The Legacy of Tetris

Tetris, created in 1984 by Soviet software engineer Alexey Pajitnov, is one of the most iconic and influential video games in history. Its simple yet addictive gameplay, rotating and placing falling tetrominoes to clear lines, transcended technological boundaries and cultural divides, becoming a universal language of play. From its origins on the Electronika 60, Tetris quickly spread across platforms, thanks to early ports by Vadim Gerasimov and licensing efforts by Robert Stein and Henk Rogers. Its breakthrough came with the 1989 release on the Nintendo Game Boy, where it was bundled with the handheld console. This strategic pairing helped the Game Boy become a global success and positioned Tetris as a killer app that appealed to all demographics.

Tetris’s cultural impact is profound. It was the first entertainment software exported from the Soviet Union to the West, symbolizing a rare moment of détente during the Cold War. Its universal appeal and minimalist design made it a staple in homes, classrooms, commutes, and everywhere in between. The game’s hypnotic rhythm and escalating challenges have been linked to the “Tetris Effect,” a phenomenon where players visualize falling blocks in their minds long after playing. In the video game industry, Tetris set a precedent for puzzle games and inspired countless clones and variants. It demonstrated that compelling gameplay could triumph over graphical fidelity, influencing game design philosophy for decades. Its licensing saga, particularly the legal battle between Nintendo and Atari Games over console rights, also shaped intellectual property law for interactive entertainment, highlighting the complexities of international licensing.

Tetris has remained relevant through generations, evolving with technology while retaining its core mechanics. From arcade cabinets to smartphones, and from solo play to multiplayer competitions, Tetris continues to challenge and entertain. Its presence in esports, especially through the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) edition, has seen a resurgence, with players developing advanced techniques like “hypertapping” and “rolling” to push the game beyond its intended limits. Ultimately, Tetris is more than a game, it’s a cultural artifact. It bridges East and West, simplicity and complexity, past and future.

Please enjoy our exhibit celebrating the 40th anniversary of the release of Tetris, featuring a curated selection of games from our Syd Bolton Collection and Personal Computer Museum Collection. Special thanks to the Library team in preparing and promoting this exhibit: Anuradha Akers, Mary Atkinson, Nga Foster, Donna Liu, Christopher ‘Cal’ Long, Neha Purswaney, Dany Savard, and the many staff and students who worked on the preservation and access of our archives and special collections over the years. Credit to Victoria Fard for sharing their falling tetrominoes artwork for the exhibit’s promotional material.

Chris J. Young
September 2025
Mississauga, Canada

1. Spectrum HoloByte's Tetris on the IBM PC (1988)

The IBM PC edition of Tetris, released in January 1988, was the first commercial and widely distributed edition outside the USSR that ran on all IBM PC, Tandy 1000 and compatible computers. While the original game was designed and programmed by Alexei Pajitnov on the Electronika 60, it was later ported for the IBM PC by Vadim Gerasimov in 1986, a 16-year-old student in Computer Informatics at Moscow University.

Initially released unlicensed in January 1988, Spectrum HoloByte acquired rights from Robert Stein of Andromeda Software, who had prematurely licensed the game to companies despite not securing full rights from Electronorgtechnica (Elorg). Later that year, Elorg canceled Stein’s rights and engaged in direct licensing agreements with companies like Spectrum HoloByte. As a result, Spectrum HoloByte entered into an agreement with Elorg to legitimize their computer releases of the game, leading to two editions of Tetris. The first edition included an animated title screen with a plane flying in front of St. Basil’s Cathedral and military-themed backgrounds. These elements were removed in the second edition at Elorg’s and Pajitnov’s request.

This copy of the second edition includes the Elorg rights statement on the exterior red packaging and the printed label attached to the 5.25-inch floppy disk. However, the player’s guide still retains the original Andromeda Software copyright statement, which suggests first edition copies were reused and included in the second edition, perhaps to save on printing costs.

2. MirrorSoft's Tetris on the Commodore 64 (1988)

Alongside Spectrum HoloByte, MirrorSoft licensed the rights to Tetris from Andromeda Software for distribution in the European market. MirrorSoft released Tetris for the Amiga, Amstrad, Atari ST, BBC Micro, Commodore 64, IBM PC, MSX, and ZX Spectrum computers during 1988, with distinct versions utilizing the memory, graphics, and sounds capability of those systems.

This Commodore 64 datasette version of the MirrorSoft edition features a haunting percussive theme soundtrack composed by Wally Beben. It is considered a technical and artistic achievement on the Commodore 64 because Beben simulated a “phantom” fourth voice on the three-voice SID chip by using phasing techniques with the noise generator. This gave the music a richer and more layered sound than was typically possible with the hardware. Alongside Beben’s music, this version included science fiction inspired artwork by Stephen Thomson, featuring two nude figures in monochrome. This greyscale aesthetic matched the mood of the game’s music and contrasted the more vibrant colours of the falling tetrominoes. Together, Beben’s music and Thomson's artwork produced one of the more unique and distinctive aesthetic approaches to Tetris.

