Marble Madness
- Arcade's Greatest Hits: The Atari Collection 2 (1999)
-
Arcade's Greatest Hits: The Atari Collection 2
(1998) -
Midway Arcade Origins
(2012) -
Midway Arcade Treasures
(2003)
- Marble Madness (1989 on Dedicated handheld)
Description official descriptions
The idea of this arcade game is deceptively simple: Guide a marble down a path without hitting any obstacles or straying off the course. The game is viewed from an isometric perspective, which makes it harder to stay focused on the direction the ball is to follow. There are tight corridors to follow and enemies to avoid. There is a 2-player mode in which players must race to the finish; otherwise you're racing against the clock.
Spellings
- マーブルマッドネス - Japanese spelling
Groups +
Screenshots
Promos
Credits (Arcade version)
19 People
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Reviews
Critics
Average score: 73% (based on 49 ratings)
Players
Average score: 3.6 out of 5 (based on 166 ratings with 6 reviews)
A Challenge To Gamers Everywhere.
The Good
The game is to guide a marble through 6 courses. Each harder then the last. The game is a challenge because of the time. You start with 60 seconds. On the next course, you have the remaining time from the last course plus 30 seconds. But starting at course 5, you'll get only 20 seconds powerup.
The Bad
The game is HARD at first but eventually you will beat it if you practice. My best time is 17 seconds left.
The Bottom Line
A true action/strategy classic for all.
NES · by powerstone05 (344) · 2004
The Good
Marbles. Crazy levels. Enemies of the marbles. Space. Madness.
I love this game. I once bought it for £5. That was a good purchase. It's a game that survives through it's simplicity. The marbles are easy to control and the levels are more than negotiable. It is somewhat typical of the era but this is not a bad thing. It stands up, even today. It's no throwback as there are few games that can claim to imitate this.
It's just a classic in it's own right. Accessible and conquerable. Is that not what gamers want?
The Bad
Well, the music wasn't exactly Beethoven but we got by.
The Bottom Line
Marbles can still be fun.
Genesis · by Liam Dowds (39) · 2005
The Good
There really wasn't anything I liked about this game. : (
The Bad
This was the first PC game I purchased for myself in 1987 and I thought it would look better than it did. But the CGA graphics really bummed me out, especially since the PC I used back then had an EGA card!
The Bottom Line
Take the arcade version of Marble Madness, take away the sound and all but 4 colors and you have the PC version of this game.
PC Booter · by AstroNerdBoy (35) · 2001
Discussion
| Subject | By | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Secret level in Apple II and Apple II GS version? | theclue (175) | Jul 21, 2019 |
Trivia
1001 Video Games
The Arcade version of Marble Madness appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.
Graphics and Sound
A non-advertised fact about the PC version is that it supports 16-color graphics and 3-voice sound -- but only on a Tandy or PCjr computer. All other users automatically get 4-color CGA graphics and single-voice sound.
Secret level
In the Atari ST, C64, Apple ][, Apple //GS, and PC versions, there is a secret level accessible from the first level (involving being in the right place at the right time) which contains various difficult challenges (rivers, moving platforms and the like). This secret level does not exist in the original arcade game. It can only be finished in two player mode as several parts of the level require the cooperation of both players to get by.
Awards
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EGM
- November 1997 (Issue 100) - ranked #10 Best Arcade Games of All Time
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Happy Computer
- 1986 - Best Coin-Op Conversion of the Year
- Issue 04/1987 - #13 Best Game in 1986 (Readers' Vote)
Information also contributed by Daniel Yu, Indra was here and FatherJack
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Related Sites +
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Game Map (Sega Master System)
Images of the level maps of each level. -
NES Player - Marble Madness
Shrine site with information about the game.
Identifiers +
Contribute
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Contributors to this Entry
Game added by emerging_lurker.
Commodore 64 added by Quapil. Game Boy Color added by Corn Popper. SEGA Master System added by Tibes80. PC-98 added by Infernos. FM Towns, BlackBerry added by Sciere. Sharp X68000 added by Kabushi. Arcade added by Pseudo_Intellectual. Antstream added by lights out party. Game Gear added by Macintrash. Amiga, Atari ST, Apple II, NES, Genesis, Apple IIgs added by Servo. Game Boy added by quizzley7.
Additional contributors: Trixter, Apogee IV, Alaka, j.raido 【雷堂嬢太朗】, Patrick Bregger, Jo ST, FatherJack, theclue, Ethan Brunton.
Game added November 24, 1999. Last modified November 5, 2024.