Argonaut Games has all but confirmed that a remake of Buck Bumble is on the way, posting a teaser on Bluesky that shows off a newly hi-res version of the forgotten 1998 Nintendo 64 shooter and its logo, alongside a very pointed “stay tuned.”
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From Croc to a cyborg bee: Argonaut's revival strategy
Argonaut Games has a history worth revisiting. The British studio was responsible for the original Star Fox on Super Nintendo, a Ren & Stimpy game, and the beloved 3D platformer Croc: Legend of the Gobbos. The studio shut down in 2007, then founder Jez San brought it back in 2024 specifically to remaster Croc. That remaster landed on Steam and, by all accounts, people genuinely liked it.
Here's the thing: Croc was a recognisable name. Buck Bumble very much was not. The 1998 N64 third-person shooter cast players as a cyborg bumblebee tasked with fighting off a mutant insect invasion in a fictional version of London set in 2010. It received middling reviews at the time and quietly faded from memory. Most people who owned an N64 would struggle to place it in a lineup.
That makes Argonaut's apparent decision to revive it genuinely surprising, and also kind of admirable.
What the Bluesky tease actually shows
The official Argonaut Games Bluesky account posted on April 21 with the caption: "Right about now Buck Bumble is officially your new wholesome 4/20 mascot, and we will not be taking further questions ...at this time. But stay tuned and BEE sure to follow us for forthcoming news and announcements!"
The accompanying video features a noticeably high-resolution version of Buck Bumble himself and a freshly rendered logo. No platform, no release window, no price. Just a very deliberate tease from a studio that has already proven it knows how to bring its dormant back catalogue back to life.
Argonaut had actually signalled interest in Buck Bumble as far back as last year, when the studio mentioned wanting to revisit the property alongside the Croc remaster's release. This week's post looks like that idea has moved well past the "wouldn't it be nice" stage.
Why Buck Bumble of all things
The original game was never a classic. Its fog-heavy levels, airborne third-person shooting, and collectible-stuffed design were fairly standard for the N64 era, and contemporary reviews reflected that. But Buck Bumble does have one thing going for it that money cannot buy: an absurdly catchy main menu theme that has lived rent-free in the heads of everyone who heard it for the past 27 years.
For Argonaut, the calculation probably looks similar to the one that made the Croc remaster viable. These are properties the studio actually owns, built by people who remember making them. Remastering a niche N64 game costs considerably less than building something from scratch, and nostalgia for late-90s console gaming is genuinely strong right now. The Croc remaster proved there is an audience willing to pay for a cleaned-up version of something they half-remember from childhood.
Buck Bumble sits in an interesting spot: obscure enough that a remake feels like a genuine surprise, but not so forgotten that nobody cares. That sweet spot is exactly where cult revivals tend to land.
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