Tetris DS

Last updated

Tetris DS
Tetris DS cover.png
North American packaging artwork
Developer(s) Nintendo SPD
Publisher(s) Nintendo
Director(s) Masaki Tawara
Producer(s) Hitoshi Yamagami
Programmer(s)
  • Kazuki Yoshihara
  • Masahiro Kawano
Artist(s)
  • Tomoyoshi Yamane
  • Naoko Okamoto
  • Yukio Mishima
Writer(s)
  • Shuici Narusawa
  • Kazuhiro Yoshikawa
Composer(s)
  • Minako Hamano
  • Akira Fujiwara
Series Tetris
Platform(s) Nintendo DS
Release
  • NA: March 20, 2006
  • AU: April 13, 2006
  • EU: April 21, 2006
  • JP: April 27, 2006
Genre(s) Puzzle
Mode(s) Single player, multiplayer, online multiplayer (defunct)

Tetris DS [lower-alpha 1] is a puzzle video game developed and published by Nintendo. It was released for the Nintendo DS on March 20, 2006, in North America, April 13, 2006, in Australia, April 21, 2006, in Europe, and April 27, 2006, in Japan. [1] An installment of the Tetris franchise, the game supports up to ten players locally, and supported online multiplayer of up to four players using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection prior to its discontinuation.

Contents

Tetris DS features several new modes of play, each with a different theme styled after retro Nintendo games. They include Super Mario Bros. , The Legend of Zelda , Metroid , Donkey Kong , and Yoshi's Cookie . [2] Multiplayer gameplay also incorporates items to be used competitively. The game received positive reviews from critics, who cited its additional game modes and multiplayer capabilities. Long after its release, it continued to be upheld as the best portable Tetris title, and one of the best in the series.

Gameplay

The game's standard mode, featuring a scene from Super Mario Bros. on the top screen Tetris DS gameplay.png
The game's standard mode, featuring a scene from Super Mario Bros. on the top screen

The game is split into six unique single-player modes, some of which are usable in the game's multiplayer. [3] Each game variant is represented by a different Nintendo theme and character from a retro game, with the Super Mario Bros. sub-series featured in the game's standard, default mode, while other series appear in the alternate modes that provide a different spin on gameplay. [2]

The game's standard mode plays in a similar manner as classic Tetris, in which the player must move clusters of different-shaped tiles (tetrominos), manipulate them as they drop by spinning them, and place them in a pile at the bottom. Players must stack each piece without empty space so that they can continue clearing lines of the pile. [4] Difficulty of this mode increases with every 10 lines cleared. [3]

The game makes use of the infinite spin feature that was initially introduced in Tetris Worlds , allowing the player to prevent a piece from being locked as long as it continues to spin. [4]

The Zelda-themed [5] Mission mode features changing goals that appear in the top-right of the top screen; sometimes, only certain pieces can fall depending on what goal is active. A "hold" box allows the player to save a piece for later use. [3]

Push mode is a competitive two-player game, where the objective is to push the opponent's pieces towards the bottom of the screen. The player always controls the top screen and must clear two or more lines to shift the block down towards their opponent. If the block is pushed all the way towards the opponent, the player wins; clearing more lines shifts the block more drastically. [3]

Touch mode consists of two variants; Tower mode and Touch Puzzle mode. The former stacks pieces in a disorganized tower, and the player must attempt to get the box of balloons at the top to the bottom by touching and sliding the pieces, or double-tapping them to rotate. The latter contains 50 puzzles ranging in difficulty that must be solved by sliding pieces with the stylus, without rotating them. [3]

In Catch mode, which is themed after Metroid, [6] the player controls a rotating block of pieces that can catch other falling pieces. The central core will detonate once the player achieves a 4×4 block. If enough pieces fall to the bottom without being caught, the player will lose all their energy. [3]

