After Croc, Argonaut Games Wants To Remaster This N64 Cult Classic

Argonaut Games may be basking in the aftermath of the return of Croc, but the British-based developer isn’t done revisiting its back-catalogue just yet. The newly-revived studio, who returned last year after being dissolved in 2007, are particularly keen to revisit an N64 cult classic: Buck Bumble.

Speaking in the latest issue of the MCV Develop magazine (via VGC), CEO and co-founder Jez San and Mike Arkin listed off a handful of titles the team, originally called Argonaut Software, worked on during its initial stint — Starglider (“it’s my ‘first-born’” San explains) and I-Ninja both came up, but a certain third-person shooter stuck out to us, and others, the most.

“I-Ninja is a really well-regarded and underappreciated game and we’d love to revisit it. Buck Bumble too, but that was N64-only so less people know about it.” San continues, reminiscing about the studio’s output.

The reason Croc was chosen first was pretty obvious — it sold over 3 million copies when it launched on PlayStation and Sega Saturn in 1997 as it was “the first big platformer on the original PlayStation console”.

“It’s also got broad appeal, both to men and women. Croc really appealed to everyone. It was the obvious choice.” Concludes San, before Arkin jumps in to add yet another mention of the gun-wielding bee: “But we also hope that Buck Bumble will also have his day in the sun, eventually.”

Buck Bumble is a curious little game that launched in 1998 on the N64 only. Taking place in the surrounding area of a then-futuristic London (2010… yes, really), you play a bee who has voluntarily been implanted with cyborg technology.

You need to save the world from a group of genetically-enhanced insects called the Herd using various weapons such as a laser, a stun gun, and a guided missile. With 19 missions to blast your way through, a multiplayer mode, and gameplay designed with the Rumble Pak in mind, it’s a unique game from the N64’s life.

Oh, and the music is fantastic — it’s all speed garage, and all composed by Justin Scharvona, who posted the soundtrack on streaming services last year. Ahh, memories…

But we might be waiting for a while to see the return of Buck Bumble, as it sounds like the next obvious step for Argonaut Games is, well, extremely obvious: Croc 2.

“We’ve made no secret of the fact that if Croc does well in the market that the obvious next project is to remaster Croc 2,” Arkin states, revealing that the team is already in the early stages of bringing the sequel back. Bear in mind, though, that the team has only done some early R&D to “validate our approach” and it still needs the greenlight from the financial side.

So, we’ll have to wait and see. You’ll need to pick up a copy of the MVC Develop magazine yourself to check out the whole interview, but Buck Bumble is remembered fondly in Argonaut’s mind.

Have you played Buck Bumble? Would you like to see a remaster of this unusual game? Let us know in the comments.