Magicland Dizzy
Encyclopedia
Magicland Dizzy is a platform
adventure game
published in Europe in 1990 by Codemasters
for the ZX Spectrum
, Commodore 64
and Amiga
platforms. By 1992 there were also DOS
, Atari ST
and Amstrad CPC
versions available. It is the sixth game in the Dizzy series, and the fourth adventure-based Dizzy title. The story, set in a fantasy world called Magicland, follows on from the events of Fantasy World Dizzy
, the previous adventure title. In Magicland Dizzy the player controls Dizzy, an egg-shaped character, who is trying to save six of his friends who have been placed under spells by the Evil Wizard Zaks.
The game was the first Dizzy game not to be developed entirely by Dizzy's creators, the Oliver Twins
. Instead, whilst they were focusing on other projects, Magicland Dizzy was designed by Neal Vincent and coded by external developer Big Red Software
. The Oliver Twins retained design-approval oversight.
The game is sometimes alternatively known by its development title, Dizzy 4, with the Roman numeral IV visible at the top of the game screen, behind the player's score. A prequel, Into Magicland, was released to promote the game and featured a new character that was never seen in any of the series games again. The game was positively received by critics across the platforms with scores typically in the 80-90% region. Criticism was leveled at its similarity to previous games in the series and the awkward inventory system. By November 1991 it was noted that the Dizzy games had sold more than half a million units across all platforms.
s. They include a field of standing stones called Weirdhenge, a witch's island and Prince Charming's castle. Movement from one screen to the next is enabled through flip-screen
such that when Dizzy touches the outer edge of one screen he is transported to the next. The individual screens consist of platforms and ladders with Dizzy able to both walk and jump to navigate the maze and its obstacles. Dizzy can collect up to three items at once which are then used at specific locations to solve puzzles and advance through the game. At the start of the game the player has three lives and a health bar which can be replenished by finding and collecting diamonds scattered throughout the maze.
s himself to Magicland and must set about lifting the spells from his friends.
Following their introduction in Fantasy World Dizzy
, this game again features the Yolkfolk. Each of them has had a spell cast upon them by Zaks: Dylan is transfigured into a thorny bush; Denzil is frozen in ice
; Dozy is put into an enchanted and perhaps everlasting sleep; Dora is turned into a frog
; Daisy is enlarged and imprisoned inside Zaks' Oubliette; and Grand-Dizzy trapped inside a magic mirror.
Throughout the game Dizzy meets and interacts with many of Magicland's inhabitants. These include the Queen of Hearts, the good witch Glenda and Prince Charming, along with various other creatures who can help or hinder Dizzy's progress. During the course of the game Dizzy comes across the legendary sword Excalibur
and has the opportunity to awaken Sleeping Beauty
.
, the creators of Dizzy. After Fantasy World Dizzy they had started working more closely with Codemasters
, developing games for the American market where the Nintendo Entertainment System
(NES) was quickly capturing a large audience. In order to continue the Dizzy series, which remained popular in Codemasters' home market, the Twins had to bring in others to do the majority of the design and coding. This gave them time to concentrate on their other projects. The coding of Magicland Dizzy was contracted out to Big Red Software.
In order to promote Magicland Dizzy, a five screen mini-adventure for the ZX Spectrum known as Into Magicland or unofficially Dizzy 3 and a half was given away with the January 1991 edition of Crash
, a UK based magazine. It featured Dizzy and his cousin Danny and is a prequel to the main game, ending with Dizzy teleporting to the first screen of Magicland Dizzy. This was the character Danny's only appearance in a Dizzy game.
Originally Magicland Dizzy was only available as part of a five game Dizzy compilation called The Dizzy Collection which also featured Dizzy, Treasure Island Dizzy
, Fantasy World Dizzy and Fast Food. The game was later released separately at a budget price.
, Rich Pelley gave the Spectrum version a positive review, describing it as "addictive" and "a bit of a spanker". Crash
described the Spectrum version of the game as "one of the best[Dizzy games] so far" and an "essential purchase". The gameplay was described as being very similar to the previous games in the series though the Crash review still praised the addictive nature of the game and the colourful graphics and sounds. Writing in Amstrad Action
, Adam Waring described the Amstrad version of the game as a "challenge even to those who've completed all the other Dizzy games".
In their review of the Commodore 64 version of the game, Zzap! noted that the slower pace of the game compared to the Spectrum version made "exploration a bit tedious at times" but still praised the game overall. Your Sinclair's Rich Pelley described the game's "annoying menu system" as a minor negative point. In his review in Amstrad Action, Adam Waring noted that the background music "becomes annoying" and that "not as many gameplay enhancements" had been made compared to previous games in the series. In contrast, Stuart Campbell's review in Amiga Power
described the Amiga version of the game as "the most accomplished game in the series so far" and noted that by November 1991 the Dizzy games had sold more than half a million units across all platforms.
