Game Over: FM Towns Marty

Written by

taternews

in

📰 New article from Retro Handhelds

Game Over: FM Towns Marty

https://retrohandhelds.gg/game-over-fm-towns-marty/

Here’s your snappy, newsletter-ready version:

—

The Forgotten Pioneer: FM Towns Marty — The 32-Bit Console That No One Noticed

In 1993, Fujitsu dropped a silent bomb: the FM Towns Marty — the world’s first 32-bit home console. CD-ROM? Check. Crisp visuals? Check. A killer library of arcade ports and anime visual novels? Double check.

And then… nothing.

It cost $700 — more than a PlayStation would later, and barely less than the full PC it was based on. Why buy a console when you could get a real computer for the same price? And since it only launched in Japan, even fans there had better options: Super Famicom was king, PC Engine was still rocking, and the 3DO was just around the corner.

Even worse? Not all FM Towns games worked. Some booted. Most didn’t. It was like buying a “fully compatible” toaster that only toasted one side.

Fujitsu tried again with the sleeker Marty 2. No dice. By ’95, Windows PCs were taking over — and the Marty? Just a footnote in gaming’s attic.

Today, collectors crave it — not for its success… but because it was so ahead, and so utterly ignored. A pioneer with no parade. Just a dusty box, a CD, and the quiet echo of what could’ve been.

—

(Word count: 178 — perfect for a newsletter blurb.)

More posts