Retro Gaming - Dizzy (Codemasters)

When asked to do this month's retro feature, I started to think back to games that really meant something in my childhood. One series of games came instantly to mind. Cutesy graphics, a loveable character, a hefty selection of puzzles - all disguising games with a difficultly level that would have you tearing your hair out over the five or six hours it takes to finish them. "Six hours?" I hear you cry, "I can do that with my eyes closed!" There's a catch. One life, no continues, and no save points...

The idea behind Dizzy was simple. Take one egg, add boxing gloves and legs, give him a family (all with names beginning with 'D'), then send on a mission to save the land: collecting objects, solving puzzles and avoiding obstacles as you go. You could also collect coins, hidden about the place, but as I never got all 100 I never found out what happened if you succeeded...

Essentially, that was it. You, as Dizzy, jumped and rolled about the place, exploring, talking to your friends and family (Daisy, your girlfriend, Dylan, your stoner brother, etc) and ridding the land of evil. Think The Secret of Monkey Island without the pointing and clicking. It was fiendishly addictive, though imagine the frustration, three or four hours in, as you accidentally jump into the water without picking up the snorkel first. Game over, back to the start with you. Oh yes. Hard.

While the original game was criticised for being too difficult, the sequels: Treasure Island Dizzy, Fantasy World Dizzy and Magicland Dizzy (not to mention the host of spin off games) pitched the difficulty levels just right - though you still only got one life (Dizzy is an egg you see. Ever tried putting an egg back together?). Think a 16 year-old today could finish it? I doubt it… [Steve Adams]