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
adventure game
Adventure game
An adventure game is a video game in which the player assumes the role of protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and puzzle-solving instead of physical challenge. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based media such as literature and film,...
published in Europe in 1990 by Codemasters
Codemasters
The Codemasters Software Company Limited, or Codemasters is a British video game developer founded by Richard and David Darling in 1986...
for the ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
, Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
and Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
platforms. By 1992 there were also DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
, Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
and Amstrad CPC
Amstrad CPC
The Amstrad CPC is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, where it successfully established itself primarily in the United Kingdom,...
versions available. It is the sixth game in the Dizzy series, and the fourth adventure-based Dizzy title. The story, set in a fantasy world called Magicland, follows on from the events of Fantasy World Dizzy
Fantasy World Dizzy
Fantasy World Dizzy is an arcade adventure video game released in October 1989 by Codemasters and designed by the Oliver twins.The game is considered the third in the Dizzy series and was developed under the name Dizzy III...
, the previous adventure title. In Magicland Dizzy the player controls Dizzy, an egg-shaped character, who is trying to save six of his friends who have been placed under spells by the Evil Wizard Zaks.
The game was the first Dizzy game not to be developed entirely by Dizzy's creators, the Oliver Twins
Oliver Twins
The Oliver Twins are two British brothers, Philip and Andrew Oliver, who started to professionally develop computer games while they were still at school. Their first game, Super Robin Hood for the Amstrad CPC, was published in 1985 by Codemasters...
. Instead, whilst they were focusing on other projects, Magicland Dizzy was designed by Neal Vincent and coded by external developer Big Red Software
Big Red Software
Big Red Software, also known as The Big Red Software Company Ltd, was a computer game developer set up in the UK in 1988 by Paul Ranson. It was bought out by, and merged with, Eidos Plc in 1995 along with Simis and Domark forming Eidos Interactive....
. The Oliver Twins retained design-approval oversight.
The game is sometimes alternatively known by its development title, Dizzy 4, with the Roman numeral IV visible at the top of the game screen, behind the player's score. A prequel, Into Magicland, was released to promote the game and featured a new character that was never seen in any of the series games again. The game was positively received by critics across the platforms with scores typically in the 80-90% region. Criticism was leveled at its similarity to previous games in the series and the awkward inventory system. By November 1991 it was noted that the Dizzy games had sold more than half a million units across all platforms.
Gameplay
In Magicland Dizzy the player guides Dizzy, an egg-shaped character, through a large maze in an attempt to rescue his six friends who are held captive under the influence of various magic spells. The locations are all located in the titular "Magicland" and are fantastical in nature, many inspired by fairy taleFairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
s. They include a field of standing stones called Weirdhenge, a witch's island and Prince Charming's castle. Movement from one screen to the next is enabled through flip-screen
Flip-screen
In video games, flip-screen is a principle whereby the playing environment is divided into single-screen portions...
such that when Dizzy touches the outer edge of one screen he is transported to the next. The individual screens consist of platforms and ladders with Dizzy able to both walk and jump to navigate the maze and its obstacles. Dizzy can collect up to three items at once which are then used at specific locations to solve puzzles and advance through the game. At the start of the game the player has three lives and a health bar which can be replenished by finding and collecting diamonds scattered throughout the maze.
Plot and characters
The Evil Wizard Zaks, the primary antagonist of the series, who Dizzy defeated previously in Fantasy World Dizzy, has returned having "made certain arrangements against his premature demise". He has cast spells on six members of the Yolkfolk, egg-shaped friends and relations of Dizzy, and transported them to Magicland. At the beginning of the game Dizzy teleportTeleportation
Teleportation is the fictional or imagined process by which matter is instantaneously transferred from one place to another.Teleportation may also refer to:*Quantum teleportation, a method of transmitting quantum data...
s himself to Magicland and must set about lifting the spells from his friends.
Following their introduction in Fantasy World Dizzy
Fantasy World Dizzy
Fantasy World Dizzy is an arcade adventure video game released in October 1989 by Codemasters and designed by the Oliver twins.The game is considered the third in the Dizzy series and was developed under the name Dizzy III...
, this game again features the Yolkfolk. Each of them has had a spell cast upon them by Zaks: Dylan is transfigured into a thorny bush; Denzil is frozen in ice
Ice
Ice is water frozen into the solid state. Usually ice is the phase known as ice Ih, which is the most abundant of the varying solid phases on the Earth's surface. It can appear transparent or opaque bluish-white color, depending on the presence of impurities or air inclusions...
