One of the most iconic ’80s toys gets recreated as a free browser game

By Giovanni Colantonio Published May 23, 2023

Screwball Scramble is recreated as a 3D browser game. — Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you’re looking for a quick hit of childhood nostalgia today, here’s a game for you. The classic marble game Screwball Scramble has been perfectly recreated as a browser game that you can play for free right now.

Screwball Scramble is an iconic toy created by Tomy that was largely popular during the ’80s. It’s amaze puzzle where players have to guide a marble across various obstacles using different buttons that move the plastic obstacle course. It features a bright green and orange color palette, which may bring back childhood memories as soon as you lay eyes on it.

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That toy has been faithfully recreated as an interactive browser experience by Jean Joulia. You’ll pop your marble up a bridge, swing it around on a magnetic crane, and launch it with a catapult just as you did in the real thing. It’s an impressively detailed reproduction that even goes so far as to simulate light reflecting on its textured parts. You’ll even get a full audio experience, which includes the soothing sounds of a metal marble rolling down plastic bridges.

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Like the real Screwball Scramble, it’s a maddeningly frustrating experience. I’ve already lost a fair amount of time this morning to trying to guide my marble down a set of rails over a familiar alligator sticker. You could say that it’s truly the Elden Ring of browser-based recreations of plastic 80s toys, I suppose.

If you’re looking for some sweet nostalgia, or simply want to see how kids used to spend their time before games like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom were possible, take a few minutes to play Screwball Scramble today.

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Giovanni Colantonio

Senior Gaming Editor

As Digital Trends' Senior Gaming Editor, Giovanni Colantonio oversees all things video games at Digital Trends. As a veteran…

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