Banjo-Kazooie is one of those N64 games that just oozes personality from the second you boot it up. You play as Banjo, a chill bear with a backpack, and his sassy bird buddy Kazooie—who basically does all the talking (and most of the sarcasm). The whole thing starts with Gruntilda, this hilariously vain witch, kidnapping Banjo's sister because... well, she's jealous of her looks? Classic villain logic.

The worlds are these weird, colorful playgrounds—like a pirate cove where you get shot out of cannons, or a desert level where you ride around in a giant sandcastle. At first, you're just jumping and pecking stuff, but then Kazooie starts learning new moves like the "wonderwing" (basically invincibility with feathers) and suddenly you're backtracking through earlier areas like "ohhh, THAT'S what that weird ledge was for."

It's got that perfect mix of dumb jokes (Gruntilda's rhyming taunts are ridiculous) and surprisingly tight platforming. The music’s catchy as hell too—good luck getting the main theme out of your head. If you missed this one back in the day, it’s aged way better than most N64 games.