Tetris Forever

Genre: Compilation / Falling-Block Puzzle

Players: 1-4 Competitive (Local)

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Review:

By now, developer Digital Eclipse’s Gold Master series has come to be seen as the gold standard of Compilation releases that not only treats the games it includes with loving care, but expands upon them to create something of an interactive digital museum with an absolute wealth of documentary footage, interviews, and promo materials, presented as a timeline. For its third entry in this series (or fourth, if you count Atari 50: The Anniversary Collection), Digital Eclipse has turned its focus to a game that many have called the greatest videogame of all-time: Tetris.

However, let’s get some disappointment out of the way first. There was no way this was ever going to be a comprehensive collection of each version of Tetris, as there are over 220 official versions of the game, with countless more unofficial versions. This collection is also missing numerous releases that would have required additional, burdensome licensing. So you won’t find the iconic Game Boy version of Tetris here, nor its Nintendo Entertainment System counterpart (neither the Nintendo-developed version nor Tengen’s popular unlicensed version). You also won’t find the version of the game I consider to be the best version of Tetris, Tetris Effect: Connected. Some interesting sequels and spin-offs like Welltris are not playble here either. Most of those games are discussed in the documentary materials here, but for the games themselves, you’ll mainly be looking at the primitive early computer releases of the game, as well as odd sequels and spin-off games released after the height of “the Tetris craze”.

Here is what I think of each of the games that are included in this Compilation:

Game	Genre	# of Players	Score
Tetris (Electronika 60)	Falling Block Puzzle	1	D+
tl;dr The Falling Block Puzzle game that started it all still works, but by today’s standards there’s not much reason to play it beyond viewing a piece of history. The visuals are primitive, text-based, and monochrome, there’s no music, and many of the game mechanics the series is known for haven’t been added yet. Make no mistake, this is one of the most influential videogames of all-time, but it has been absolutely left in the dust by later versions.
Tetris (MS-DOS) (1985)	Falling Block Puzzle	1	D+
tl;dr This is a step up from the Electronika 60 version in some ways, a step down in others. The piece preview is gone, and there’s a noticeable input lag. However, the text-based visuals have been replaced by colored squares. There’s still no music, and no sound in this version either. And it’s still still missing a lot of major game mechanics, so there’s very little reason to play this instead of later versions.
Igo: Kyu Roban Taikyoku (Famicom)	Board Game	1-2 Competitive (Local)	C-
tl;dr This mini version of the classic Board Game Go still has a lot of untranslated Japanese text, and the music is horrible enough that you’ll want to mute the game almost immediately. Still, it’s a very playable version of the game, which is impressive given the limited hardware of the Famicom platform it was originally released on. However, newcomers to Go won’t find this a good game to start with, as it lacks a tutorial.
Tetris (MS-DOS) (1988)	Falling Block Puzzle	1	C-
tl;dr This version of Tetris plays much more smoothly than earlier versions, and features some nice decorational visuals around the borders of the play field. However, it is almost completely silent and still missing numerous important features – piece preview, soft drop, even piece distribution, and multiplayer. For many gamers, this will be a nostalgic version of Tetris as it is the first American release of the game. However, this version is still highly lacking compared to more modern versions.
Tetris (Apple II)	Falling Block Puzzle	1	D+
tl;dr Take the 1988 PC version of the game, make the controls less precise and the graphics worse and you get the Apple II version. There is no reason other than nostalgia to play this version instead of other versions of the game.
Tetris (Famicom)	Falling Block Puzzle	1	C-
tl;dr This release of the game slightly improves the visuals and brings back the piece preview, but oddly chooses to swap the spin and drop controls (thankfully, you can swap it back in the options). There’s also a misguided “lives” system. It’s also noteworthy that this is the first Tetris game that actually includes “the Tetris theme”, Korobeiniki… but only in the main menu. Overall, this is probably about on par with the 1988 MS-DOS version, but still well behind what modern players have come to expect from Tetris.
Hatris (Famicom)	Match-5 Falling Block Puzzle	1	B-
tl;dr This game doesn’t share much in common with Tetris, but its absurd gameplay about matching identical stacks of hats is compelling nonetheless.
Hatris (Game Boy)	Match-5 Falling Block Puzzle	1	C+
tl;dr This is a good iteration of the console version on Game Boy, though the lack of color naturally makes it inferior. Also, this release only supports single-player, even though the original game supported two players.
Hatris (Nintendo Entertainment System)	Match-5 Falling Block Puzzle	1	B-
tl;dr Compared to the Famicom version, the visuals have been slightly altered, and there’s a bit of a delay whenever you match a stack of hats. Overall, I think this is about on par with the Famicom version.
Tetris 2 + Bombliss (Famicom)	Compilation / Falling Block Puzzle	1-2 Competitive (Local)	B
tl;dr This Compilation contains the two named games – a decent version of the classic Tetris (the “2” seems purely for advertising and sales purposes), as well as Bombliss, where the falling pieces with bombs inside will only clear if a full line passes through the bomb, detonating the bomb. Overall, this is a decent pair of games that are pretty enjoyable.
Super Tetris 2 + Bombliss (Super Famicom)	Compilation / Falling Block Puzzle	1-2 Competitive (Local)	B
tl;dr This is pretty much the exact same game as Tetris 2 + Bombliss on Famicom, but with better graphics and sound. Still a great pairing of games, though.
Tetris Battle Gaiden (Super Famicom)	Falling Block Puzzle	1-2 Competitive (Local)	B+
tl;dr This game takes Tetris and adds a focus on battling and using character abilities to help yourself and mess with your opponent. The result is something that plays pretty differently from classic Tetris, in a good way.
Super Tetris 2 + Bombliss Genteiban (Super Famicom)	Compilation / Falling Block Puzzle	1-2 Competitive (Local)	B
tl;dr This is the exact same game as Super Tetris 2 + Bombliss on Super Famicom, just with different Bombliss levels
Super Tetris 3 (Super Famicom)	Compilation / Falling Block Puzzle	1-4 Competitive (Local)	B+
tl;dr This Compilation of Tetris variants includes Classic (just normal Tetris), Magicaliss (one where you can change colors by rotating pieces, matching colors to get more points), Sparkliss (like Bombliss but with better theming and slightly worse gameplay) and Familiss (4-Player Tetris). Most of these modes are throwaway, but Familiss adding 4-player gameplay is enough to make this worthwhile.
Super Bombliss (Super Famicom)	Falling Block Puzzle	1-2 Competitive (Local)	B
tl;dr On the one hand, this release lacks the packed-in version of the original Tetris that the previous releases had. On the other hand, it actually features a 2-Player competitive version of Bombliss itself that previous versions lacked. On balance, I think the result is about even… or maybe even a bit better in this Compilation, since you’re not exactly hurting for other versions of Tetris to play here.
Super Bombliss (Game Boy)	Falling Block Puzzle	1	B-
tl;dr Released in the US as Tetris Blast, this game ditches the Vs. AI mode and replaces it with a game mode where you need to crush or explode a creature walking around your well. It’s cute, but it feels like a downgrade. Also, this release only supports single-player, even though the original game supported two players.
Tetris Time Warp	Falling Block Puzzle	1-4 Competitive (Local)	B
tl;dr The main gameplay mode of this version of Tetris has you using special “time warp” pieces to temporarily warp yourself to a different version of Tetris where you can score bonus points by accomplishing a specific goal. It’s a cute way to cap off this collection, though in and of itself it’s a bit too chaotic and will frustrate players who haven’t familiarized themselves with variants like Bombliss. This game also includes endless modes styled like a generic modern Tetris game and one styled to be like the classic Game Boy version.

