Justin Yu

Last updated

Fractal161
Justin Yu CTWC 2023.jpg
Yu after winning the 2023 Classic Tetris World Championship
Personal information
NameJustin Yu
Born2000or2001(age 23–24) [a]
Career information
Games Classic Tetris
Playing careerc.2016–present
Career highlights and awards
  • CTWC champion (2023)
  • 1× CTWC runner-up (2022)
  • 1× CTEC runner-up (2021)
  • 1× CTWC Jonas Cup champion (2024)
  • 4× CTWC Regional winner (2022–2025)
  • 9× CTM Masters winner (2021–2024)
  • Second person to "beat" NES Tetris (2024)

Justin Yu, known online as Fractal161, is an American classic Tetris player from Dallas, Texas. He is best known for his victory in the 2023 Classic Tetris World Championship (CTWC), for becoming the second person to "beat the game", and first to achieve its earliest possible game crash on January 3, 2024.

Contents

Beginning to play Tetris around 2016, Yu entered the competitive scene around 2019, and was one of the first players to fully adopt a new and faster playing style called "rolling". Through repeated practice and by studying the game's programming assembly, Yu finished as the runner-up in the 2022 CTWC and won the 2023 CTWC while also a Junior at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). After winning the CTWC, Yu focused on becoming the first person to "beat" Tetris. While working towards the achievement, Yu became the first to reach the late-game glitched color levels before the game crash, but was beat to his end goal by fellow competitive Tetris player Willis Gibson (known online as "Blue Scuti") on December 21, 2023. A few weeks later, Yu became the first player to achieve the earliest possible game crash. He has stated his desire to one day run Tetris websites and tournaments of his own.

Personal life and education

Yu is from Dallas, Texas. [2] [3] In high school, Yu participated in a number of math competitions, [3] including competing for the winning team in the 2016 Mathcounts National Competition, [4] helping him to get accepted into the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with a major in computer science and engineering. [2] At MIT, Yu pursued another major in mathematics, with a minor in music technology, and is set to graduate in 2025. [2] [3] Yu also plays the cello in the MIT Video Game Orchestra, an orchestra at the school which performs covers of classic video game music. [2] Yu has stated he places the Video Game Orchestra and other school commitments above practicing Tetris. [3]

Tetris career

Yu began to play the original NES Tetris around 2016, becoming interested after watching videos of the game on YouTube, but never playing for more than an hour at a time. [2] He began to pursue the game more competitively around 2019, playing in three to four hour sessions, where he often practiced to optimize his strategy. [2] [3] To get a better understanding of the game, Yu began to experiment in programming assembly and ROM hacking, which helped him to become the first person to reach Tetris's late-game glitched color levels, and in his major at MIT. [2] In the 2022 CTWC, Yu finished in second after losing to Eric Tolt (known online as "EricICX") in the finals. [5] As a Junior in college, Yu again competed in the CTWC from October 13 to 15, 2023, where he beat fellow competitor Eve Commandeur (known online as "Sidnev") to place first, winning over US$3,000. [1] [2]

Yu playing against Eve Commandeur ("Sidnev") in the 2023 CTWC Finals 2023 CTWC finals.jpg
Yu playing against Eve Commandeur ("Sidnev") in the 2023 CTWC Finals

After the 2023 CTWC, Yu announced his intentions to try to "beat the game", a point late in the game when its code glitches and displays a game crash due to hardware limitations within the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). [2] [6] Fellow competitive Tetris player and YouTuber Willis Gibson (known online as "Blue Scuti") became inspired by this goal and competed against Yu for over two months to become the first to the achievement. [7] Yu particularly struggled with a level nicknamed "dusk", which he described as "so incredibly dark that I felt as if I'd been blinded for a split second." [7] While fixing the issue by purchasing a universal remote which increased his TV's brightness, Yu learned Gibson was close to crashing the game, and watched his livestream where Gibson ultimately "beat the game" on December 21, 2023. [3] [7] [8] Yu celebrated the achievement with Gibson, exclaiming "He did it, he did it!" on his own livestream. [9] [10] Yu continued to work towards the goal, and on another livestream on January 3, 2024, he beat the game, becoming the second person to do so after Gibson and first person to achieve the earliest possible game crash on level 155, two levels quicker than on Gibson's run. [6] [11] [12] After the large amount of media coverage that came from beating the game, Yu argued he did not want the message to read as "We've finished up!" to potential new players, when other achievements such as the "perfect Tetris game" consisting of only the highest scoring line-clears called "tetrises", and "rebirth", playing the same so long it restarts at level one, had both yet to be done. [7]