This release also included a “Bacꓘ In The USSЯ” competition giveaway for a 4-day holiday to Moscow. The competition asks players to submit their highest score, both in points and the number of lines completed, and to suggest what the word “Tetris” might mean if it was a real word in Russian. Pajitnov later confirmed in interviews Tetris is a portmanteau of the Greek prefix tetra (meaning four) and his favorite sport, tennis. 

3. Bullet Proof Software's Tetris on the Nintendo Famicom (1988)

Released December 1988 in Japan, the Nintendo Famicom edition of Tetris was developed and published by Bullet Proof Software (BPS). The game was sublicensed by Spectrum HoloByte to BPS for the Japanese market. Despite being released under an incorrect computer license for the console market, this edition played a crucial role in Henk Rogers securing the authorized rights for Nintendo from Elorg, leading to the NES console and Game Boy handheld releases. 

The Famicom edition was infamous for its control scheme which mapped the down arrow button to rotate the tetromino and the A button to “hard drop” the tetrominoes to the floor of the screen. This contrasted to later editions of Tetris that mapped the A button to rotate the tetromino and the down arrow key to drop to the floor of the screen. Players gained additional points based on the number of rows a piece eliminated following a hard drop, encouraging faster gameplay. Additionally, the Famicom edition granted players three lives, making it more forgiving than the arcade-like design where the game ended once a player topped out.

This copy includes the original red packaging, Famicom cartridge, player guide, and an advertisement for Hatris, a puzzle game developed by Pajitnov and Vladimir Pokhilko of ParaGraph for BPS. Hatris was Pajitnov’s follow up game to Tetris that was released for arcade, the NES, and Game Boy later in 1990.

4. Nintendo's Tetris on the Nintendo Entertainment System (1989)

Released in June 1989 and developed by Nintendo’s in-house studio R&D1, the Nintendo-published NES edition of Tetris was pivotal in defining the puzzle genre on home video game consoles. In a dramatic business move to secure the worldwide console and handheld rights to Tetris, Nintendo of America president Minoru Arakawa, along with general counsel Howard Lincoln and Henk Rogers from BPS, traveled to Moscow in early 1989 to negotiate directly with Elorg. Their efforts secured exclusive console and handheld rights, culminating in a historic worldwide licensing agreement that had significant repercussions for publishers like Andromeda Software, Spectrum HoloByte, MirrorSoft, and Atari Games.

The NES edition features two gameplay modes: the A-Type where players score as many points as possible by clearing lines; and the B-Type challenge mode with a fixed goal of clearing 25 lines. This edition is also known for its iconic music, composed by Hirokazu Tanaka, one of Nintendo’s legendary sound designers. His classical-inspired chiptune compositions, particularly the A-Type melody based on Korobeiniki, became known as the Tetris theme tune.

Tetris played a central role in the 1990 Nintendo World Championships, where it was one of three featured games on a custom competition cartridge. Its high score multiplier made it the decisive game in the tournament. Decades later, the NES edition became the foundation for the Classic Tetris World Championship, a global esports phenomenon that helped elevate retro gaming into mainstream competitive culture.

5. Tengen's Tetris on the Nintendo Entertainment System (1989)

Released briefly in May 1989, Tetris for NES published by Tengen is one of the most infamous and collectible titles in video game history. Unlike Nintendo’s officially licensed edition, Tengen’s release was unlicensed, stemming from a convoluted and invalid licensing chain. Atari Games, Tengen’s parent company, believed it had acquired console rights through Andromeda Software and MirrorSoft for distribution in North America and Europe. However, Elorg never granted console rights, only computer rights. When Nintendo discovered this, it moved swiftly to negotiate directly with Elorg, securing exclusive worldwide console and handheld rights for their NES console and Game Boy handheld. In June 1989, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California ruled in Nintendo’s favor, ordering Tengen to cease distribution and destroy all unsold copies. Approximately 100,000 units were shipped before the injunction was enforced, making surviving copies highly sought-after by collectors.

Designed by Ed Logg, Tengen’s edition also included five game modes single-player, two-player competition and cooperative, and two-player competition and cooperative with the CPU. The cooperative mode was distinctive in how players could get in the way of each other while simultaneously placing their tetrominoes. Tengen’s release also included four music tracks composed by Brad Fuller, though not as iconic as Tanaka’s A-Type melody for the Nintendo edition.

The Tengen edition came in a distinctive black cartridge, bypassing Nintendo’s lockout chip. This complete copy includes a dust sleeve, player guide, and a fold-out poster showcasing the game’s branding and tetromino shapes. Today, Tengen’s Tetris stands as a symbol of early video game licensing chaos and remains one of the rarest NES titles ever produced.

