Line #35 VideoGame/Dizzy


1	[[quoteright:288:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fantasy_world_dizzy.png]]
2
3	''Dizzy'' is a series of Action-Adventure games created by Andrew Nicholas Oliver and Philip Edward Oliver, also known as the Oliver Twins, and released by Creator/{{Codemasters}} in the UK during the mid [[TheEighties 1980s]] to early [[TheNineties 1990s]]. Most of the games were developed for the home computers systems of the time, though some (unlicensed) console ports were made.
4
5	The games concern the various adventures of Dizzy, a member of a race of egg-people called the Yolkfolk who live in a HighFantasy world of dragons, trolls and [[TreeTopTown treetop villages]]. Most of his adventures involved saving his fellow Yolkfolk from peril or escaping a dangerous land.
6
7	To solve his various problems Dizzy picks up a variety of strange items and when he's found the proper place to use them, drops them again. As he can [[InventoryManagementPuzzle only carry a few items at a time]], though, the player is frequently forced to [[FetchQuest walk from one side of the map to the other to get something useful]].
8
9	''Fantasy World Dizzy'', the third game in the series, is famously adored by [[WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw]] - if ironically and through a heavy dose of NostalgiaFilter. (He does a LetsPlay of the game on his blog: [[http://fullyramblomatic-yahtzee.blogspot.com/2012/02/eggs-on-legs.html Part 1,]] [[http://fullyramblomatic-yahtzee.blogspot.com/2012/02/eggs-on-additional-legs.html Part 2.]]) WebVideo/StuartAshen is a fan of ''Treasure Island Dizzy'', the second game in the series, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-RCHyWcfIU as he points out here.]]
10
11	[[folder:Games in this series]]
12	The main games of the series are all adventure games:
13	# ''Dizzy – The Ultimate Cartoon Adventure'' (June, 1987)
14	# ''Treasure Island Dizzy'' (August, 1987)
15	# ''Fantasy World Dizzy'' (1989)
16	# ''Magicland Dizzy'' (1990)
17	# ''Spellbound Dizzy'' (1990)
18	# ''Fantastic Dizzy'' (1991)
19	# ''Dizzy Prince of the Yolkfolk'' (December, 1991) (released as ''Dizzy the Adventurer'' on the NES)
20	# ''Crystal Kingdom Dizzy'' (1992)
21	# ''Wonderland Dizzy'' (reworked version of ''Magicland''; intended for 1993, but ultimately released online in 2015)
22	# ''Wonderful Dizzy'' (2020)
23
24	There were also spin-off games, featuring Dizzy but belonging to other genres:
25	* ''Fast Food'' (December, 1987). A MazeGame.
26	* ''Kwik Snax'' (November, 1990). A MazeGame, sequel to the above.
27	* ''Dizzy Panic!'' (May, 1990). A PuzzleGame.
28	* ''Bubble Dizzy'' (November, 1990). An unfortunate encounter with pirates leaves Dizzy literally underwater. Dizzy has to use bubbles to float back to the surface from the bottom of the sea.
29	* ''Dizzy Down the Rapids'' (April, 1991). Essentially an obstacle course game. Dizzy rides barrels down the river and has to avoid various hazards.
30	* ''Go! Dizzy Go!''. A MazeGame. Only released on the compilations ''Quattro Arcade'' and ''The Excellent Dizzy Collection''.
31	[[/folder]]
32	----
33	!!''Dizzy'' provides examples of:
34	* AddedAlliterativeAppeal: All but one of the Yolkfolk: Dizzy, Daisy, Dora, Dylan, Denzil, Dozy... and Grand-Dizzy.
35	* AndroclesLion: A lion with a thorn in his paw appears in ''Prince of the Yolkfolk''. He subverts the trope in that there's nothing he can do to help Dizzy in return for removing the thorn. The thorn, however, proves vital to Dizzy's success.
36	* ArtisticLicensePhysics: ''Bubble Dizzy'''s eponymous bubbles can somehow burst underwater.
37	* AttractMode: ''Prince of the Yolkfolk'' shows a standard demo mode if you wait a short time before starting the game.
38	* BorderOccupyingDecorations: ''Treasure Island Dizzy'' has a border. Outside the border are palm trees outside the border on the left and right, ground below the game window.
39	* BorderPatrol: The Harpy's Erie in ''Magicland''. The Harpy is there purely to ensure that you don't go too high on the puffs of volcanic steam.
