Tetris was and is a global phenomenon that remains pick-up-and-play perfection to this day, and its history is lovingly chronicled in Digital Eclipse's latest: Tetris Forever. It charts the franchise's entire history, from the brainchild of Alexey Pajitnov to its popularity explosion as a Game Boy pack-in and beyond. A far cry from the dramatic sensationalism of the 2023 Tetris movie, this is a fascinating journey through a transformative period in the industry we all love.
Tetris Forever follows The Making of Karateka and Llamasoft: The Jeff Minter Story as the third entry in the developer's Gold Master series. This aesthetically pleasing virtual museum spreads the evolution of the series over interactive timelines, each stop along an era revealing high-resolution images of documents, software, and hardware. New interviews and archival footage are presented as well, with fascinating insights into the development and licensing of the game.
The history of Tetris parallels other innovations in the gaming world of the 1980s, not least the labyrinthine struggle to find and license the next big success. In the game's profile of co-founder Henk Rogers, we learn about the birth of Japanese RPGs. Rogers also used his proficiency at the board game Go (a Famicom version of the game features in this collection) to ingratiate himself with Nintendo's top brass and help secure the handheld rights to Tetris in Moscow. All these facts and much more await in the frankly exhaustive materials in this collection.
It’s easy to forget the Gold Master series also features games, presented in pristine and configurable emulation. There are some obvious titles missing here, most notably the Game Boy version, which features only briefly as a time warp later in the collection. Many publisher-license crossovers are also omitted, for obvious and not-so-obvious reasons. NES and Game Boy Colour games, as well as many other PC and console variants, are represented, and it’s great to see some of the more obscure attempts, like the addictive Hatris or the Japanese-developed sequel, Bombliss.
Two titles in particular shine above the rest. The first is a gorgeous recreation of Pajitnov’s original Electronika 60 prototype, a game that represents the true simplicity of the idea. Its wireframe look and minimalist beeps are strangely calming.
Second is Tetris Time Warp, a new title that sends players through each era of the franchise via special warp blocks. This 2024 version should be played after absorbing all this collection has to offer; only then can you fully appreciate where the Time Warp Tetriminos will take you.
Comments 16
Thanks for the review. I will definitely buy this one.
Need to wait and see if this will be PS5 Pro enhanced
Great mini review, Ken. As a huge Tetris fan with multiple hundreds of hours piled into the series over the years (starting with the Game Boy of course), I’ll no doubt pick this up as soon as I’m able. Speaking of the Game Boy pack-in, I remember playing it so much that when I closed my eyes, I could see cascades of Tetrominos falling. Super trippy.
Will buy this on a physical. I’d like to own it
Definitely getting this. Can't wait.
The fact that Nintendo is being Nintendo when it comes to the Game Boy versions seriously harms this collection imo.
I've been waiting Forever for an offline Tetris game on modern platforms. Probably getting this on Switch, though!
@LifeGirl Oddly, we have GB, GBC, Famicom and Super Famicom titles...but no standalone GB version of the original pack-in Tetris.
Pity it doesn't include Welltris - loved that on the Amstrad 6128.
Really looking forward to diving into the documentary stuff, which is what makes this series so good. Speaking of which, the Atari 50 ‘First Console War’ update has been fascinating so far. The conversations around Intellivision games being ported to the VCS are an interesting parallel to the current state of affairs.
I have Tetris Effect VR2, don't need this.
Is that an MS-DOS version of Tetris in the screenshot, looks like something I would have coded back in college I shall probably be getting this collection, The Making of Karateka was well done and this one looks interesting too.
Tetris forever is my first pre-order since the disastrous Mass Effect Andromeda. I loved Digital Eclipse Atari celebration and the work that went into Gold Master 1 - Karateka was outstanding. I bought GM2 - Jeff Minter and honestly, I hate all his games but want Digital Eclipse Gold master series to do well. Now we have the best out the lot with Tetris according to Ken. I can't wait to z shape my way out of a disaster and finally get that elusive double I to make a back to back.
Looks like a real blockbuster
Why a mini review? This is what Saturday nights with friends will look like from here on.
Big fan of Tetris (and how DE brings these awesome releases) and pre-ordered it on Nintendo Switch. PS5 Pro graphics will be insane. Maybe the reason to ditch the regular P55 😁
A pity the NSO version(s) are not on it, though!
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