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The 80s Brit Nostalgia Kickstarter continues : Dizzy Returns

8

8bit

Knows the Score
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/theolivertwins/dizzy-returns?ref=recently_launched

The Oliver Twins said:
Our aim is not to just reboot an old Dizzy game though. We want to stay true to the spirit and core ideals of the original series, whilst utilising the platforms, technology and resources we now have at our disposal. We believe that Dizzy Returns is a perfect fit for mobile gaming, and touch screen technology obviously means that we can experiment with and implement new mechanics and new ways of playing in Dizzy Returns.

It’s also pretty obvious that any new Dizzy game should have a home on PC. It’s something that Dizzy fans regularly ask us for, and after all, the ‘classic’ Dizzy control experience with keyboard keys or joystick harkens back to the days of the Amstrad, Spectrum, Commodore 64, ST and Amiga.

This is why we've decided to develop both iOS and PC versions of the game simultaneously, to take advantage of the technology available to us and to give you, the fans, more opportunities to experience Dizzy Returns.

We want to make the best Dizzy game ever, and we want you to be part of the adventure!
Click to expand...


http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2...wo-decades-after-the-last-original-dizzy-game

I predict either Megatree or Bandersnatch will be up on Kickstarter soon.
 
K

King_Moc

Banned
The interview says that they're doing a kickstarter because they pretty much don't feel like taking any risks themselves.

That's pretty shitty.
 
G

Gowans

Member
Wow the twins have got old.

I ignored the iOS game but tempted, they don't show much, the concept art looks fab tho.
 
M

McBradders

NeoGAF: my new HOME
Sorry, but Dizzy was shit and I am beyond fucking tired of "celebrity" developers cashing in on their past triumphs.

Schaffer did something good and interesting with an underrepresented genre and now it seems like they're all coming out of the woodwork to do something similar.

Braben could fund Elite without us. Dizzy doesn't need our money and nor does Molyneux.

When genuine innovators and start ups are losing out because big fish and guys who should and do know better then its time to stop and think harder about where your money is going.
 
L

Lemming

Member
Treasule island was the first one I played, then Fantastic Dizzy, both on the NES.
Never got to finish Fantastic, collecting ALL the stars was a pain. The music on both was really something else :).

Later there was a pac-man based Dizzy (also on NES), that had coop play. It was kinda fun as well at the time. Was it done by the same devs?

btw, I remember getting kind of regular nightmares (being an egg and getting fried/broken/what not) while playing fantastic... childhood is odd. I was 8 or 9 years old :|

Anyway, count me in. I i'd enjoy a new entry.
 
8

8bit

Knows the Score
Jeff Minter said:
Plainly I should have asked for 350 grand to do my Gridrunner remake. Fuck's sake.
Click to expand...

Jeff Minter said:
These people asking for Kickstarter money have ALREADY MADE POTS OF MONEY. That they could use to make games with.
Click to expand...

Jeff Minter said:
Somehow I manage to do my games and the odd remake whilst being completely skint.
Click to expand...

https://twitter.com/llamasoft_ox

Anyway, FWIW I disliked what little I played of Dizzy. I just think it's interesting that various bods are coming out of the woodwork now. I was led to believe the Oliver Twins were adamant there would never be a Dizzy resurrection as they grew to hate the character.
 
M

mclem

Member
Lemming said:
Later there was a pac-man based Dizzy (also on NES), that had coop play. It was kinda fun as well at the time. Was it done by the same devs?
Click to expand...

Fast Food, probably.

Dizzy might even predate Mario when it comes to being shoehorned into any old genre; he's been in arcade adventures, puzzle games, racing games, arcade games... I think in many cases the spin-offs weren't by The Oliver Twins they just inserted him into another Codies title. Dizzy certainly looks 'wrong' in many of the spin-offs.
 
S

ScreenSplitter

Member
Okay, something that's been bothering me for years;

There was a Dizzy game. He was dressed in an Indiana Jones fashion, going through a cave. It would be immense to find it. Any ideas?
 
jesusraz

jesusraz

Member
Certainly interesting...and no doubt it'll easily hit its target, but Plok really needs to make an appearance on Kickstarter instead :) Ste Pickford, please make it so!!
 
D

Dirtyshubb

Member
I knew coming in this would be PC/IOS only, a real shame less and less people are doing KS for PSN as thats my main gaiming platform.

As for the news wondefull, i grew up on Dizzy with my C64 and the series will always be cherished by me.