; Dozy is put into an enchanted and perhaps everlasting sleep; Dora is turned into a frog
Frog
Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
; Daisy is enlarged and imprisoned inside Zaks' Oubliette; and Grand-Dizzy trapped inside a magic mirror.
Throughout the game Dizzy meets and interacts with many of Magicland's inhabitants. These include the Queen of Hearts, the good witch Glenda and Prince Charming, along with various other creatures who can help or hinder Dizzy's progress. During the course of the game Dizzy comes across the legendary sword Excalibur
Excalibur
Excalibur is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Great Britain. Sometimes Excalibur and the Sword in the Stone are said to be the same weapon, but in most versions they are considered separate. The sword was...
and has the opportunity to awaken Sleeping Beauty
Sleeping Beauty
Sleeping Beauty by Charles Perrault or Little Briar Rose by the Brothers Grimm is a classic fairytale involving a beautiful princess, enchantment, and a handsome prince...
.
Development and promotion
This was the first Dizzy game that was not fully designed and coded by the Oliver TwinsOliver Twins
The Oliver Twins are two British brothers, Philip and Andrew Oliver, who started to professionally develop computer games while they were still at school. Their first game, Super Robin Hood for the Amstrad CPC, was published in 1985 by Codemasters...
, the creators of Dizzy. After Fantasy World Dizzy they had started working more closely with Codemasters
Codemasters
The Codemasters Software Company Limited, or Codemasters is a British video game developer founded by Richard and David Darling in 1986...
, developing games for the American market where the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
(NES) was quickly capturing a large audience. In order to continue the Dizzy series, which remained popular in Codemasters' home market, the Twins had to bring in others to do the majority of the design and coding. This gave them time to concentrate on their other projects. The coding of Magicland Dizzy was contracted out to Big Red Software.
In order to promote Magicland Dizzy, a five screen mini-adventure for the ZX Spectrum known as Into Magicland or unofficially Dizzy 3 and a half was given away with the January 1991 edition of Crash
CRASH (magazine)
Crash was a magazine dedicated to the ZX Spectrum home computer. It was published from 1984 to 1991 by Newsfield Publications Ltd until their liquidation, and then until 1992 by Europress.-Development:...
, a UK based magazine. It featured Dizzy and his cousin Danny and is a prequel to the main game, ending with Dizzy teleporting to the first screen of Magicland Dizzy. This was the character Danny's only appearance in a Dizzy game.
Originally Magicland Dizzy was only available as part of a five game Dizzy compilation called The Dizzy Collection which also featured Dizzy, Treasure Island Dizzy
Treasure Island Dizzy
Treasure Island Dizzy is a computer puzzle game published in 1987 by Codemasters for the Amstrad, Commodore 64, Spectrum, DOS, NES, Amiga and Atari ST....
, Fantasy World Dizzy and Fast Food. The game was later released separately at a budget price.
Reception
Magicland Dizzy was met with a largely positive reception. Writing in Your SinclairYour Sinclair
Your Sinclair or YS as it was commonly abbreviated, was a British computer magazine for the Sinclair range of computers, mainly the ZX Spectrum.-History:...
, Rich Pelley gave the Spectrum version a positive review, describing it as "addictive" and "a bit of a spanker". Crash
CRASH (magazine)
Crash was a magazine dedicated to the ZX Spectrum home computer. It was published from 1984 to 1991 by Newsfield Publications Ltd until their liquidation, and then until 1992 by Europress.-Development:...
described the Spectrum version of the game as "one of the best
Amstrad Action
Amstrad Action was a monthly magazine, published in the United Kingdom, which catered to owners of home computers from the Amstrad CPC range and later the GX4000 console....
, Adam Waring described the Amstrad version of the game as a "challenge even to those who've completed all the other Dizzy games".
In their review of the Commodore 64 version of the game, Zzap! noted that the slower pace of the game compared to the Spectrum version made "exploration a bit tedious at times" but still praised the game overall. Your Sinclair's Rich Pelley described the game's "annoying menu system" as a minor negative point. In his review in Amstrad Action, Adam Waring noted that the background music "becomes annoying" and that "not as many gameplay enhancements" had been made compared to previous games in the series. In contrast, Stuart Campbell's review in Amiga Power
Amiga Power
Amiga Power was a monthly magazine about Amiga computer games. It was published in the United Kingdom by Future Publishing, and ran for 65 issues, from May 1991 to September 1996....
described the Amiga version of the game as "the most accomplished game in the series so far" and noted that by November 1991 the Dizzy games had sold more than half a million units across all platforms.