The FM Towns version of Marble Madness is pretty damn special. Not only does it have a unique symphonic rendition of the game’s famous soundtrack, but it also has a Time Trial mode, and you can also choose the colour of your marble! It was only ever released in Japan, and – like the excellent X68000 version – it was ported by Tengen and published by Home Data Corporation in 1991.

This is a very authentic and playable port with excellent graphics and is among the best Marble Madness conversions around. In fact: my favourite three Marble Madness conversions are all Japanese. The Japanese Megadrive port; the X68000 version, and this – they’re all on par with each other.

The new soundtrack is phenomenal and is a real treat for Marble Madness fans. You can also switch between the new soundtrack and the original version too, should you wish to.

This port can be played at five different difficulty levels (just like in the Japanese Megadrive and X68000 versions) – Very Easy, Easy, Normal, Hard and Very Hard.

Other options include: mouse sensitivity (yes, you can also play with a mouse if you want to), and a sound test (which is often used to activate cheats, although I couldn’t find any listed for this game).

The only downside I found was that this port is still very difficult, even on the easiest skill settings. I don’t know if there was some kind of issue with the emulator I was using (Tsugaru), but I couldn’t complete the fourth course (Aerial), no matter how many times I tried.

Overall, though, this is a brilliant port that should not be missed if you’re a Marble Madness fan.

More: Marble Madness on Wikipedia