It’s week two and I’m already asking you to play a Dizzy game, I’m sorry!

But yeah, the Antstream platform has all of them. Literally. Taking you from the Spectrum right through to the MegaDrive. The one I’m focusing on isn’t the first, nor the last, but a great entry point all the same.

Enter Fantasy World Dizzy, arguably the best of the entire series.

Introducing a new weekly column where we select a retro game of the week from Antstream Arcade and take a closer look at it. Played on an Xbox Series X.

What is this and when did it release?

Fantasy World Dizzy actually has a few different versions on Antstream but I’d recommend hitting it up on the Amiga for the optimal experience. It released way back in 1989 and is actually the third Dizzy game in the series, following Dizzy Down the Rapids, Treasure Island Dizzy and the spin-off Fast Food. It really set the series alight and still holds up great today.

Why this game?

As I said, there’s a lot of Dizzy games on Antstream. This is the place to go if you want to see the series in full. And as a huge fan of the whole series, I wanted to find the best entry point. While I love Magicland Dizzy, Prince of Yolk Folk and even the original Treasure Island, I think Fantasy World puts all the pieces together very well, pays a wonderful homage to so many great fables and doesn’t waste a single scene.

So tell me about it.

In Fantasy World, we meet the entire Dizzy family and really get to know them as we help them out in various jams and see their vivid personalities. Dylan and his super loud hi-fi. Dozy and his sleepy spells. And Daisy, Dizzy’s girlfriend, who’s gotten captured by a King Troll.

The smart thing Fantasy World does is balance its puzzle-solving with some tricky platforming. Platforming that’s rewarded by bonus treasures, encouraging you to get the highest score possible. But also to gather all 30 golden coins as an optional reward to complete the game in full. Optional discoveries weren’t a big thing in these games with mostly just a critical path to follow.

And to do that, you’re presented with just the three lives and a small inventory where you can hold two items at a time. You’ll need to use objects to make progress, like placing a jug of water near a fire (Here, that’ll get you started!).

It’s a wonderful hybrid between a point and click adventure and time-sensitive action platformer. It’s a game that feels way ahead of its time, still looks pretty great, and, honestly, there’s never really been anything like it since.

Which is why I encourage you to at least check it out. And maybe do your part to encourage the Oliver Twins to get working on a reboot.

And, ok, now I’ve got my mandatory Dizzy game in here. You’ll probably never hear me harp on about them again. Maybe, probably. Guess you’ll have to find out next week.

Each week we spotlight a game on Antstream Arcade, new, old, and everything else in-between.