Yooka-Laylee the game play.

Yooka-Laylee the game play.

  Yooka-Laylee is an upcoming action-adventure platforming video game for Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, PlayStation 4, Wii U and Xbox One with an expected release window of early 2017. It is being developed using the game engine Unity by Playtonic Games, a group of several former key personnel from Rare during the Nintendo 64 era, as a spiritual successor to their game series Banjo-Kazooie. Among them, Banjo-Kazooie designers Chris Sutherland, Steve Mayles and Steven Hurst reprise their respective roles of lead programmer and voice actor, character artist, and environmental artist. Grant Kirkhope also returns as composer.

   Gameplay bears resemblance to Banjo-Kazooie, featuring items and characters that play similar roles to those found in that game and its sequel, Banjo-Tooie. The player controls a male chameleon named Yooka, who is being described as "sensible", and likewise controls a female bat named Laylee, who is being described as "a little bit crazy" The game is intended as a resurrection and modernization of the "collectathon" 3D platforming game genre of the late 1990s and early 2000s, with an emphasis on progression by collecting various different items. During their adventures, Yooka and Laylee will explore worlds contained within magical books and complete challenges to collect "Pagies": golden book pages that act as the main currency in the game. Players can use their Pagies to either unlock new worlds or expand those which have already been unlocked.^[7] Each world will contain a boss battle.

The characters abilities will include "sonar blasting", "tongue whipping", "sky soaring", eating berries for temporary powers such as fire breath, and a "fart bubble" for breathing underwater; most of these abilities use a power meter that is filled by collecting butterflies (which can be eaten instead to restore health) and are earned by collecting enough quills (200 are in each level) to purchase them from Trowzer, a one-eyed snake salesman who wears pants^[] Atoms known as Mollycools are used in order help an octopus-like scientist named Dr. Puzz give Yooka and Laylee various transformations that grant them exclusive abilities. Play Tonics are RPG-style ability modifiers that are purchased from Vendi, a living vending machine, and equipped to modify or enhance players' ability stats. Also found in the levels are Ghost Writers, collectible characters who provide various challenges like catching or fighting them for more activities, and Play Tokens, which are used to play the secret arcade games that are found once per level, hosted by a low polygon T. rex named Rextro Sixtyfourus, a homage to the Nintendo 64. There will be a "quiz show challenge" featured before the final boss, similar to the Banjo-Kazooie games. Furthermore, 2D and 3D "mine cart" sequences will be included, similar to those of Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong 64.

The game will feature a local cooperative multiplayer mode for two players. There will also be a 2–4 player adversarial local multiplayer mode with eight different minigames.