Tetris (Game Boy video game)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
"Tetris (1989 video game)" redirects here. For the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) version, see Tetris (NES video game).

Tetris
multiplayer

Tetris

remaster, Tetris DX, was released on the Game Boy Color in 1998. A Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console version of Tetris was released in December 2011, lacking multiplayer functionality. The game was released on the Nintendo Switch Online service in February 2023.[6]

Gameplay

Tetris gameplay
Naïve gravity in action

The Game Boy version of Tetris plays identically to versions on other platforms. A

pseudorandom sequence of tetromino
shapes, composed of four square blocks each, fall down the playing field, which is 10 blocks wide by 18 blocks high. The object of the game is to manipulate the tetrominoes by moving each one sideways and rotating it by 90-degree units with the aim of creating a horizontal line of blocks without gaps. When one or more such lines are created, they disappear, and the blocks above (if any) move down by the number of lines cleared. As in most standard versions of Tetris, blocks do not automatically fall into open gaps when lines are cleared.

As the game progresses, the tetrominoes fall faster. The game ends when at least part of a tetromino extends beyond the top of the playfield when setting in place. The player can normally see which block will appear next in a window off to the side of the playing field, but this feature can be toggled during the game.[7] Points are awarded based on the current level and number of lines cleared. The level increases each time the player clears ten lines, as does the speed of falling tetrominoes.[7] The player may adjust the difficulty before beginning a game by selecting a starting level or choosing to pre-fill the play area with a given number of lines of randomly placed blocks. After completing a particular height, the player is treated to a cutscene of a rocket of various types being launched, eventually capping off with Russians dancing and the Buran shuttle being launched.

This version of Tetris includes a two-player mode, in which each player's objective is to remain in play for longer than their opponent. Each player plays with a separate Game Boy and Tetris

Game Pak, with the two consoles connected via the Game Link Cable
. When a player scores a Double, Triple, or Tetris, incomplete rows of blocks are added to the bottom of the opponent's stack, causing it to rise.

Development

Alexey Pajitnov, the designer of the original Tetris, called the Game Boy version his favorite.

Tetris was first created in 1985

launch game. Arakawa questioned the idea, having planned to bundle Super Mario Land, but Rogers countered by stating that though a Mario game would promote the Game Boy to young boys, Tetris would promote it to everyone.[10] Rogers was told to pursue the rights; he approached Stein to seek rights for it to be distributed with the Game Boy.[11]

However, after several months passed, Stein had not signed to contract for the rights for the Game Boy, and Rogers learned that another person had approached Nintendo with the idea of a Game Boy Tetris. Requesting more time from Arakawa, he traveled to Moscow to speak with the

version of Tetris for the NES and the game was released in Japan two months after the Game Boy's release there.[13] Bullet-Proof Software is mentioned as a copyright holder and the sub-licensor of the Tetris handheld rights to Nintendo on the game's startup screen.[14]

Music

The main soundtrack for Tetris was created by Nintendo's accomplished composer

for Wii U, both can be played on any miscellaneous Nintendo series stage in Ultimate
.

The victory fanfares played after completing levels are different arrangements of "Trepak", from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's ballet The Nutcracker.

Re-release

Tetris DX

Tetris DX is a Game Boy Color game that is backward compatible with the original Game Boy. It was developed by Nintendo and released in Japan on October 21, 1998, in North America on November 18, 1998, and in Europe and Australia in 1999. Tetris DX features battery-saved high scores and three player profiles. It has a new single-player mode against the CPU and also features two new modes of play. In "Ultra Mode", players must accumulate as many points as possible within a three-minute time period. In "40 Lines", players are timed on how quickly they can clear 40 lines of play. New music themes were added.

Virtual Console

The Game Boy version of Tetris was released in North America and Europe as a Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console game on December 22, 2011[19][20] and on December 28 in Japan.[21] In contrast to the original version, it is not possible to play multiplayer in the Virtual Console version.[22] The Virtual Console version of Tetris was delisted in Europe from the Nintendo eShop after December 31, 2014[23] and in North America.[24]

Nintendo Switch Online

The Game Boy version was released worldwide on the Nintendo Switch Online service on February 8, 2023. Unlike the release on the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console, multiplayer is fully supported. This version can also be played online.

Reception

Tetris has been credited as the Game Boy's

killer app.[27] It topped the Japanese sales charts during August–September 1989[28][29] and from December 1989 to January 1990.[30] It also topped the US sales charts during August–September 1989[31] and then December 1989.[32]

Nintendo sold 2.5 million copies by early 1990, as its top seller.[33] About 7.5 million copies had been sold in the United States by 1992.[34] By 1997, 29.72 million units had been sold worldwide, including bundles.[35] As of June 2009, more than 35 million copies had been sold worldwide.[36]

Official Nintendo Magazine ranked Tetris fifth on its list of the "100 Best Nintendo Games".[37] Game Informer's Ben Reeves called it the best Game Boy game and a "legendary puzzle game".[38] In 2019, PC Magazine included the game on their "The 10 Best Game Boy Games" commenting: "Tetris serves up addictive and challenging gameplay on the go for all ages".[39]