In early 2024, Yu hosted his own Tetris event at MIT, given the tongue-in-cheek name "Boston T Parity", which only through word of mouth had between fifty to sixty attendees. [3] From June 7–9, Yu competed in the 2024 CTWC, where he was eliminated in the Round of 16 by Tristan Kwai (known online as "Tristop"), who went on to win third place. [13] [14] Yu has stated his future goal is to one day help run Tetris websites and tournaments as opposed to competing in them, believing the large effort needed to run them often goes unnoticed. [2] [3]

From June 6–8, Yu returned to compete in the 2025 Classic Tetris World Championship. Albeit securing seed 5, Yu was eliminated early once again in the round of 16, this time losing to Willis Gibson, who in turn would lose his semifinals match to the eventual champion Alex Thach. [15] [16]

Playing style

Shortly after Yu began to play competitively, he was among the first to change their playing style to "rolling", a technique which involves rolling the back of the controller with all five fingers to position the game pieces more quickly. This became crucial to beating later levels of the game and to staying competitive in modern tournaments. [2] In a February 2024 interview with the newspaper The Tech , Yu stated his strategy revolved less around making "the board look as nice as possible", and trying to focus on completing tetrises. [3]

Competitive record

This table lists notable Classic Tetris tournaments in which Yu competed in and their outcomes. It includes any appearances at the Classic Tetris World Championship, CTWC DAS Jonas Cup, CTWC DAS World Cup, CTM Mega Masters, as well as high placings at related tournaments, such as reaching at least semifinals in other CTWC or CTM events. CTM results prior to 2022 only list the winner and runner-up, and information may be incomplete. [17]

Competitive record of Justin Yu in Classic Tetris
YearTournament Size Seed Score PlaceRef.
2020CTM April ChallengersN/AN/AN/A2nd [18]
CTM August FuturesN/AN/AN/A1st [19]
2021CTM April Challengers1663–12nd [20]
CTM June Challengers1664–01st [21]
CTM August Masters1614–0 [22]
CTWC World Championship 6443–29th–16th [23]
CTWC European Championship 3215–22nd [24]
2022CTM April Mega Masters32105–01st [25]
CTM May Masters1642–13rd–4th [26]
CTM June Masters1642–1 [27]
CTWC Lone Star [note 1] 1223–01st [28]
CTM July Masters16114–0 [29]
CTM August Masters1614–0 [30]
CTM September Masters1622–13rd–4th [31]
CTWC World Championship 4814–12nd [32]
CTM November Masters1612–13rd–4th [33]
2023CTM April Mega Masters7872–19th–16th [34]
CTM June PAL [note 2] 1747–22nd [35]
CTM Lone Star DAS [note 3] 1283–1 [36]
CTWC World Championship 4835–01st [37]
CTM October Masters [note 4] 1644–0 [38]
CTM November Masters [note 5] 1623–12nd [39]
CTM December Masters1662–13rd–4th [40]
2024CTWC Boston [note 6] 1211–1 [41]
CTM January Masters1634–01st [42]
CTWC Genesis 1213–0 [43]
CTM February Masters1614–0 [44]
CTM March Mega Masters6456–0 [45]
CTWC World Championship 4891–19th–16th [46]
CTM July DAS Masters1612–13rd–4th [47]
CTWC Minneapolis [note 7] 1223–01st [48]
CTM September Challengers1654–0 [49]
CTWC DAS Jonas Cup [note 8] 4865–0 [50]
CTM October DAS Masters3232–13rd–4th [51]
2025 CTWC Genesis DAS 1614–01st [52]
CTWC Genesis 1622–24th [53]
CTM March Masters3263–12nd [54]
CTM March DAS Masters32133–13rd–4th [55]
CTM April Mega Masters6452–15th–8th [56]
CTWC World Championship 4851–19th–16th [57]
CTWC DAS World Cup [note 9] 4822–25th–6th [58]

high seed after qualifying awarding a single bye
high seed after qualifying awarding a double bye

Notes

  1. While no exact date is given, Yu was 22 years old on November 3, 2023. [1]
  1. jointly hosted by CTWC & CTM in 2022 only
  2. played using the PAL version instead of the commonly used NTSC version
  3. aka "National DAS Championship 2023"
  4. aka "Faster Masters"
  5. aka "No Cap November"
  6. aka "Boston T Parity"
  7. aka "MinneD"
  8. aka "Jonas Neubauer Cup"
  9. aka "CTWC DAS: The World Cup of DAS"

