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One of the classic games from the 1980's, which is Tetris, still remains addictive and challenging today.
I have discovered Tetris in 2009 and I really liked it. I have played it online and still found it fun to play as game companies add more aesthetics to the game. Then, I started to play it on my iPhone so I could play Tetris anywhere with better visuals. The great thing was that the mobile version of Tetris came out on July 9, 2008, which is pretty old. The principal addition to Tetris is a simple-touch control scheme that shows an outline of possible shape placements; I could simply tap where I want the black and it does so instantly. It is a well thought system that works at early levels, but becomes difficult to handle as the action and pace ramp up.
This pace is dictated by a timer that depletes faster as I advance through the levels; if I don’t make my move in time, the shape is dropped in the undesired position. Since I usually play Tetris using the single-touch method, I usually play the Marathon mode. I feel that this is an unoriginal way to play Tetris and I though it would be challenging to play Tetris the way it was meant to. During the harder levels of the Marathon mode, this means I would fail to make my move on time and spend the next minutes trying to clean up the mess. The problem lies in the controls in Marathon mode. But I do feel that One-Touch mode is better than Marathon mode, which involves a clumsy set of controls that involve a downwards swipe to drop the block and a tap anywhere in the background to rotate. The core mechanics in this game are almost the same in the original Tetris iterations.
Playing Tetris well requires accuracy. It is not enough accuracy to let blocks fall where it will; I must move them, turn them, slide them into crannies and nooks in the space of a bare half-second. EA's solution is clever: the One Touch mode. Simply, my blocks are suspended at the top of the screen. Shadows below mark possible drop zones. I can cycle blocks to observe a fresh set of possibilities. At first, this method felt distasteful, like being asked to swallow unusual bugs. When I toy around with this method for a while, I appreaciate it as a new way to play an old classic game.
EA offered a new perspective on Tetris, in addition to a cool futuristic theme and funky music.
So far, I have completed 12 levels of Tetris using the usual Marathon mode. It was quite challenging, but I managed to pull of a fight. I managed to clear of 60 lines of blocks in Level 12 without dying on the second try. I experimented with a variety of blocks and played very hard.
Rating (out of 5): |