40	* TheCameo: CJ, an elephant character from two Codemasters platform games, pops up in ''Crystal Kingdom Dizzy''.
41	* CatchingSomeZs: Dozy frequently has Zs flying above him since he sleeps a lot.
42	* {{Cephalothorax}}: All of the Yolkfolk are these.
43	* CompilationRerelease: ''The Excellent Dizzy Collection'' on UsefulNotes/GameGear contains ''Dizzy the Adventurer'', ''Panic Dizzy'', and ''Go! Dizzy Go!''.
44	* CoolShades: Denzil wears them.
45	* CrystalBall: Zaks the wizard uses a crystal ball to spy on Dizzy and Daisy in ''Prince of the Yolkfolk''.
46	* DamselInDistress: Daisy's usual role. To some extent, the rest of the Yolkfolk.
47	* EggFolk: The main character and his people are eggs known as yolk folk.
48	* EverythingTryingToKillYou: In ''Fantastic Dizzy'', Dizzy can't kill anything, but ''everything'' (even seemingly innocuous things like butterflies and drops of water) does damage to him.
49	* EvilSorcerer: Zaks the wizard, the villain of a few games.
50	* EvilTwin: The Dizzy Doppleganger. In the Amiga games he's distinguished by having green gloves and boots and glowing red eyes.
51	* FanSequel: Several. One has Dizzy as a contestant on ''Series/{{Knightmare}}''!
52	* FetchQuest: Most of the games revolved around carrying objects from one end of the map to the other.
53	** A real pain in ''The Ultimate Cartoon Adventure'' where you could only carry one item at a time: Get the diamond, cross the entire map, cut the glass, cross the entire map ''again'', get the dagger, cross the entire map ''yet again'', cut the rope to release the raft....
54	** ''Magicland Dizzy'' was a particular offender; the official helpline ("calls cost 36p per minute during off peak time") even recommended starting the game by fetching as many items as possible and dropping them in a central location for easy access; specifically in Prince Charming's throne room, which is more or less central.
55	** In ''Spellbound Dizzy'' you need to be carrying rocks to access half the rooms. You have to have the right number for the room you want to access, you can't put them down or they smash... oh, but you have to put them down or you [[InventoryManagementPuzzle can't pick up anything else]] or exit the room. Roughly half the game is spent just going back and forth to get more rocks. ARG.
56	** The GrandFinale of almost every single game usually involves a map-long Fetch Quest from one end to the other, usually as far as it's possible to go, and usually back again. (''Magic Land'', for example; go to Hades, get Wizardslayer Trident; traverse map to the top of the Ice Tower, use Trident, get Zaks' Ring; traverse map back to The Cracks Of Gehenna, [[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings throw Ring into lava]]. Then start hunting for the [[LastLousyPoint Last Lousy Diamond...]])
57	* TheFerryman: ''Prince of the Yolkfolk'' has a ferryman who doesn't actually take Dizzy through the river Styx, but he does ask for gold to let pass after he travels through it. Once Dizzy pays, he can pass and use the boat freely. The NES version makes him look less like a typical Charon-like ferryman, though.
58	* FloatingContinent: Rereleased versions of ''Treasure Island Dizzy'' featured "The Island in the Sky", which was low enough for Dizzy to be able to reach by pogo-stick.
59	* FluffyTheTerrible: Trolls are terrified of Pogie the Fluffle.
60	* GaidenGame: This series got some very odd spinoffs, including ''Fast Food'' (a sort of ''VideoGame/PacMan'' clone) and ''Dizzy Down The Rapids'' (a ''VideoGame/{{Toobin}}''' clone.)
61	* GameBreakingBug (or possibly a GoodBadBug): ''Treasure Island Dizzy'' in particular would sometimes misload, giving you mysterious floating scenery, jumbled music and holes in the floor. You could still walk around and explore, but would inevitably end up either freezing the game or falling through one of the holes and tumbling through the sky forever.
62	* HyperactiveMetabolism: Dizzy would eat fruit to recover from damage in ''Fantastic Dizzy''.
63	* IcePalace: Two! In ''Magicland'' and ''Crystal Kingdom''.
64	* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Dizzy kills Zaks this way using the (rather conveniently-themed) Wizardslayer Trident in ''Magicland Dizzy''. However, since [[SoulJar he has his soul sealed in a ring that's left behind after he vanishes]], he doesn't truly die until [[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings you take the ring and throw it into a lava pit]].
