can you believe it? Playtonic's unlikely duo Yooka-Laylee is now three years old! The original game of the same name was first released on the 11th of April 2017 after a record-breaking Kickstarter campaign. And although it never saw the light of day on Nintendo's Wii U, it did eventually show up on the Switch. To celebrate this...
Thursday9th Apr 2020
News Yooka-Laylee And The Impossible Lair Update Makes The Final Stage Easier To Beat
And it's completely optional
The folks over at Playtonic Games have unleashed several announcements for the Yooka-Laylee series of games, including an important update for Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair. The first announcement regards Impossible Lair's erm... impossible lair, with a new update allowing players to dial down the difficulty if...
Friday13th Mar 2020
The perfect (Play)tonic
In these trying times we could all do with a some relief - a little pick-me-up to get us through the day. When we're feeling blue, throwing on some classic Rareware tunes from the likes of Donkey Kong Country and Banjo-Kazooie perks us up no end. As luck would have it, both composers behind those winners feature on the...
Tuesday8th Oct 2019
News Playtonic Is Adding Impossible Lair's N64 Tonic To The Original Yooka-Laylee Game
Retro glory
If you pre-ordered Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair, you'll get access to a special Yooka 64 Tonic. This formula makes the unlikely duo look like they were created during the Nintendo 64 era. It follows on from an update earlier this year, tha
Thursday6th Jun 2019
News Yooka-Laylee Dev Playtonic Games Teases New Game Reveal
And we won't have long to wait
Yooka-Laylee developer Playtonic Games looks set to share details on its next game as soon as tomorrow, according to a cheeky tease. Lovingly crafted from some of the creative talent behind games like Banjo-Kazooie and Donkey Kong Country, Yooka-Laylee is currently the first and only game from the UK-based studio...
Monday1st Apr 2019
News Yooka-Laylee's Demastered Nintendo 64 Mode Is Out Now On Switch
As a free update
Yooka-Laylee's Nintendo 64 mode is finally available on Nintendo Switch. You can see how it looks for yourself in the new trailer above. Originally teased as a Kickstarter stretch goal when the project was still in its infancy, this visual demake - known as the 64-Bit Tonic - has been a much-wanted feature for fans of the game. We...
Sunday30th Dec 2018
News Get A Surprise Switch Game In The Latest Limited Run Promotion
The thrill of the unknown
Limited Run is known for offering physical Switch games in limited supply. Its latest deal is a bit different from the usual offering. Available from 1st January 2019 for $29.99, the 2018 blind box promotion gives Switch owners the chance to purchase one surprise game and trading card from the company’s collection. In...
Saturday24th Nov 2018
News More Than One Million People Have Now Played Yooka-Laylee
A milestone for the unlikely duo
Yooka-Laylee originally began life as a Kickstarter project and went on to become the fastest video game project to reach the one million dollar mark on the crowd-funding platform. This followed with its eventual release on the Nintendo Switch and multiple other systems in 2017 According to a tweet by the official...
Wednesday14th Nov 2018
News Brains Behind Yooka-Laylee Demaster Wanted To Recreate "The Good Old Days"
Bringing back the past
For a while now, Playtonic has been busy working on a free N64-inspired visual update for Yooka-Laylee. In a recent Q and A on Playtonic's website, Technical Director Jens Restermeier - the brains behind the operation - spoke about ideas and challenges encountered along the way: When we decided we were going to implement...
Wednesday31st Oct 2018
News Physical Editions Of Yooka-Laylee And Golf Story Are Now Available To Pre-Order At Best Buy
Indie games, major store
If you love a good physical edition to add to your Switch collection, you'll probably be pleased to know that both Yooka-Laylee and Golf Story are now available to pre-order in physical form at Best Buy. Both games come courtesy of Limited Run Games which, up until now, exclusively released physical versions of indie games...
Thursday25th Oct 2018
Video Check Out Yooka-Laylee's Demastered Nintendo 64 Mode In Action
Coming soon to Switch
Playtonic Games has shared a brand new video for Yooka-Laylee, giving us a good look at the game's promised 64-bit mode. This demastered Nintendo 64-inspired mode has been promised for the game ever since the project first started out on Kickstarter. Players have had to wait for the mode to arrive for quite some time (our...