6. Nintendo Power Issue 9 Featuring Nintendo's Tetris on the Nintendo Entertainment System (1989)

Before the advent of online guides and video tutorials, magazines like Nintendo Power were essential for learning game mechanics, strategies, and insider tips, often directly from Nintendo’s own developer and publishing team. In the wake of the NES and Game Boy releases of Tetris, and during ongoing legal disputes with Atari Games, Issue 9, released in November/December 1989, featured Tetris as its cover story and served as a vital resource for players navigating one of the most iconic puzzle games of all time.

The NES Tetris edition feature offered detailed breakdowns of both A-Type and B-Type gameplay modes. For A-Type, the magazine emphasized techniques for managing increasing speed, such as stacking pieces flat and keeping the playfield low to avoid panic in higher levels. For B-Type, it provided strategies for clearing 25 lines while dealing with pre-filled blocks, including carving out vertical channels and avoiding piece traps. These insights helped players understand the game’s escalating difficulty and develop long-term strategies.

The feature article also included “Howard’s Tips,” a recurring tips and tricks segment from Nintendo’s Howard Phillips. His advice focused on mastering rotation timing, recognizing piece patterns, and staying calm under pressure, guidance that was especially valuable for players aiming to improve their scores or compete in events like the Nintendo World Championships.

Beyond gameplay, the Tetris coverage reflected the game’s growing cultural significance and Nintendo’s push to position it as a must-own title. Issue 9 stands as a snapshot of a time when printed media was the primary gateway to gaming knowledge, and its Tetris feature article remains a memorable example of how magazines shaped player experience in the 1980s and 1990s.

7. Game Boy and Packaging featuring Tetris on the Game Boy (1989)

When Nintendo launched the Game Boy in North America in July 1989, it made a bold and defining decision: to bundle the handheld system not with the iconic Super Mario Bros. franchise, but with Tetris, a minimalist puzzle game of Soviet origin. This pairing proved revolutionary. By including Tetris with every Game Boy unit, Nintendo broadened its appeal, capturing the attention of children, adults, commuters, and casual players alike. It was a masterstroke in marketing that helped the Game Boy become a global phenomenon.

The bundled edition of Tetris was a faithful adaptation of Pajitnov’s original concept, optimized for the Game Boy’s monochrome screen and compact controls. Despite the system’s limited hardware, the game delivered a smooth, addictive experience. Players choose between A-Type, an endless mode focused on high scores, and B-Type, a challenge mode requiring the player to clear 25 lines under increasingly difficult conditions. The Game Boy edition also supported two-player competitive play via the Game Link Cable, one of the earliest examples of portable multiplayer gaming.

This copy of the Game Boy bundle included the grey Game Boy console, a Tetris cartridge, a carrying case, earbuds, the Game Link Cable, and four AA batteries to get players started. The decision to bundle Tetris with the Game Boy is widely credited with helping the system sell over 100 million units worldwide. It transformed Tetris into a cultural touchstone and proved that handheld gaming could be both accessible and deeply engaging. This bundle remains one of the most influential product pairings in video game history.

8. Nintendo's Tetris 64 on the Japanese Nintendo 64 (1998)

Released exclusively in Japan in November 1998, Tetris 64 for the Nintendo 64 is one of the most experimental entries in the Tetris franchise. Published by SETA, the game is best known for its integration with the SETA Bio Sensor, a peripheral that measured the player’s heart rate and dynamically altered gameplay in response. Tetris 64 remains the only Nintendo 64 title compatible with the Bio Sensor, making it a unique artifact in gaming history.

The game features three distinct modes: Standard Tetris, Giga Tetris, and Bio Tetris. Standard Tetris offers the classic line-clearing gameplay familiar to fans of the series. Giga Tetris introduces oversized tetrominoes that break apart upon line clears, adding a chaotic and unpredictable twist to the traditional Tetris formula. The standout mode, Bio Tetris, uses real-time biometric feedback to influence the difficulty of the game.

In Bio Tetris, players clip the Bio Sensor to their earlobe via the controller’s expansion port which monitors their heart rate. Based on this data, the game adjusts the complexity of falling pieces. In Normal mode, a calm heart rate results in simpler shapes, while a rising pulse triggers more difficult, irregular tetrominoes. In Reverse mode, the effect is flipped where higher heart rates yield easier tetrominoes, encouraging players to physically excite themselves to gain advantage. This mechanic forces players to be acutely aware of their physiological state, transforming Tetris into a game of both mental and physical control.

Tetris 64 shipped with English menus despite its Japan-only release, and the Bio Sensor was sold both bundled and separately. Today, it is remembered as a bold experiment in biofeedback gaming.

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