So you want to make your own Dizzy game?  There's an active community of creators out there, read on for our tips on what to do.  At all stages of the process, you can find help and support in the Fan Projects forum at the Dizzy Community Forums.

Planning & Design

First stage in any successful project is planning. It can be very tempting just to jump in and start creating, but planning your project will benefit you in the long term.

The following are a few suggestions for things you may want to consider when planning. They're in the order we think most logical, although you can do them in a different order if it suits better.

The Team

You'll need to decide who will be working on the project. Are you going to go it alone or do you want to get other people to help with particular elements? There are pros and cons for each option.

Even if you decide to create the game on your own, you may wish to offer other people the opportunity to test it. It's a lot easier to spot problems with someone else's work than your own, and a second opinion never hurts. They may also be able to help you test the game on different specification machines.

The Storyline

A good game needs a plot. The challenge is to think of one that's interesting and original! It might help to do this in sections such as setting, characters (good and evil), overall problem which must be solved etc.

Locations

Where will Dizzy be able to visit? What will the features of these places be?

The Puzzles

A tough one, but a nice chance to be creative. How are you going to challenge the player? As well as puzzles you may want to include some platform or arcade challenges such as difficult jumps, avoiding enemies and so on. You could also have some mini-games, but don't go over the top!

The Engine / Gameplay

At this stage you'll just want to think in general terms about this (as you may not yet have decided how to create the game). Elements to consider include:

• Scrolling - what style?
• The inventory - how many objects can Dizzy hold? How does the player access the inventory?
• Character Interaction - Can you talk to characters? How do you talk to them? Does Dizzy get dialogue choices or does he always say the same thing? What are characters going to say?
• Graphics - what style?

Copyright

In general, Codemasters don't seem to mind fans making Dizzy games (they don't see them as a threat to their business) but one very promising game had to be stopped because Codemasters intervened. The Oliver's welcome fans creating their own games. It is worth mentioning in your game that Dizzy and all related characters and graphics are copyright Codemasters and The Oliver Twins. It is also polite to give credit to anyone whose work you used (be it graphics, sound, events or whatever) in your game.

One more thing, if you're making a Dizzy game, don't charge for it! If you do, you're far more likely to run into copyright complaints and you could jeopardise the future of Dizzy fan games.

Read on for the next part of the article: Creating the Game.

An older version of this article was available at Yolkfolk.com before the site was redesigned.  Most of that article was written by me anyway...

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