I'm pretty sure Banjo-Kazooie was to the modern platformer what Goldeneye was to the modern FPS, and they both came from Rare.
Mario 64 gave it the basic engine of course, but what Rare did with it is above and beyond, you should really get around to it. They're some of the best game ever made, especially the first one. This new one is going to be amazing.
I just spent a good while messing around on the test track, it's so much fun. You can make your own vehicle from scratch or use a ready-made chassis and add bits to it.
Definitely download the demo, it's free.
