Marble Racer

Man was born to compete. That's why sport was invented. This in turn is why marbles were invented. Sadly, over the centuries the humble marble has become indelibly associated with school kids, street urchins and old men. Hardly surprising when you consider most marble-based games are played at the speed of treacle.

That's why we were sceptical when Marble Racer Pinball rolled into Firebox HQ. After all, how exciting can a few marbles tumbling down a winding track be? The answer, dear friends, is difficult to articulate - not because we've run out of adjectives, but because the incessant noise of racing marbles, boinging pinball pingers and whooping 'n' a hollering employees makes it rather hard to concentrate.

So why the fuss? Well, in a nutshell, Marble Racer Pinball is devilishly simple, fiendishly addictive and totally unfair - a combination well known for its potency in gaming circles. Essentially this is a marble racing game with a pinball twist. Simply build the towers, slot together the track, add the pinball-style randomiser, place the marbles in the start gate, twist and away they go.

As the marbles roll, plop and drop down the track they enter equalisers - circular platforms that cause them to spin and collide as they attempt to enter the next section of track in pole position. Better still, there's a special flashing pinball platform where the marbles are ker-pinged into random holes. There's even a finishing podium with a pop-up chequered flag and final position slots. Sadly there's no champagne, but that's not to say you canÂ’t pour a load over your head, Schumacher-styley.

We really can't stress just how riveting this colourful confusion of tower, track and pinball peripherals is. Placing bets on whose marble will emerge from the manic melee in first place is beyond addictive. In fact, if you're anything like us, we guarantee you'll be unable to pass Marble Racer Pinball without putting a few marbles through their paces. Flippin' marble-lous!