Characters of the Collect-a-Thons Quiz

Answer: Banjo

Originating in the Nintendo 64 game "Diddy Kong Racing", Banjo the Bear became the star of his own platformer by Rare in 1998, a standard for collect-a-thons when it released to acclaim. "Banjo-Kazooie" had Banjo and his bird friend, Kazooie, travelling around themed worlds collecting Jiggies (to make pictures and access worlds), Musical Notes (to open doors deeper in Gruntilda's Lair), Jinjos, Eggs, Feathers, and more.

The game was so successful that a sequel, "Banjo-Tooie", was released in 2000 on the same console. Rare would take the franchise with them to the Xbox 360 later on.

Answer: Five

Although "Donkey Kong 64" leads in with only Donkey Kong in your roster, it shouldn't take long to realize that he's only able to collect items attributed to him (yellow bananas, for instance). The other colours of items can be picked up by other Kongs unlocked throughout the game's first three major stages-- Diddy (red), Lanky (blue), Tiny (purple), and Chunky (green). Made by Rare and released in 1999, "Donkey Kong 64" was considered the gold standard for collect-a-thons, leveraging the N64 Expansion Pak to broaden the size of the game.

Answer: Chameleon

While Rare would get taken in by Microsoft for the Xbox 360's run, developers of the original major collect-a-thons would create Playtonic Games in the mid-2010s and Kickstart funding for a new game in the vein of the originals. This is how "Yooka-Laylee" was created. Releasing in 2017 and meant to be a faithful homage and elaboration on "Banjo-Kazooie", it featured a new duo-- a chameleon and a bat-- travelling around different worlds collecting Pagies (magical book pages) to open new worlds. A sequel, "Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair", was released in 2019.

Answer: Hat Kid

Platformers really came back for a resurgence in 2017, and "A Hat in Time" was near the top of the pile. Funded through Kickstarter (not unlike "Yooka-Laylee"), "A Hat in Time" was a slick and cartoony collect-a-thon in which players could take Hat Kid through a series of thematic worlds picking up Time Pieces to advance through the adventure. Though the collection of these items is limited to under five dozen, the game has longevity through player-created levels, DLC stages, and additional challenges designed to test your capabilities as the main character, unlocked through (you guessed it) more collectibles.

Answer: Remote controls

Showing up in three self-titled games across the late 1990s, "Gex" was a short-lived lead character who travelled through different TV show and movie settings collecting remote controls that allowed him to open new parts of the overworld and continue deeper into the media madness.

The charm behind these games was in the humour and homages. On one hand, Gex had the quips of an early '90s stand-up comedian; on the other hand, players could venture into levels themed around "Titanic", then a cinematic phenomenon.

It was very of its time...and somehow just past it.

Answer: Spyro

First appearing in a trilogy of games for the PlayStation, Spyro was one of Sony's biggest assets at the turn of the century even if his propensity for collect-a-thons didn't evolve with him. In the original games, Spyro's main goal involved traversing 3D stages with the aim of freeing his dragon kin (all with their own unique names) from imprisonment. Eventually, the "Spyro" games evolved and shifted consoles; he would become a key figure in the "Skylanders" series and cross into the "Crash Bandicoot" universe at times.

Answer: Super Mario Sunshine

Though Mario has featured in platformer collect-a-thons since the early days of the Nintendo 64, "Super Mario Sunshine", his key Gamecube offering, sent him to the sunny Isle Delfino on vacation only to thrust him into another big adventure against Bowser. Framed for a crime he didn't commit, Mario was tasked with using a cleaning device known as F.L.U.D.D. to wash away the vandalism around the island's many regions. Along the way, Shine Sprites would allow him to proceed to other reaches en route to the final confrontation in Corona Volcano. "Super Mario Sunshine" came out in 2002.

Answer: Snake Pass

Created in a spark of creative genius, "Snake Pass" is a unique platformer and collect-a-thon in that its playable character, Noodle the Snake, is subject to physics that most protagonists aren't in these types of games. As a snake, Noodle needs to navigate worlds and collect items to advance, but he has to do so with the determination befitting his form; he has to spiral up bamboo, slink from destination to destination, grip logically to avoid falling, and so on. Though rewarding, the game naturally comes with a bit of a learning curve in the way of controls.

Answer: Lego Luke Skywalker

Starting in the mid-2000s, the "Lego" video games pushed past the generic classics like "Lego Island" and started leveraging mega-popular intellectual properties of the time like "Star Wars" and "Harry Potter", bringing their key branded lines to the virtual space. With that, of course, new collect-a-thons popped up like mad starting with "Lego Star Wars" in 2005 and continuing with "Lego Indiana Jones" (2008), "Lego Batman" (2008), "Lego Harry Potter" (2010), "Lego Pirates of the Caribbean" (2011), "Lego The Lord of the Rings" (2012) and on and on.

The collectables in these games were everything not glued down; players hoarded bricks, bits, and other pieces to unlock levels, characters, outfits, and more in each game.

Answer: Lucky

After the release of "Lucky's Tale" on the virtual reality-based Oculus Rift, "Super Lucky's Tale" was developed in 2017 as a PC/Xbox One platformer starring the same fox protagonist. An homage to classic collect-a-thons, the game had players searching for coins and Clovers to unlock worlds from each of the major world hubs en route to the final boss, a cat named Jinx, waiting at the end of the game. Up against other second-wave collect-a-thons of the era like "A Hat in Time" and "Yooka-Laylee", it might just be the hidden gem to add to the collection.