The Eggcellent Dizzy Collection is coming to Sega Mega Drive in 2027

Original Dizzy creators Philip and Andrew Oliver have announced The Eggcellent Dizzy Collection, a physical three-in-one cartridge for the Sega Mega Drive scheduled to release in 2027. Revealed today at the Crash Live retro gaming event in Coventry alongside a two-minute announcement trailer, the compilation brings together 16-bit console conversions of Dizzy the Adventurer, Go! Dizzy Go!, and Panic! Dizzy.

The release celebrates 40 years of the anthropomorphic egg adventurer, who debuted on the ZX Spectrum in June 1987. It is being produced by the Oliver Twins under official license from Codemasters, which still holds the Dizzy trademark following Electronic Arts' 2021 acquisition of the British studio. An upcoming Kickstarter campaign will fund the physical cartridge production, though pricing and exact backing tiers haven't been shared yet.

Three games that missed their 1990s retail window

This isn't a modern homebrew bundle stitched together from scratch. The compilation was originally planned and prepared for the Mega Drive back in the mid-1990s, right around the time Codemasters and the Olivers were trying to move their 8-bit mascot onto 16-bit consoles following 1993's Fantastic Dizzy. Shifting retail priorities kept the three-in-one cartridge off store shelves at the time, leaving the project in limbo for three decades.

Getting a canceled compilation onto physical hardware 30 years after the console's prime is a bit ridiculous, though it's hard to complain when the games actually get finished. Each title on the cartridge covers a different corner of the series' design history:

• Dizzy the Adventurer: An enhanced console version of Dizzy: Prince of the Yolkfolk, built around the series' traditional inventory-based puzzle solving and fairy-tale trading sequences.
• Go! Dizzy Go!: A top-down arcade maze game that trades slow inventory management for faster block-pushing action.
• Panic! Dizzy: A frantic puzzle and minigame spin-off.

The trailer bills the package as "3 Games - 1 Eggcellent Cartridge!" (After 40 years of egg puns, the Oliver Twins clearly aren't planning to stop now.)

From 8-bit cassette budgets to 16-bit cartridges

When Dizzy - The Ultimate Cartoon Adventure launched in 1987, the UK home computer scene was packed with punishing single-screen platformers. Philip and Andrew Oliver took a slower approach, putting a pair of red boxing gloves and boots on an egg who tumbled across the screen and solved item puzzles. The formula turned out to be a massive hit for Codemasters, spawning staples like Treasure Island Dizzy in 1988 and Fantasy World Dizzy in 1989 before the brothers went on to co-found Blitz Games Studios in 1990.

I'm curious whether the Kickstarter will offer a ROM-only tier alongside the boxed Mega Drive cartridge for players who use flash carts or FPGA hardware. Either way, seeing Codemasters sign off on an official physical license for a 38-year-old Sega console is a welcome surprise, and the pre-launch page is live now for anyone who wants to get notified when crowdfunding opens.