The Ancient Ones

In the Banjo-Kazooie series, the Ancient Ones are known as a group of huge golden statues that bear a striking resemblance to the game’s protagonist, Banjo. These statues can be found in the sixth playable world, Gobi’s Valley, which is an expansive desert area in the game. As Banjo and Kazooie explore this area, they will encounter the first of the Ancient Ones rising from the ground between Jinxy and Rubee’s Pyramid. To progress through this part of the game the protagonists must fly through the ring on the head of the Ancient One using the Flight Pad that can be found on Jinxy’s back. Upon doing so, the next golden statue will appear, and the duo must repeat this process for all four Ancient One statues to receive a golden Jiggy. Interestingly, the Ancient Ones seem to be pranksters, as they mislead the protagonists by claiming that flying through all of the rings will defeat the wicked witch Gruntilda Winkybunion, the game’s main antagonist. After the protagonists complete the task the Ancient Ones reveal that they were kidding and reward them with the Jiggy. One theory suggests that the Ancient Ones may be Banjo’s great ancestors due to their striking resemblance to the protagonist. Their blue eyes, ring on their head, and blue and gold striped design on their face also contribute to this theory. It is worth noting that the hexagon ring on top of the Ancient Ones’ head is absent in the speaking icon, which could mean that their previous look in an early version of the game may have had no ring on the head and players had to complete another mission to earn a Jiggy instead of flying through the rings. Nonetheless, the Ancient Ones remain a fascinating and mysterious element of the Banjo-Kazooie universe.