In August 2008, Nintendo Power listed Tetris DX as the best Game Boy/Game Boy Color video game, stating that it meant more to handheld gaming than any other video game. They also described it as the best version of Tetris until Tetris DS was released.[40] Alexey Pajitnov called the Game Boy version of Tetris his favorite and very close to his original version.[10] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 26 out of 40.[4]

References

  1. ^ White, Dave (July 1989). "Gameboy Club". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 3. p. 68.
  2. ^ a b ゲームボーイ (in Japanese). Nintendo. Archived from the original on March 17, 2015. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
  3. ^ テトリス（TETRIS） [ゲームボーイ]. Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Archived from the original on November 23, 2015. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
  4. ^ a b テトリスDX [ゲームボーイ]. Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Archived from the original on November 23, 2015. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
  5. ^ Japanese: テトリス, Hepburn: Tetorisu
  6. ^ Plant, Logan (February 8, 2023). "Nintendo Switch Online Adding Game Boy and Game Boy Advance Games". IGN. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
  7. ^ a b "Tetris". NinDB. Retrieved March 14, 2008.
  8. ^ "Tetris | video game | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  9. ^ Gerasimov, Vadim. "Original Tetris: Story and Download". vadim.oversigma.com. Retrieved June 10, 2007.
  10. ^ a b c Staff (June 13, 2009). "Alexey Pajitnov Stars Interview – Video Interview: Alexey Pajitnov Pt. 1". IGN. Retrieved June 13, 2009.
  11. ^
    ISBN 0-07-223172-6
    .
  12. ISBN 0-262-05085-4
    .
  13. ISBN 0-679-40469-4
    .
  14. ^ Nintendo (June 14, 1989). Tetris. Nintendo. Scene: startup screen.
  15. ^ "Works". Sporadic Vacuum. Hirokazu Tanaka. Archived from the original on January 19, 2011. Retrieved December 8, 2010.
  16. Time Out Chicago
    : Opera & Classical. Retrieved December 20, 2010.
  17. ^ Greening, Chris. "Hirokazu Tanaka Biography". Square Enix Music Online. Retrieved December 20, 2010.
  18. ^ "Tetris (Game Boy)". The Cutting Room Floor. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
  19. ^ Ronaghan, Neal (December 22, 2011). "Nintendo Download - December 22, 2011". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  20. Nintendo Life. Gamer Network. Archived
    from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  21. ^ Bivens, Danny (December 23, 2011). "Tetris and New Picross Coming to Japan eShop". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  22. ^ Thomas, Lucas M. (December 22, 2011). "Tetris Review". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on November 28, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  23. Nintendo Life. Gamer Network. Archived
    from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  24. Nintendo Life. Gamer Network. Archived
    from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  25. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original
    on December 9, 2019. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  26. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original
    on December 9, 2019. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  27. Imagine Media
    . November 1995. p. 52.
  28. Famicom Tsūshin
    . Vol. 1989, no. 19. September 15, 1989.
  29. Famicom Tsūshin
    . Vol. 1989, no. 22. October 27, 1989.
  30. ^ "Weekly Famimaga Hit Chart! (12/25～1/28)". Family Computer Magazine (in Japanese). Tokuma Shoten. February 23, 1990. pp. 134–6.
  31. Famicom Tsūshin
    (in Japanese). Vol. 1989, no. 22. October 27, 1989.
  32. Famicom Tsūshin
    (in Japanese). Vol. 1990, no. 1/2. January 5, 1990. p. 14.
  33. ^ "Surviving Together". Surviving Together. Vol. 20–22. Committee and the Institute. 1990. p. 68. 2.5 million copies later, Tetris is Nintendo's top-selling title for the first few months of 1990.
  34. ISBN 978-0-275-93844-4
    .  "If I had known it would make big money, I wouldn't have given all the rights," he says, contemplating sales of 7.5 million copies in the United States, where Tetris is standard equipment for the Nintendo Game Boy hand-held unit.
  35. ^ Rothstein, Edward (December 8, 1997). "Nintendo's Game Boy lives as nostalgia for simpler computer games catches on". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 27, 2015. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  36. ^ Saltzman, Marc (June 12, 2009). "'Tetris' by the numbers". USA Today. Retrieved June 13, 2009.
  37. ^ East, Tom (March 2, 2009). "Feature: 100 Best Nintendo Games". Official Nintendo Magazine. Archived from the original on January 7, 2011. Retrieved March 18, 2009.
  38. ^ Reeves, Ben (June 24, 2011). "The 25 Best Game Boy Games Of All Time". Game Informer. Archived from the original on February 14, 2017. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
  39. ^ Edwards, Benj (October 17, 2019). "The 10 Best Game Boy Games". PCMAG. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
  40. ^ "Nintendo Power – The 20th Anniversary Issue!". Nintendo Power. Vol. 231, no. 231. San Francisco, California: Future US. August 2008. p. 72.

External links

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