The New Tetris: How does it "stack up" against the other Tetris titles?

Author's Rating:

Pros: Classic Tetris gameplay; great music; new "hold piece" feature

Cons: Possible withdrawal from society after playing this game too much

The Bottom Line: 
Nintendo continues its grand line of Tetris interpretations with decent graphics, great music, and new features which add to the game and don't deter from it. Highly recommended.

Author's Review
Tetris is one of the most universally popular video games ever created, addicting gamers young and old for years. The appeal of Tetris lies within its "easy to learn, difficult to master" gameplay. Tetris is one of those games where you'll say "Just one more time" in spite of yourself, always trying to beat your own personal best. Nintendo has contributed to the plethora of Tetris games and variations that are available with some stellar efforts for the NES, SNES, Game Boy, and Game Boy Color. Now, Nintendo introduces The New Tetris for its Nintendo 64 console. While there are new graphics, sound, and gameplay features, the spirit of the original Tetris is kept intact and Nintendo delivers one of the best interpretations of Tetris since Atari's Tetris coin-op of the late 80's.

The New Tetris has a lot going for it in the gameplay department, including four-player capability, a few new features, and (of course) that classic Tetris gameplay that has entertained gamers for years. The four-player capability is a great idea and executes well, although the individual Tetris playfields can be a bit small for four players. When playing against a friend, however, the playfields are a nice size and easily discernable. The New Tetris incorporates a few new gameplay features; fortunately, unlike newer Tetris games like "The Next Tetris" which have more significant gameplay changes (like cascading blocks), The New Tetris relies on more subtle additions, such as the welcomed "hold piece" feature. This feature allows players to hold a piece in reserve for use at a more appropriate time. You can swap in your hold piece in exchange with a falling piece at any time, so this increases the game's strategy value. Other new features include the ability to build special squares that, when eliminated, can boost your line count and each line that you score is kept in a tally that, as you reach certain numbers of lines, can unlock each of the game's "Seven Wonders", which are new stages with diverse backgrounds and music. The best part about the gameplay here is that the classic Tetris gameplay and feel remain throughout. You'll still find yourself wanting to clear more lines and beat your personal best and you'll still want to challenge friends to see just who the real Tetris Master is.

Even though the graphics and sound are secondary in a game like this, it's nice to see that Nintendo and game developer Blue Planet Software decided not to slack off in these areas; there are some nice backgrounds to behold and some of the best music that I've ever heard come from a cartridge-based game. The backgrounds are culturally diverse, representing different times and periods, such as the Mayan Civilization, the Ancient Greeks, the Celtics, and even Japanese and Russian decors. Playing in Single Player mode allows you to see the full splendor of these backgrounds. They obviously weren't necessary in a game such as this, but they look quite good. As for the music, it's a great mix of techno and new age that just fits the game to a T. From Egyptian rhythms to a stellar remix of the classic Tetris theme, the music adds another degree of enjoyment to an already terrific Tetris experience. The music doesn't sound tinny, like with some Nintendo 64 games... it sounds full and rich.

The bottom line here is that Nintendo has delivered another quality Tetris experience; in fact, it may be one of the best yet for any console. It's remarkable that something so simple in premise can be executed so flawlessly and enjoyed by so many. Those of you who have a Nintendo 64 and haven't at least tried The New Tetris simply don't know what you're missing. It may take a little while to really get into it, but once you do, you're hooked... whether it's trying to unlock the "Seven Wonders" or whether it's showing your friends or your family just how good a Tetris player you really are. As for those you either no longer have a Nintendo 64 or never owned one, you're missing out on one of the best Tetris interpretations ever made... and with all of the Tetris games and variations out there, that's really saying something. Good show, Nintendo.