Wednesday17th Oct 2018
News The Next Yooka-Laylee Adventure Will Be A Crowd-Funded Graphic Novel
Kickstarter runs until 16th November
Yooka-Laylee started out life on Kickstarter and went on to become the fastest video game project to hit $1 million on the crowd-funding platform. Following their first outing on the Switch and multiple other systems, the bat and chameleon are now ready for their next adventure. The only catch is it'll take on...
Friday7th Sep 2018
News Yooka-Laylee Physical Editions Sell Out In Minutes, One Last Chance To Pre-Order Later Today
Times included for your region
You may remember that we recently reported on the much-awaited physical release editions of Yooka-Laylee on Switch. Including standard, classic, and 'Collectathon' bundles, the first batch of these went on sale earlier today, but all versions other than the standard one sold out in a matter of minutes. Limited Run...
Wednesday5th Sep 2018
News Limited Run Games' Yooka-Laylee Collector's Edition Available To Pre-Order On 7th September
Retro-inspired
If you want to relive the days of the Nintendo 64, Limited Run Games' retro-inspired Yooka-Laylee Collector's Edition might just be for you. Available to pre-order this Friday on 7th September, there'll be a total of 3,000 up for grabs. Each one contains Yooka-Laylee on Switch (the case & game), a retro-style Collector's...
Monday3rd Sep 2018
News Yooka-Laylee Physical Pre-Orders Have Been Delayed Until Friday, More Details To Come
Secure yours later this week
Just over a week ago, we reported on the news that Limited Run Games - a company which specialises in releasing indie games in physical form - was just about to open pre-orders for a physical edition of Yooka-Laylee. The previously announced date of 31st August has now been and gone, however, and pre-orders are still yet...
Saturday25th Aug 2018
News Limited Run Games Lists Yooka-Laylee And Dust On Website, Prepares For Pre-Orders
“Coming soon”
Physical video game specialist, Limited Run Games, has two new games listed as “coming soon” on its website. Previously revealed in June, these new titles are Dust: An Elysian Tale and Yooka-Laylee. Dust will cost $29.99 and pre-orders go live on 31st August. Playtonic?
Wednesday22nd Aug 2018
News Yooka-Laylee Is Ready For Battle In The New Brawlout Trailer
Fight!
In July, Angry Mob Games gave us a glimpse of the new Brawlout fighter, Yooka-Laylee. It was evident from the trailer, Playtonic's duo would feature their trademark attacks. This new Gamescom clip essentially shows more of the same. What's most interesting, though, is the part at the end
Saturday21st Jul 2018
News Yooka-Laylee Joins The Battle In Brawlout On Nintendo Switch
A new challenger has appeared!
If you didn’t pay much attention to Brawlout when it was originally released on the Switch eShop at the end of last year, perhaps now you will. Playtonic’s Yooka-Laylee has just been revealed as the latest guest fighter for the game. Based on the trailer below, it looks like the deadly duo will have all of...
Wednesday11th Jul 2018
News Here's Your First Look At Yooka-Laylee's Demastered Nintendo 64 Mode
From the age of 64 bits
Yooka-Laylee has already been out for a while, but that doesn't mean developer Playtonic Games has completely moved on from the chameleon and bat duo - in fact, the British studio is hard at work on the previously teased '64-bit tonic' mode that demasters the whole game so it looks like it's running on Nintendo 64...
Monday11th Jun 2018
News Limited Run Games Announces Eight New Physical Game Releases For Switch
Yooka Laylee, Golf Story and more
Limited Run Games - a video game distributor who lovingly releases some of the most loved indie titles in physical form - has just held its own E3 stream. During this stream, a staggering total of eight new Switch releases were announced, and we've got the full rundown below. Golf Story Title: Golf Story |...
Friday20th Apr 2018
News Limited Run Games Is Totally Down For A Physical Edition Of Yooka-Laylee
Come on, we all want this
Limited Run Games is helping bring some of Nintendo Switch's most beloved indie titles into the realm of boxed editions - check out its limited edition versions of Flinthook and Mercenary Kings Reloaded - but what about one of Switch's best platformers? What about Yooka-Laylee
Monday16th Apr 2018
News Looks Like Playtonic Is Ready To Reveal Its Next Game
Plus "extra content" for Yooka-Laylee
UK studio Playtonic has broken its silence to celebrate the first birthday of Yooka-Laylee, as well as hint that it's about to lift the lid on its next project. In a recent blog post, Playtonic said: Yes, hands up, we’ve been a bit quiet for a while. But we promise it’s because we’ve been far too busy...