Puzzle mode contains 200 puzzles, ranging from requiring three to five pieces to solve. The pieces must be selected in the proper combination, and rotated the right way to solve the puzzle by clearing all blocks. While the top screen displays the puzzle board, the bottom screen displays the pieces. [3]

The game's multiplayer features player-versus-player basic Tetris, competition Tetris with unique items for up to 10 players locally, and Push mode. Two and four-player competitions could be played over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection before it was shut down, either using a friend code or searching for random players in Worldwide mode, but can only currently be played using a homebrew server. [7] Additionally, the various modes can be played from a single cartridge using Download Play. [8]

Development

Tetris DS was first announced on January 10, 2006. [9] It was first released on March 20, 2006, in North America, with releases worldwide following on April 13, 2006, for Australia, April 21, 2006, for Europe, and April 27, 2006, for Japan. [1]

The rights for Nintendo to make a Tetris game were licensed by The Tetris Company. In an interview, an owner of the company, Henk Rogers, stated that he believed that with Tetris DS, Nintendo would both "move Tetris forward" as well as make money. Also stating that Nintendo was given a great deal of creative freedom in designing the game, he called the game's producer, Hitoshi Yamagami, "one of the smartest game designers I know". Saying that he had "complete confidence in him", Rogers confirmed that there had been no issues combining Nintendo properties and characters with Tetris. [10]

Rogers cited Mission and Tower modes as interesting to him because they were unlike anything done before in Tetris. He stated that the inclusion of the "infinite spin" feature in games such as Tetris DS was done so that games could progress to faster action more quickly without becoming overly difficult, since people had less time to play while on the go. Saying that he believed a sequel on DS was not necessary due to the game's "solid play", he said that his only complaint about the game was that its online mode was "uneven" in its matchmaking. [10]

In 2016, The Cutting Room Floor discovered and released a prototype for Tetris DS developed by Tose Software originally to be published by THQ, however it was cancelled in favor of Nintendo's version. [11] THQ had been working on the game since late 2004, but was prevented from releasing the game in March 2005 by The Tetris Company, causing THQ to file a legal complaint against the company alleging a breach of its license agreement. [12] The legal dispute was later settled. [13]

Reception

Tetris DS received "generally favorable reviews" according to review aggregation website Metacritic. [14]

Several publications gave the game very high or perfect scores. GamePro rated the game 5/5 stars, praising the game's large variety of modes, and calling it "an amazing puzzle package, and [...] easily one of the best DS games to date". [3] Nintendo Power gave the game a rating of 9.5/10, stating that "you may not love all of it, but you will love much of it". [23] Game Informer rated the game 9.25/10, calling it an "excellent reinvention of one of gaming's greatest titles". [19] Pocket Gamer UK rated the game 4.5/5 stars, saying it was a "must-buy", although commenting that "zealots" may call the game too easy. [24] 4Players rated it 90/100, calling it "next to Meteos the most important puzzler of modern times". [2] Famitsu gave it a score of two nines, one eight, and one nine for a total of 35 out of 40. [18]

More mixed reviews included that of Ryan Davis of GameSpot , who rated the game 7.5/10. In his review, he said that while the game was much better than other recent versions, it also made "enough minor, obvious mistakes to keep it from becoming essential", calling it "saddled with some unfortunate compromises". [21] The A.V. Club gave it a B+, praising the game's modes as "innovative", but criticizing the game's online, where "dedicated fanboys [...] will eat newbies for breakfast". [27] The Sydney Morning Herald rated the game 3.5/5 stars, calling multiplayer the game's best addition, but suggesting purists would not like changes such as the hold box and infinite spin. [25] The Times also rated the game 3.5/5 stars, calling the game "a little too retro to be anything other than a game to play in short bursts". [26]

Sales

By August 1, 2006, Tetris DS was close to going platinum in Japan, with more than 800,000 units sold. [28] By July 25, 2007, the game had sold 2.05 million copies worldwide. [29]

Awards

Legacy

In the years following the game's release, English copies of the game became rare and difficult to find due to its popularity in the West, leading many to purchase more plentiful Japanese-language copies. [32]

