The Fantastic Adventures Of Dizzy

The Fantastic Adventures of Dizzy is in my opinion, one of the stand out games on the NES, if not THE stand out game (Super Mario excluded). I picked this game up around 13 years ago, for £2, and it was easily my favourite Nintendo game because it offered a real challenge.

The game was released in 1991 by Codemasters onto what must have been at the time a record number of consoles. This game didnt only transcend platforms, but generations of platforms too, appearing on every Sega system at the time, 8 bit and 16 bit.

The game only sold 125,000 units on its release, considerably shorter than the projected 500,000 copies, however it went on to claim several awards that same year, cementing its place in gaming greatness.

Plot & Influences

The basic plot of the game is Dizzy's lady, Daisy, has been captured by the evil wizard Zaks and its up to him to rescue her. The only problem is all of Dizzy's friends have also had spells put on them (the world's most stereotypical spells to be fair) so he must save them too.

You must collect various items and use them in the correct locations in the game to advance and Dizzy has no special skills or moves so you face the whole game with just your brain and problem solving skills.

What is fun about this game?

• The game is very challenging. I will be honest and admit I never finished it on the NES but I always enjoyed playing it over and over trying to do it. Once you learn what a certain item is for then you will find your speed at clearing the earlier puzzles increases and with that you come closer and closer to finishing the game.

• The logic required in game is balanced with platform style action. The game requires you to focus on keeping Dizzy alive through nifty fingerwork but this is balanced with times when you can slow down to think logically and often with a huge amount of imagination in trying to figure out what an item does.

• There are plenty of in-game mini games to break the platformer mould once and in a while. These involve shooting a crossbow at a castle, riding a barrel down a river being chased by a troll and riding a mine cart into a mine. There is also a slider puzzle game, which if you complete, grants you a extra life. All of these mini games help keep you interested as they normally come after a section of the game where you have had to do a lot of back and forward running with items to unlock, so they are almost like an in-game holiday and everyone loves holidays!

The Fantastic Adventures Of Dizzy

The Fantastic Adventures Of Dizzy

Intro & Gameplay

Barrel Racing Mini Game

With a rather nifty remastered version of the original music.

Bubble Jumping Mini Game