65	* InterfaceScrew: You travel through the looking glass for a couple of screens in ''Magicland Dizzy'', and the left-right controls promptly switch.
66	** Similarly, in ''Fantasy World Dizzy'' there's an upside down world. Of course, if you're using a PC emulator, you can just Ctrl-Alt-Down your screen to flip it...
67	* InventoryManagementPuzzle: Pervades throughout the series, but the strict FIFO system in ''Treasure Island Dizzy'' is particularly heinous. Especially as a bug in the system would ''occasionally'' make you drop two items at once...
68	** One thing that caught players out often in ''Treasure Island Dizzy'' was accidentally removing the snorkel when cycling through their held items when underwater, which would cause instant death via Dizzy's SuperDrowningSkills.
69	* JokeItem: The "Sinclair Abuser Mag" in ''Treasure Island Dizzy'' is completely useless, although you get a points bonus if you drop it in the sea. This is a reference and a TakeThat to ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinclair_User Sinclair User]]'' magazine, which gave its predecessor game a poor review.
70	* KleptomaniacHero: Addressed in ''Wonderful Dizzy'', where in talking to another character Dizzy says their quirks are what make them who they are, like his kleptomania. Necessary though it is to make any progress in any of the games.
71	* {{Knockback}}: Things that don't kill Dizzy will often push him back, like the butterflies in ''Fantastic Dizzy''.
72	* KryptoniteProofSuit: In ''Wonderful Dizzy'', he needs to splash the witch with water. It doesn't work because she knows about her weakness and wears heavy weather gear at all times. This requires him to come up with an alternate plan.
73	* LastLousyPoint: Even if you solve all the puzzles, most of the games require you to find thirty gold coins, or magic diamonds, or cherries, or something to get the ''real'' ending. You're required to use the pick up command on everything in sight to find some of them, which could be hidden behind a completely innocuous roof shingle or patch of grass.
74	** Done rather insidiously in a few games where the tokens you need are also what refill your life bar, so you probably won't be picking them up if you're at 100% health.
75	* LavaIsBoilingKoolAid: ''Wonderland Dizzy'' has a hot lava pool which looks like regular water, just dark red. It kills the playable character in the same way as water, too.
76	* LifeMeter: Later games give Dizzy a life bar that drain super fast.
77	* {{Metroidvania}}: A surprisingly early example being less about combat and more about jumping around a platform world to find secrets and solve inventory puzzles.
78	* MinecartMadness: ''Fantastic Dizzy'' has a section in which you ride a minecart and have to not get hit by oncoming obstacles or dead ends while collecting stars.
79	* MiniGame: ''Dizzy Down the Rapids'' and ''Bubble Dizzy'' were made into minigame sequences in ''Fantastic Dizzy''.
80	* NewAgeRetroHippie: Dylan's entire characterization.
81	* NintendoHard: ''Spellbound Dizzy'' in particular, see that page for details.
82	* OddballInTheSeries: ''Fast Food'', not so much for the GenreShift (other arcade spin-offs would follow) as for the setting: while all other Dizzy games are set in a fantasy world, ''Fast Food'' takes place in more modern environments like a shopping centre and a toy land, and has Dizzy getting chased around by four monsters who never show up in any later games.
83	* OneHitPointWonder: In the early games anything dangerous was automatically lethal to Dizzy. Later games gave him a life bar but it went down really fast.
84	** The second game, ''Treasure Island Dizzy'', was '''foul''' with this. You're a One Hit Point Wonder with one life-- anything dangerous is ''instant'' End Of Game, including passing over the background torches without the Fireproof Suit and of course, those wretched cage traps hidden off-screen in the trees.
85	* ParentalBonus: In ''Crystal Kingdom Dizzy'', Dizzy's girlfriend Daisy complains that he "messed up" her bedroom. Then once you get in there, you find a [[CovertPervert whip]]...
86	* PortableHole: You can pick one up, but as soon as you pick it up - and store it in your bag - there's a hole in your bag, so everything falls out of it. [[MindScrew Including the hole.]]
87	* ProductPlacement: Some of the little scrolls hung in the early games give you background lore. Some are just plugs for other Spectrum games.
88	* PromotedToPlayable: Daisy becomes a playable character in ''Dizzy Down the Rapids''. She's also playable in ''Wonderland Dizzy''.