Long after its release, Tetris DS continues to be held in high regard by critics as one of the best Tetris games ever made. In 2011, Stephen Totilo of Kotaku compared Tetris: Axis to Tetris DS, finding the latter significantly better and recommending people play it instead. [33] In a 2018 retrospective, John Linneman of Digital Foundry called the game the third-best in the series after Tetris Effect and Tetris: The Grand Master 3 - Terror Instinct , as well as the best portable Tetris game. [34] Christian Donlan, also of Eurogamer , stated in 2020 that his DS was "largely still active" due to the game, calling the series the "final boss of video game consoles". [35]

Notes

  1. ↑ Japanese: テトリスDS, Hepburn: Tetorisu Dī Esu

Related Research Articles

<i>Dr. Mario</i> 1990 video game

Dr. Mario is a 1990 puzzle video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Famicom, and Game Boy. It was produced by Gunpei Yokoi and designed by Takahiro Harada. The soundtrack was composed by Hirokazu Tanaka.

<i>Kuru Kuru Kururin</i> 2001 video game

Kuru Kuru Kururin is a puzzle video game developed by Eighting and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance handheld video game console. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, and in Europe and Australia on June 22 as a launch title. North America saw the title for the first time in February 2016, via the Wii U's Virtual Console service. Kuru Kuru Kururin is the first title in the Kururin series and was followed by two Japan-only sequels, Kururin Paradise and Kururin Squash!. The game was released on the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack in February 2023.

<i>Tetris Attack</i> 1995 video game

Tetris Attack, also known as Panel de Pon in Japan, is a puzzle video game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. A Game Boy version was released a year later. In the game, the player must arrange matching colored blocks in vertical or horizontal rows to clear them. The blocks steadily rise towards the top of the playfield, with new blocks being added at the bottom. Several gameplay modes are present, including a time attack and multiplayer mode.

<i>Tetris Worlds</i> 2001 video game

Tetris Worlds is a version of the video game Tetris. Originally released in 2001 for Microsoft Windows and Game Boy Advance, it was later released for Xbox, GameCube, and PlayStation 2 in 2002. In 2003, an Xbox Live version titled "Tetris Worlds Online" and a single-disc compilation version were released for the Xbox. The latter was bundled with Xbox systems.

<i>Super Mario 64 DS</i> 2004 video game

Super Mario 64 DS is a 2004 platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS. It was a launch game for the DS. Super Mario 64 DS is a remake of the 1996 Nintendo 64 game Super Mario 64, with new graphics, characters, collectibles, a multiplayer mode, and several extra minigames. As with the original, the plot centers on rescuing Princess Peach from Bowser. Unlike the original, Yoshi is the first playable character, with Mario, Luigi, and Wario being unlockable characters in early phases of the game.

<i>Pokémon Puzzle Challenge</i> 2000 video game for the Game Boy Color

Pokémon Puzzle Challenge is a puzzle video game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Color. Released in Japan on September 21, 2000; in North America on December 4, 2000; and in PAL regions on June 15, 2001, it is the second Pokémon-themed entry in the Puzzle League series. While its Nintendo 64 counterpart Pokémon Puzzle League is visually based on the Pokemon anime, Puzzle Challenge instead draws inspiration from the Pokémon Gold and Silver games. The game features multiple modes of play and support for competitive play between two players. Puzzle Challenge was later digitally re-released via the Nintendo 3DS's Virtual Console line on November 6, 2014.

<i>Its Mr. Pants</i> 2004 puzzle video game

It's Mr. Pants is a puzzle video game developed by Rare. It was published by THQ for the Game Boy Advance (GBA) handheld game console in North America and Europe in 2004–2005. A port of the game for mobile phones was developed and published internationally by In-Fusio in 2005–2006. The game stars Mr. Pants, a crudely drawn mascot formerly featured on Rare's website who had made cameo appearances in several prior Rare games.

