The Legacy of Falling Blocks
Forty years after its initial release, Tetris remains as iconic as ever. Developed by Moscow-born software engineer Alexey Pajitnov, this beloved game is renowned—and widely played—across the globe. You’d likely recognize it from its famous tune alone, but there’s much more to Tetris than meets the eye. Even if you've played this game countless times before, here are 20 shocking facts you didn't know about the world's most addictive game.
1. Best-Selling Video Game of All Time
Though this might be shocking, it shouldn't come as a complete surprise that Tetris is the world's best-selling video game of all time. In fact, it has sold over 520 million copies around the world, across all available platforms, Coming in second is Minecraft, which has sold 300 million.
2. Constant New High Scores
Players are still constantly beating in-game records and challenging the high scores. Whether it's the most cleared lines, the fastest time to reach a certain number of points, or the highest overall total, Tetris makes it fun—and addictive—to beat.
3. Released in 1984
Tetris was created by Alexey Pajitnov, a Soviet software engineer born in Moscow. He developed the game on an Elektronika 60, a rack-mounted system made in the Soviet Union that had neither contained a built-in display nor storage. And since it couldn't hold graphics, Tetris blocks were shaped out of text.
Sergei Frolov,Soviet calculators Collection,http://www.rk86.com/frolov/ on Wikimedia
4. Theme Music Is Based on Russian Folk Song
The iconic theme jingle being played whenever Tetris boots up is based on a Russian folk song called "Korobeiniki." Meaning "the peddlers," it was originally a poem written by Nikolay Nekrasov in 1861. It was then later arranged into the "A-type" music we all know and love by Japanese composer Hirokazu Tanaka in 1989.
5. Tetris Is Named After One of Its Shapes
The name Tetris comes from one of the shapes in the game, namely the "tetrominoes," which have four sides. They were later referred to as "tetriminos," sparking the inspiration. But that's not all: Pajitnov, the creator, also had an affinity for tennis—and thus, Tetris became the name.
6. Soviet Union Initially Owned the Rights
Piracy led the game to being distributed in different variations throughout the United States, UK, and Hungary without the original creator knowing. Pajitnov had also ceded rights to Tetris to the Soviet government, meaning he had barely made a dime for the game during those years.
Bullet-Proof Software on Wikimedia
7. The Original Creator Didn't Get Rights Back Until 1996
It wasn't until 1996, more than a decade later, that Pajitnov acquired back the rights to his game. He then established his company, The Tetris Company, with Henk Rogers, forming the copyright and trademarks for the game.
8. Has a Questionable World Record
Addictive as the game is, apparently this means it also comes with consequences. In 2002, a British passenger named Faiz Chopdat was playing Tetris on his phone during his flight home. After being told twice to shut it off, Chopdat was arrested upon landing for "endangering the safety of an aircraft." He was jailed for four months.
9. Tetris Is Said to Curb Cravings
But then again, maybe there's another plus to its addictive gameplay. Never mind spending long sessions trying to beat Tetris, but just three minutes of play can significantly reduce cravings for alcohol, cigarettes, and food. In one study, participants reported 24% weaker cravings after playing compared to those who did not engage in the game.
10. Created "The Tetris Effect"
"The Tetris Effect" is the name for a hallucination that players see after long sessions of the game, reporting Tetris-like patterns appearing in the clouds, in dreams, and in other unlikely places. While this phenomenon can happen after playing any game for an extended period of time, it's most commonly experienced by Tetris players.
11. Was Played Under an Electron Microscope
The smallest version ever of Tetris was played under a microscope. In Amsterdam, students of the Department of Physics of Complex Systems recreated the game with 42 glass microspheres, which were as tiny as a grain of sand.
National Cancer Institute on Unsplash
12. American Teenager Beat AI on Original Tetris
A 13-year-old American teenager from Oklahoma, Willis Gibson (known online as "Blue Scuti"), is believed to be the first human to reach the end crash screen of the Tetris game. Previously, this feat was only achievable by AI bots, as they're programmed to know exactly where to place each block.
13. Tetris Has Been Used to Treat PTSD
Believe it or not, Tetris has been used to treat multiple conditions, from amblyopia to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The latter, in particular, was the subject of a study conducted by researchers at the Karolinska Institute and the University of Oxford. As it turns out, the visual effects of Tetris can potentially reduce the distressing images of a traumatic event as it gives the brain something else to focus on and think about.
14. Was Featured in 2014 Sochi Paralympics
During the closing ceremony of the 2024 Sochi Paralympics, Tetris made a memorable appearance. On the stage floor, blocky letters formed in the shapes of Tetris, which initially spelled out "impossible." As the performance played on, the letters eventually shifted until it read, "I'm possible."
15. Has Been Played on the Body of a Skyscraper
Being played under an electron microscope isn't the most shocking platform for Tetris—it's also been played on the side of a skyscraper. Frank Lee, a game design professor at Drexel University, created a version of the game in 2014 by utilizing the LED lights on the 29-storey Cira Centre in Philadelphia. He won the Guinness World Record for the largest architectural video game display.
Jeffrey M. Vinocur on Wikimedia
16. Color Schemes Have Changed Over the Years
When The Tetris Company was formed, the trademark colors of Tetris were established for the shapes at the turn of the century: a light blue I, dark blue J, orange L, yellow O, green S, red Z, and purple T. But over the years, you've likely seen these iconic shapes taking on various colors.
17. A Viral Tetris Challenge Was Started by Zurich Police
In 2019, Zurich Police started an online trend that went viral among healthcare workers and military units. The challenge consisted of laying down among their arranged equipment to form a perfect grid, similar to Tetris, which was then captured in a photograph from bird's eye view.
18. Sega Genesis Version is Extremely Rare
Because of licensing issues and rights with Nintendo, a Sega Genesis (also known as Mega Drive) version of Tetris is extremely rare. It's estimated that only around 10 copies of the game still exist today. One copy, signed by Pajitnov, was sold on eBay for $1 million in 2011.
19. Tetris Was the First Game Played in Space
Tetris became the first video game ever played in space when cosmonaut Aleksandr Serebrov packed the cartridge with him alongside his game boy aboard the Soyuz TM-17 rocket to the MIR Space Station in 1993. This feat earned him a Guinness World Record.
Soviet Union Post on Wikimedia
20. Incorrect Tetris Facts Were Shown on Jeopardy!
In 2019, the game show Jeopardy! mistakenly showed a viral Twitter meme in which names had been given to the Tetris shapes: Orange Ricky, Blue Ricky, Hero, Cleveland Z, Rhode Island Z, Hero, Teewee, and Smashboy. In reality, the shapes are just known as tetrominoes, which go by the letters I, J, L, O, S, Z, and T.
