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Video Game / Spindizzy

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Spindizzy is a 1986 game that's very similar to Marble Madness. You play as a probe called GERALD and have to map out a world that consists of 385 rooms. You can switch between three modes: a spinning top, an inverted square pyramid, and a ball, but the difference is purely cosmetic. The game ends once you've fully explored the gameworld or ran out of time.

The game was originally coded for the Commodore 64 by Paul Shirley and published by Activision's Electric Dreams subsidiary, along with ports for the Amstrad CPC, Apple ][, Atari 8-Bit Computers and ZX Spectrum. The game received a sequel called Spindizzy Worlds in 1993, featuring new worlds to explore and far more detailed graphics.


This game provides examples of:

  • Alphabet Architecture: There are some blocks that spell out the words "SPINDIZZY" and "HAWKWTND".
  • Completion Meter: There's a tracker on the left for how many rooms you have yet to find and how many jewels you have collected. Once you die, you're shown the percentage for those goals and overall game completion.
  • Fun with Acronyms: Geographical Environmental Reconnaissance And Land Mapping Device, or Gerald, the spinning top you're controlling.
  • Isometric Projection: All tiles are shifted to a slightly diagonal angle, though Gerald and the jewels are unchanging sprites.
  • No Fair Cheating: Entering the infinite time cheat would remove one of the jewels, rendering the game Unwinnable and basically relegating it to one giant explore-em-up.
  • Timed Mission: You only have 140 seconds, which is extended when you enter a new room or collect a jewel.

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