The "character" onscreen is a marble. The player controls the marble, but in reality the marble controls the player. Since it is a marble, it doesn't make pinpoint turns or stop on a dime. Rather, it is subject to our favorite laws of physics, namely gravity and momentum. But, okay, how hard is it to control a marble, right? That's where Marble Madness takes it to next level -- not only are you fighting the marble, but you have the courses to contend with. Most of the courses are downhill (this is where momentum plays a big part). More importantly, there are no walls to protect your marble from careening off the sides into the great beyond. The courses are made up of a bevy of ramps, pipes and other touchy-control situations that will test your dexterity. Other environmental hazards that threaten our favorite spherical object's existence await, including vacuums that suck the marble away piece by piece, wave machines that knock the marble over the side and disappearing floors. And if that were not enough, there are enemies (acid pools that disintegrate the marble when it touches them, as well as enemy marbles that try to knock yours off and more). With these obstacles piled on top of each other, the end result becomes a daunting task of wits and agility in getting to the bottom of the courses.

Again, this is all well and good, but the sheer genius of the game design shines through when you take one more factor into consideration: You are racing against the clock. The first couple levels the clock is a joke, and you can finish the courses in a quarter of the time needed. But soon the game starts adding less and less time, until you get to the final level and find it only gives you an extra 20 seconds to work your magic. Luckily, the time not used up in the previous levels is tacked on to the next level, which creates an interesting situation: Not does the player have to be good enough to beat the later levels, but he or she also has to master the earlier levels so that there is a chance to beat the later levels. And if time just happens to run out? A game over and a swift boot back to the beginning. With its inherent difficulty, it would seem that emotions of frustration would spew forth, but that is simply not the case. Rather, the game is so short (six levels -- certainly not the War and Peace of videogames) that the player gets so close to the end and can't help but play again.

I mentioned that Marble Madness has some serious replay value, and part of that is attributed to the multiplayer mode. That's right; two players can step up and take their chances at controlling two marbles at the same time. The courses are smartly designed so there are at least two routes to choose from, so that the players are not competing over a simple narrow path. Of course, there are easier and harder routes and, hence, heated competition to get to those places first. If one player gets so far ahead that the other marble disappears off the screen, then the marble is dragged back onscreen and five seconds are taken off that player's timer (yes, each player has a different timer). It is a true treat to see Marble veterans go head-to-head and devour the course with deft precision; at the same time, pure hilarity ensues when two novices take the controllers and proceed to have their marbles weave uncontrollably like drunks on a moped. Either way, you can't lose.

Marble Madness is not a title of epic proportions or length. But what Tengen and Nintendo did was produce a niche title with incredible draw and hypnotic addictive power. Anyone and everyone has played with marbles, and the idea of having control over a marble in a series of races proves very interesting to many. Yet, more than a premise, Marble Madness is an example of innovative and superlative game design, splicing its elements together in an amalgamation that tests your mettle and leaves you begging for more. Fun and innovation come out on top once again, and for that reason Marble Madness should hold a dear place in everyone's heart.

- C.J. Mittica