Matt Furniss

Overview

Matt Furniss is a British game composer renowned for his work on Sega platforms, particularly the Genesis/Mega Drive. His ability to recreate arcade soundtracks on home hardware—and create compelling original music—made him a go-to composer for Sega conversions throughout the late 1980s and 1990s.

Fast Facts

Aspect	Detail
Born	1966
Peak era	Late 1980s - mid 1990s
Specialty	Sega Genesis, Master System
Known for	Arcade port soundtracks
Style	Technical, faithful adaptations

Notable Soundtracks

Game	Year	Platform	Notable For
Streets of Rage	1991	Genesis	Action themes
Thunder Force III	1990	Genesis	Intense shooter music
Alien Storm	1991	Genesis	Arcade conversion
Ghouls ‘n Ghosts	1990	Genesis	Faithful port
Last Battle	1989	Genesis	Early Genesis work

Genesis Mastery

The Yamaha YM2612 FM synthesis chip required deep understanding:

Challenge	Furniss Approach
6 FM channels	Careful voice allocation
No samples	FM percussion synthesis
Arcade matching	Study original closely
UK development	Remote from Sega Japan

Conversion Philosophy

Principle	Application
Fidelity first	Match arcade intent
Platform awareness	Use Genesis strengths
Consistency	Same feel, different hardware
Enhancement possible	Sometimes improve on original

Technical Skills

Technique	Usage
FM programming	Direct chip manipulation
Sample management	Limited DAC use
Driver development	Custom sound engines
Multi-platform	Worked on Master System too

The Sega Sound

Characteristic	Genesis Style
FM bass	Punchy, distinctive
Lead instruments	Bright, cutting
Drums	Synthetic but powerful
Energy	High intensity action

Legacy

Matt Furniss represented the best of British game audio work for Japanese platforms. His Genesis soundtracks hold up remarkably well, demonstrating deep understanding of FM synthesis and platform capabilities.

See Also

• Sega Genesis
• Yuzo Koshiro
• FM Synthesis