On a side note, is this related im assuming to the reveal a while back thata new Dizzy was being made? Im assuming they were going to pay themselves and then decided to do a KS instead.
 
C

Crub

Member
Dirtyshubb said:
I knew coming in this would be PC/IOS only, a real shame less and less people are doing KS for PSN as thats my main gaiming platform.
Click to expand...
"Less and less"? Besides that one game Sportsfriends I'm not sure there were any to begin with.

Dirtyshubb said:
On a side note, is this related im assuming to the reveal a while back thata new Dizzy was being made? Im assuming they were going to pay themselves and then decided to do a KS instead.
Click to expand...

You are refering to the iOS remake of one of their previous games. It was released some time ago.
 
H

herod

Member
Dizzy was a really, really bad series. Controls, collision detection and content were all poor.

HOWEVER, this remake looks like it will be even worse. Only pixel art could have saved it, but the awful generic art here is actually giving me a headache.
 
P

ponpo

( ≖‿≖)
I rented the dizzy game for the sega genesis when I was a kid and it must have been the hardest game ever. I've never bothered to replay it and try to beat it.
 
L

Lord British

Member
herod said:
Dizzy was a really, really bad series. Controls, collision detection and content were all poor.
Click to expand...

That must be why it's so fondly remembered.

Dizzy's a relic, but one I'd be happy to see exhumed. Absolutely adore those games, such a great sense of place and adventure.
 
L

Lord British

Member
herod said:
no, they were relatively short and cheap with bright graphics. If it was a worthwhile thing to revisit, it wouldn't have been put on kickstarter by multimillionaires.
Click to expand...

Nah. I don't revisit them just to coo at the colour clash. Dizzy's gameplay is a type that doesn't really exist anymore. It's a little like what's now known as "Metroidvania" crossed with a point and click adventure, in that the bulk of the game is ferrying objects back and forth rather than avoiding hazards. It's about play rhythm, discovery and skill- an obstacle that seems insurpassable early on will be second nature by the end. You die a lot, but you learn more every time.

It's "worthwhile" to me and other Dizzy fans who miss this emergent sort of experience, the atmosphere, imagination and whimsy that went into every Dizzy games, even the more lacklustre ones. Of course someone who doesn't like Dizzy won't consider it necessary to make any more. I don't like Elite, Wasteland or Populous very much, but I don't begrudge the existence of another one because it would be asinine. It's crowd-funded and as much a way of gauging interest as anything else. Who knows, maybe you'll be right and it will fail, maybe nobody is interested. It would still have been worthwhile to try because this way nobody will lose anything, and the people who care will potentially get a new Dizzy to enjoy.
 
P

Pie and Beans

Look for me on the local news, I'll be the guy arrested for trying to burn down a Nintendo exec's house.
Hey! Hey You! Remember that thing from 20 years ago that was alright/kinda good/tied to your precious childhood memories? Well, ignore the fact we havent done anything better in two fucking decades since, and hurl money our way to make something like that again, you nostalgia fueled little puke-bucket... I mean loyal Kickstarter! Yes. Yesssssssssss.
 
M

mclem

Member
Vagabundo said:
Bah Dizzy. Bring back Monty Mole.
Click to expand...

Why did Monty die so fast?
Aren't three lives enough to last
The hazards that befall a mole
In his search for precious coal?

Don't let Monty die in vain
Press a key and try again

Still committed to memory after all these years!
 
B

basic_text

Member
I have to back this, the Dizzy games were the root of my obsession with adventure games.

I didn't start them until Treasure Island on the speccy, but that was punishing enough.

When we got an Amiga I nearly cried at seeing the worlds in their full colour glory.
 
S

Sinatar

Official GAF Bottom Feeder
No thanks. I think I'm all kickstarted out.

Unless of course Lawrence Holland came out of wherever he's hiding and tried to make a new space sim, then they'd get all my monies.
 
M

mclem

Member
basic_text said:
I didn't start them until Treasure Island on the speccy, but that was punishing enough.
Click to expand...
Treasure Island was only the second game in the series, you didn't miss out on much.

When we got an Amiga I nearly cried at seeing the worlds in their full colour glory.
Click to expand...
Strictly speaking, the Speccy version is the 'truest' - at least, I believe (someone correct me if I'm off on this!) it was the main development platform for most of the lifetime of the franchise.
 
B

basic_text

Member
mclem said:
Treasure Island was only the second game in the series, you didn't miss out on much.


