Tetris, the classic puzzle game that has captivated millions of players for over three decades, has finally met its match. A 13-year-old boy from California has become the first person to ever beat Tetris, meaning that he forced a kill screen, a point where the game becomes unplayable due to its speed and complexity.
The boy, who goes by the online name of "Tetris Master", achieved this feat on January 4, 2024, while playing the original NES version of Tetris, which was released in 1989. He streamed his gameplay live on Twitch, where he has over 10,000 followers. His video has since gone viral, attracting over 2 million views and thousands of comments from fellow Tetris fans and gamers.
Tetris Master explained that he had been playing Tetris since he was six years old, and that he had practiced for hours every day to master the game. He said that he used a technique called "hypertapping", which involves rapidly tapping the D-pad to move the pieces faster than the game's built-in speed limit. This technique allows him to manipulate the pieces at the highest levels of the game, where they fall almost instantly.
Hypertapping was popularized by Joseph Saelee, who won the Classic Tetris World Championship (CTWC) in 2018, when he was 16 years old. Saelee defeated seven-time champion Jonas Neubauer, who played with the conventional method of holding down the D-pad. Saelee's victory marked the arrival of a new era for competitive Tetris, where hypertapping became the dominant style among the top players.
Tetris Master said that he was inspired by Saelee and other hypertappers, and that he had watched their videos and learned from their strategies. He said that he had also participated in several online tournaments, and that he hoped to compete in the CTWC someday. He said that his goal was to beat Tetris again, and to achieve a higher score than his current record of 999,999 points.
Tetris, invented in 1984 by Soviet software engineer Alexey Pajitnov, is widely regarded as one of the most successful and influential video games of all time. It has been officially released on over 65 platforms, and holds the Guinness world record for the most ported video game. It has also spawned numerous variations, spin-offs, and adaptations, including the popular Tetris Effect and Tetris 99.
Tetris is known for its simple yet addictive gameplay, where the player has to arrange falling blocks of different shapes and colors to form complete horizontal lines. The game becomes progressively more difficult as the blocks fall faster and the screen fills up. The game ends when the blocks reach the top of the screen, leaving no space for new pieces to enter.
According to Pajitnov, Tetris is based on his love of puzzles and his fascination with creating order out of chaos. He said that he wanted to make a game that was easy to learn, but hard to master, and that would appeal to people of all ages and backgrounds. He said that he was amazed by the enduring popularity of Tetris, and that he was proud of the impact it had on the gaming industry and culture.
Tetris Master's achievement has been praised by Pajitnov, who congratulated him on his Twitter account. He said that he was impressed by the boy's skill and dedication, and that he was happy to see that Tetris still had the power to challenge and inspire new generations of players.