<i>Tetris & Dr. Mario</i> 1994 video game

Tetris & Dr. Mario is a 1994 puzzle video game compilation published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It contains enhanced remakes of Tetris (1989) and Dr. Mario (1990), which were originally released for both the Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy in North America. Both games include split-screen multiplayer and a "Mixed Match" mode that transitions between the two games.

<i>Lumines: Puzzle Fusion</i> 2004 puzzle video game

Lumines: Puzzle Fusion is a 2004 puzzle game developed by Q Entertainment and published for the PlayStation Portable by Bandai in Japan and by Ubisoft elsewhere. The objective of the game is to arrange descending two-colored 2×2 blocks to create 2×2 squares of matching color. A vertical line known as the "time line" sweeps across the field, erases completed squares, and awards points. Each stage has a skin that affects the background, block colors, music, and the speed of the time line.

<i>Meteos</i> 2005 video game

Meteos is a 2005 tile-matching video game developed by Q Entertainment and published by Bandai for the Nintendo DS. It was produced by Q Entertainment founder Tetsuya Mizuguchi and designed by Masahiro Sakurai. Meteos was inspired by the video game Missile Command (1980), the film The Matrix (1999) and the television series 24 (2001-2010).

<i>Pac-Attack</i> 1993 puzzle video game

Pac-Attack, also known as Pac-Panic, is a 1993 falling-tile puzzle video game developed and published by Namco for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Genesis. Versions for the Game Boy, Game Gear and Philips CD-i were also released. The player is tasked with clearing out blocks and ghosts without them stacking to the top of the playfield — blocks can be cleared by matching them in horizontal rows, while ghosts can be cleared by placing down a Pac-Man piece that can eat them. It is the first game in the Pac-Man series to be released exclusively for home platforms.

<i>The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past</i> and <i>Four Swords</i> 2002 video game

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Four Swords is a compilation of two action-adventure games co-developed by Nintendo R&D2 and Capcom and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance. The game was released in December 2002 in North America and in March 2003 in Japan and Europe. The cartridge contains a modified port of A Link to the Past, originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1991, and an original multiplayer-only game titled Four Swords, which serves as the 9th installment in The Legend of Zelda series.

<i>Tetris 64</i> 1998 video game

Tetris 64 is a puzzle video game developed by Amtex and published by SETA for the Nintendo 64. It was released exclusively in Japan in 1998, and came packaged with a unique accessory, the "Bio Sensor", which alters the game based on the player's heart rate.

<i>Bomberman Land Touch!</i> 2006 video game

Bomberman Land Touch! is a puzzle video game developed by Hudson Soft for the Nintendo DS. The game was first released in Japan and North America in 2006. Part of the Bomberman franchise, Touch! is the third game in the Bomberman Land series and its first to be released outside Japan.

<i>Mario Party DS</i> 2007 video game

Mario Party DS is a 2007 party video game developed by Hudson Soft and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS. It is the second handheld game in the Mario Party series, as well as the last game in the series to be developed by Hudson Soft, as all subsequent titles have been developed by NDcube. The game was later released on the Virtual Console for the Wii U in April 2016.

<i>Trioncube</i> 2006 video game

Trioncube, fully titled Kimochiyosa Rensa Puzzle Trioncube in Japan, is a puzzle video game developed by Bandai Namco Games and released for the Nintendo DS.

<i>Brain Challenge</i> 2007 video game

Brain Challenge is a mental exercise video game, featuring "brain exercise puzzles". The game was developed by Gameloft Beijing for mobile phone and iPod and released on September 5, 2007. In 2008 was followed by a Nintendo DS version on January 8, an Xbox Live Arcade release on March 12, and a PlayStation 3 launch on November 27. The N-Gage 2.0 version was released on the day of the service's launch, April 3, 2008. A version for WiiWare was released in autumn 2008 on all three regions. The Wii version also uses Miis for the players profile. OnLive also had launched their new streaming game platform with Brain Challenge on July 27, 2010. The game was released for Mac OS X in January 2011.

