Need a break from blood, guts and glory? Today, the eagerly awaited platformer, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts will hit North American stores. The game will retail for $39.99 and is rated E 10+.

Take charge of Banjo as he and Kazooie face off against Gruntilda, the evil witch to see who will win possession of Spiral Mountain. The Lord of Games (L.O.G.) has made it his mission to end the feud by creating puzzles that Gruntilda and Banjo/Kazooie have to battle to solve in order to win their prize.

The puzzles are spread out in 6 different worlds, each having their own obstacles. It's your mission to use parts you've collected to build vehicles that Banjo can use to get him from one point to the next through the air, land or sea. You can also use existing vehicles and build onto them to meet the unique challenges.

As well as single player, Banjo-Kazooie now has a multiplayer mode that allows up to 8 people to play together over Xbox LIVE. You can compete in game modes such as Sumo, Soccer and Queen of the Knoll. Not only that, but you can also upload blueprints of your vehicles to the Banjo-Kazooie community website.

Also, ripped from the press release:

As a special treat, on November 23, players will get the opportunity to go head-to-head against the developers of “Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts” at Rare. A dozen artists and designers will join in the multiplayer competitions from 3-5 p.m. EST on Xbox LIVE, including Gregg Mayles, Rare’s head of design, and Salvatore Fileccia, Rare’s lead software engineer. All members of the “Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts” development team will be distinguishable by their unique Banjo characters, which will be sporting a stylish pair of sunglasses, and those who get the chance to battle against Rare team members will unlock a special Achievement.

Have fun!