20 Video Games With Cut Content That Change EVERYTHING
3. The Stop 'N' Swop - Banjo-Tooie
Even though Rare were renowned for their ambition, the British company bit off more than they could chew when it came to the Stop 'N' Swop mechanic in Banjo-Tooie, originally released for the Nintendo 64.
Rare came up with this idea after learning RAM data remained on the N64 for a few seconds after it was powered off. With this in mind, the developers believed it was feasible to transfer the lingering data to another game if a cartridge was quickly swapped out for another.
By switching between Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie, players could theoretically access hidden content in both titles, most notably, the coloured eggs and the Ice Key teased in the first game's secret ending. Such a system had never been done before, so fans were deeply curious how Rare would pull it off.
Little did Rare know Nintendo had revised N64 hardware, shortening the RAM retention time, making the Stop 'N' Swop idea impractical. Nintendo also worried this technique could irreparably damage the console's hardware, pressurising Rare to abandon it entirely.
Fortunately, a revised version of the mechanic was utilised when Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie were re-released on the Xbox Live Arcade, allowing Stop 'N' Swop to finally come to fruition.