Game/Publisher/Developer
Tetris, Alexey Pajitnov / Nintendo
The Trailer
My Reaction
This was a blast from the past. Still, it’s holding up today; simple to pick up and that same pull to squeeze in “just one more line” hasn’t faded a bit.
Overview
Tetris is a falling-block puzzle game created in 1984 by Soviet software engineer Alexey Pajitnov. Players rotate and arrange seven differently shaped tetrominoes as they descend a playing field, clearing horizontal lines to score points while the pace steadily accelerates. The game spread worldwide through countless ports and versions, most famously bundled with Nintendo’s Game Boy in 1989, which cemented it as one of the best-selling and most recognizable video games ever made.
What I Liked
- The core rules are dead simple to learn but never stop being challenging as the speed ramps up.
- Endlessly replayable; there’s always a reason to chase one more line or a better score.
- The design has aged remarkably well compared to most games from the same era.
- A special in my heart is ‘TetriNET’. Go to: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TetriNET
What I Didn’t Like
- Later, flashier versions add modes and gimmicks that don’t really improve on the original formula.
Verdict
Tetris earns its status as a timeless classic. It’s proof that a great core mechanic barely needs anything else, decades later it still holds up as one of the most addictive puzzle games ever made.
Rating
84/100