89	* RhymesOnADime: The jester in ''Prince of the Yolkfolk'' speaks exclusively in rhymes, which even Dizzy picks up.
90	* RhymingWizardry: In ''Fantastic Dizzy'', the puzzle to give Dizzy extra lives reads thusly:
91	-->''Hocus pocus''
92	-->''Busy wizzy''
93	-->''Conjure up''
94	-->''Another Dizzy''
95	* ScoringPoints: In the first two games. Abandoned thereafter due to their complete redundancy.
96	* ShoutOut: Various, ranging from the works of J. Milton Hayes, to the rest of the Codemasters library (the first game has the laser gun from the Oliver Twins' previous game ''VideoGame/GhostHunters''), to pretty much every FairyTale ever written.
97	** ''Magic Land Dizzy'' alone has puzzles that reference VideoGame/PacMan, the Billy Goats Gruff, Alice in Wonderland, Lord of the Rings, Aladdin, the legend of King Arthur, the Pied Piper of Hamlin, the Frog Prince, the Wizard of Oz, Sleeping Beauty and probably at least one more that's been forgotten.
98	* {{Sleepyhead}}: Dozy's often seeing sleeping. It's in the name, and when he wakes up, he usually doesn't say anything interesting anyway.
99	* SolidClouds: Sky areas in ''Prince of the Yolkfolk'' have clouds for Dizzy to stand on, though he has to keep jumping to stay on them.
100	* SpiritualSuccessor: ''Seymour Goes to Hollywood'' was initially conceived as a Dizzy game, until it was decided that Dizzy didn't belong in a real world setting. Several more Seymour games followed in the same formula as the Dizzy adventures.
101	* StandardHeroReward: The king in ''Prince of the Yolkfolk'' offers the hand of his daughter to Dizzy, but he denies it as he's on a quest to wake up his true love Daisy. He gets knighted into Sir Dizzy the Adventurer instead.
102	* StatusLine: The fact the subsequent sequels are, in fact, NumberedSequels can only be known by checking the stats line at the top of the screen. It also lists the number of lives left and the score.
103	* StylisticSuck: ''Wonderful Dizzy'' has Spectrum-style colorbleed on his sprite when Dizzy walks by something in the background with a different color scheme than him. It's even pointed out as a magical property of wearing the ruby slippers.
104	* SuperDrowningSkills: In almost all mainline games. ''Treasure Island Dizzy'' introduced a snorkel, which sort of helps. Unless you accidentally drop it underwater, of course. ''Spellbound Dizzy'' and ''Fantastic Dizzy'' avert the trope (the latter -- except the few water bodies that act as BottomlessPits).
105	* TravelingPipeBulge: ''Spellbound Dizzy''.
106	* UnwinnableByDesign:
107	** There's a trap in the ground in ''The Ultimate Cartoon Adventure'' which you have to jump over to avoid triggering. Set it off, and an uncrossable chasm opens. It is impossible to reset the trap, even by deliberately dying, and the only way to get out of the chasm is to stand on the potion bottle - which, at the end of the game, will contain the potion you need to defeat Zaks - so your hopes of winning end there and then.
108	** If you're playing ''Fantasy World Dizzy'' and you are just about to rescue Daisy, make sure you pick up the coin under the cage first. If not, the cage will make it forever unreachable.
109	* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: In ''Fantasy World Dizzy'', if you interact with Dozy a second time Dizzy will kick him and his chair into the water, and depending on which version you're playing he'll either stay floating in place or drift offscreen.
110	* WaddlingHead: Dizzy and the rest of the Yolk Folk.
111	* WalkThePlank: ''Bubble Dizzy'' begins with Dizzy being forced to walk the plank off a pirate ship. He catches the edge of the plank, but falls in after a pirate jumps on his hand a few times.
112	* WholePlotReference: ''Wonderful Dizzy'' is basically an interactive, moderately self-aware version of ''Film/TheWizardOfOz''. Even down to all the characters being based off Dizzy's Yolkfolk friends to the AndYouWereThere ending.
113	* AWinnerIsYou: From the ending of the first game:
114	--> CONGRATULATIONS! DIZZY HAS RID KATMANDU OF THE EVIL WIZARD ZAKS AND IN DOING SO HAS GAINED THE RESPECT OF WHICH HE IS TRUELY WORTHY! IS THIS DIZZYS ONLY CHALLANGE OR WILL HE BE CALLED UPON AGAIN?

Context VideoGame / Dizzy