References

  1. 1 2 Leporati, Gregory (November 3, 2023). "Tetris championships, rare video games: Welcome to 8-bit paradise". The Washington Post . Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Halpern, Jane (October 27, 2023). "MIT's Justin Yu wins Classic Tetris World Championship". MIT News . Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Ismael, Russel; Nix, Josh (February 8, 2024). "Putting the pieces together". The Tech . Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  4. "Alumni Chats: Justin Yu". Mathcounts . September 2024. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
  5. "Results". Classic Tetris World Championship . Retrieved January 15, 2024.
  6. 1 2 Bailey, Dustin (January 5, 2023). "It took 34 years for someone to beat Tetris - now 2 more people have done it days apart from each other". GamesRadar+ . Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Halpern, Jane (February 9, 2024). "MIT junior Justin Yu crashes "Tetris," with thanks to the game's recent "space race"". MIT News . Retrieved August 2, 2024.
  8. Elmquist, Jason (January 3, 2024). "Wunderkind: Stillwater teen becomes first documented human to 'beat' Tetris". Stillwater News Press . Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  9. "US teenager becomes first human to beat Tetris with game-ending glitch". France 24 . January 4, 2024. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  10. Lynn, Bryan (January 4, 2024). "American teenager becomes first human to beat video game Tetris". Voice of America . Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  11. Ashraf, Amirul (January 11, 2024). "Classic Tetris World Champion has also beaten NES Tetris". gamermatters.com. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  12. Justin Yu (January 4, 2024). I defeated NES Tetris (YouTube video). Fractal161. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  13. Classic Tetris World Championship XV – Day 2 Tournament Begins! (YouTube). Classic Tetris World Championship. June 8, 2024. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  14. Classic Tetris World Championship XV – Day 3 Finals (YouTube). Classic Tetris World Championship. June 9, 2024. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
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  19. "Past tournament results [Futures tab]". Classic Tetris Monthly. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
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  24. "Sidnev Wins The 2021 Classic Tetris European Championship". Tetris Interest. December 17, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
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  26. "CTM May 2022 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. May 2022. Archived from the original on January 24, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  27. "CTM June 2022 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. June 2022. Archived from the original on January 24, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  28. "2022 CTWC Lone Star Regional: Timestamps". Tetris Interest. May 13, 2025. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
  29. "CTM July 2022 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. July 2022. Archived from the original on January 12, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  30. "CTM August 2022 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. August 2022. Archived from the original on January 12, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
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  34. "CTM Mega Masters 2023". Classic Tetris Monthly. April 2023. Archived from the original on March 11, 2024. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
  35. "CTM PAL June 2023 Tier 1". Classic Tetris Monthly. June 2023. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  36. "CTM National DAS Championship 2023". Classic Tetris Monthly. July 2023. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
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  39. "CTM November 2023 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. November 2023. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
  40. "CTM December 2023 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. December 2023. Archived from the original on February 28, 2024. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
  41. "Boston T Parity Tournament". Classic Tetris Monthly. January 2024. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
  42. "CTM January 2024 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. January 2024. Archived from the original on January 7, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  43. "2024 CTWC Genesis Regional: Timestamps". Tetris Interest. May 29, 2024. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
  44. "CTM February 2024 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. February 2024. Archived from the original on February 28, 2024. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
  45. "CTM Mega Masters 2024". Classic Tetris Monthly. March 2024. Archived from the original on March 11, 2024. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
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  47. "CTM DAS Masters July 2024 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. July 2024. Retrieved August 21, 2025.
  48. "2024 CTWC MinneD on the Screen Regional: Timestamps". Tetris Interest. August 27, 2025. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
  49. "CTM September 2024 Challengers Circuit". Classic Tetris Monthly. September 2024. Retrieved August 21, 2025.
  50. "2024 Jonas Neubauer Cup: Timestamps". Tetris Interest. October 9, 2024. Retrieved August 21, 2025.
  51. "CTM DAS Masters October 2024 DAS Masters". Classic Tetris Monthly. October 2024. Retrieved August 21, 2025.
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  53. "2025 CTWC Genesis Regional: Timestamps". Tetris Interest. February 17, 2025. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
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  55. "CTM DAS Masters March 2025 DAS Masters". Classic Tetris Monthly. March 2025. Retrieved August 21, 2025.
  56. "CTM April 2025 Masters Event". Classic Tetris Monthly. April 2025. Retrieved August 21, 2025.
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  58. "2025 CTWC DAS: Timestamps". Tetris Interest. August 7, 2025. Retrieved August 27, 2025.