Rare may now work for Microsoft but its history is embedded in Nintendo. Titles like Donkey Kong Country, Banjo-Kazooie, and Conker’s Bad Fur Day are all staples of Rare’s glory days. As iconic as its games is Rare’s old logo. I love watching it materialize through code whenever I boot up DKC on my SNES Mini. What I never knew, however, is that the logo’s design owes its existence to toilet paper rolls.
Toilet paper = World famous company
A fan of Rare recently asked former developer/artist, Kevin Bayliss, about the creation of the golden emblem on Twitter:
I did the Gokden Toilet roll, on the blue background, and then the updated simpler ‘R’ logo which appeared years later.
— Kev Bayliss (@FulgoreAndMore) June 25, 2019
Everything I thought I knew is a lie.
Lest you think Kevin is taking the piss, take a look at the intro to Xbox’s Conker: Live & Reloaded, the surprisingly tamer remake of the N64 original:
Now that I have this information locked away in my brain forever, I can’t NOT see toilet paper when I gaze upon the image of my childhood. Thanks a lot, Kevin. Always remember, some things are better left as mysteries.
Fellow gamers, how are you processing this toilet paper information? A feeling of surprise? Did you already know? Inform us by leaving your thoughts in the comment field below.