All of these games come with display options (including different color modes for Game Boy games), button reassignment options, scans of the original instructions, details on how to play (particularly helpful if the original instructions are in Japanese), and a rewind feature.

And of course, all of this is in addition to the aforementioned documentary footage, interviews, and promo materials, presented as a timeline. In this particular case, this documentary material is especially delightful, both because Alexey Pajitnov and Henk Rogers are genuinely charming interview subjects, but also because the scramble of various game companies to secure licensing rights to Tetris, and the confusion caused by the Russian language barrier and the bureaucracy of the Russian government, all combines into an absurd story that demands to be told (Apple TV even went so far as to release a biopic of these same events in 2023, with the film simply being titled Tetris).

When it comes to downsides in this package, I once again have to stress that while this Compilation contains numerous variations of Tetris, none of these are games I would consider to be among the best versions of Tetris. Also, out of 17 games, only one of them is not a Falling-Block Puzzle game (Igo: Kyu Roban Taikyoku, which is a competent smaller take on the Japanese Board Game, Go, but among Western audiences that may be a bit niche), meaning the games here feel a bit one-note.

Still, there are some worthwhile games here, even if none are on the caliber of Tetris Effect: Connected. Hatris and Bombliss are both compelling games that play very differently from Tetris, Tetris Battle Gaiden is a great competitive take on Tetris, and Super Tetris 3’s Familiss mode gives players a good way to compete with other local players in a 4-player throwdown. These games plus the excellent museum and documentary content make for an overall satisfying package, adding up to a Compilation that should be considered a must-have for Puzzle fans, especially players curious to learn more about the fascinating history behind one of the most important videogames ever made.

tl;dr – Tetris Forever is neither a comprehensive collection of Tetris games, nor does it contain the absolute best versions of Tetris among its 17 included games, some of which are very similar to each other, and nearly all of which are family-friendly Falling Block Puzzle games bearing the Tetris name, making this Compilation feel very one-note. However, what’s here is still a compelling mix of different takes on the classic Puzzle game, along with a truly excellent guided tour through the early history of Tetris’ rise to success. Puzzle Game fans and those with a fascination with videogame history should both consider this Compilation a must-have.

Grade: B+

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This game has been nominated for one or more of eShopperReviews 2024 Game Awards:

Runner-Up: Best Puzzle Game, Best Compilation/Collection

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