Strictly speaking, the Speccy version is the 'truest' - at least, I believe (someone correct me if I'm off on this!) it was the main development platform for most of the lifetime of the franchise.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I played them all up to Magic Land Dizzy on the Speccy but then re-bought the games as soon as we got an Amiga.

FOND memories of nipping into the local John Menzies to grab the latest Dizzy game. Hell you could even get most Codemasters games from the local petrol station!

I'd support a Monty Mole reboot too, Monty on the Run was insanely hard as a child, it's a shame impossamole was such a let down. Even the comic strip ads they ran in the press were better!
 
V

v1oz

Member
I'd rather they brought back Zool instead. Both Dozzy and Zool were poor games. But Zool was a cooler character.
 
G

GreggTheGrimReaper

Member
It's kinda ironic that grown up people are now the ones interested in mystical games with cartoon characters while the kids are into Call Of Duty and "serious business".
 
F

Frogacuda

Banned
The price is reasonable, this was an insta-back for me. Alas, it does not seem to be going very well...

I knew as soon as this Kickstarter thing blew up, we'd be seeing people turning to it who don't really need it, who can get outside funding (or in the case of the Oliver Twins, probably fund with their own cash) but prefer to get free money from their fans. But whatever, publisher money still comes with some pretty heinous strings, so if you can get it from fans, I see why you would.

But I disagree that these people are taking anything away from anyone. Bringing star power to Kickstarter is good for everyone on the platform.
 
Neff

Neff

Member
Dizzy held me in its thrall back in the day until that air-punching high of beating it, and I loved Treasure Island Dizzy, but this was from a time when I was young and impressionable and before the school of videogame design had come crashing down on my still-forming expectations. I don't think many of us can look back and say that the fetchquest/ultra-unforgiving precision platforming formula stands up today, but if you deviate from that, then it's not really Dizzy anymore.

However I wish the Olivers luck, and would like to thank them for a great slice of my childhood.
 
M

mclem

Member
v1oz said:
I'd rather they brought back Zool instead. Both Dozzy and Zool were poor games. But Zool was a cooler character.
Click to expand...

To be fair, there's tons of basic character platformers out there... but there's really not all that many inventory-based arcade adventures like Dizzy. It's a genre that isn't all that prolific these days.
 
F

Frogacuda

Banned
Welp, it looks like the Olivers have accepted defeat. Although they recognized that part of the problem was that they weren't willing to invest anything in pre-development, they don't seem motivated to try again with a better pitch and more prep.

They're taking it as a referrendum, and concluding there's a general lack of interest, which I don't think it really true. I think there's as much interest in Dizzy as there is in, say, Giana Sisters, but that campaign launched with an impressive demo and a much better pitch.
 
K

King_Moc

Banned
Frogacuda said:
Welp, it looks like the Olivers have accepted defeat. Although they recognized that part of the problem was that they weren't willing to invest anything in pre-development, they don't seem motivated to try again with a better pitch and more prep.

They're taking it as a referrendum, and concluding there's a general lack of interest, which I don't think it really true. I think there's as much interest in Dizzy as there is in, say, Giana Sisters, but that campaign launched with an impressive demo and a much better pitch.
Click to expand...

Yeah, i'd have bought a new Dizzy. I just found their attitude in that interview pretty disgraceful. It's not the customers that should be taking the risks.
 
D

Dictator93

Member
Frogacuda said:
Welp, it looks like the Olivers have accepted defeat. Although they recognized that part of the problem was that they weren't willing to invest anything in pre-development, they don't seem motivated to try again with a better pitch and more prep.

They're taking it as a referrendum, and concluding there's a general lack of interest, which I don't think it really true. I think there's as much interest in Dizzy as there is in, say, Giana Sisters, but that campaign launched with an impressive demo and a much better pitch.
Click to expand...

Yeah pretty good summing up of the problem. Kinda felt like they were asking for a lot of money without showiing much.

King_Moc said:
Yeah, i'd have bought a new Dizzy. I just found their attitude in that interview pretty disgraceful. It's not the customers that should be taking the risks.
Click to expand...

Straight up dawg
 
T

Takao

Banned
dailypledges.png


ouch
 
K

Katzii

Member
Although I knew myself that this would be a hopeless endeavour, it is also genuinely heartbreaking to not see this come to fruition. I'm glad they're going to be sending out concept material to the backers, and I'm glad they were frank about it instead of trying to be all "WE CAN DO IT". Honestly, if I were that ludicrously rich, I'd pay the rest in a heartbeat.

Maybe they can try again a few years down the line with more to show and less of a lofty price goal.
 
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