<i>Tetris Party</i> 2008 video game

Tetris Party is a puzzle video game by Hudson Soft for WiiWare. An installment of the Tetris series, the game supports the use of Miis and the Wii Balance Board, and features both local and online multiplayer in addition to several single-player modes unique to the game.

<i>Rotohex</i> 2006 video game

Rotohex is a Nintendo video game for the Wii's WiiWare service. It is a remake of the Japan-only bit Generations title Dialhex. It was released as WiiWare in North America on October 27, 2008.

<i>Tetris 99</i> 2019 Tetris battle royale video game

Tetris 99 is a 2019 battle royale puzzle video game developed by Arika and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch, and is an online multiplayer adaptation of Tetris. Players move and drop puzzle pieces called tetrominoes onto a playing board, and must clear rows by filling them completely with pieces. Players lose if tetrominoes overflow off the top of the board or their next piece is not able to spawn because it overlaps an existing block on the playfield. Matches contain 99 players, who send additional rows to other players' boards by clearing a row on their own board; whoever is the last man standing without an overflowed board wins the match.

References

  1. 1 2 "Tetris DS (2006) Nintendo DS release dates". MobyGames. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
  2. 1 2 3 Kautz, Paul (2006-04-28). "Tetris DS". 4Players (in German). Retrieved 2021-07-28.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Mr. Marbles (2006-03-20). "Review: Tetris DS". GamePro . IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-09-02. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
  4. 1 2 3 Sandoval, Angelina (2006-11-29). "Tetris DS - NDS - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 2009-01-21. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
  5. 1 2 Bramwell, Tom (2006-04-04). "Tetris DS". Eurogamer . Gamer Network. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
  6. 1 2 Theobald, Phil (2006-03-20). "Tetris DS Review". GameSpy . IGN Entertainment. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
  7. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (2014-06-20). "How to get your DS and Wii back online, and the people who made it possible". Polygon. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
  8. 1 2 Harris, Craig (2006-03-15). "Tetris DS". IGN . Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
  9. ↑ Greenwald, Will (2006-01-10). "Tetris coming to the DS with online play". CNET. Retrieved 2021-07-28.
  10. 1 2 Metts, Jonathan (2006-04-06). "Tetris from the Top: An Interview with Henk Rogers - Interview". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
  11. ↑ Renaudin, Clement (2016-06-06). "On Tetris' birthday, a wild prototype for cancelled Tetris DS by THQ appears". www.pocketgamer.com. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
  12. ↑ "Prototype Release: THQ's unreleased Tetris DS". The Cutting Room Floor. 2016-06-06. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
  13. ↑ Jenkins, David (2006-06-09). "THQ Settles Tetris Rights Dispute". Game Developer. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  14. 1 2 "Tetris DS for DS Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  15. ↑ "Tetris DS". Computer Games Magazine . theGlobe.com. June 2006. p. 92.
  16. ↑ Edge staff (May 2006). "Tetris DS". Edge . No. 162. Future plc. p. 97.
  17. ↑ Tsao, Jennifer; Parish, Jeremy; Boyer, Crispin (2006-04-05). "Tetris DS". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 203. p. 108 – via Archive.org.
  18. 1 2 Gantayat, Anoop (2006-05-04). "Now Playing in Japan". IGN . Retrieved 2021-07-24.
  19. 1 2 "Tetris DS". Game Informer . No. 156. GameStop. April 2006. p. 134.
  20. ↑ Mike Reilly (March 29, 2006). "Tetris DS Review". Game Revolution . CraveOnline. Archived from the original on April 11, 2006. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  21. 1 2 Ryan Davis (March 17, 2006). "Tetris DS Review". GameSpot . CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  22. ↑ "Tetris DS Review". GameTrailers . Viacom. July 4, 2006. Archived from the original on August 7, 2007. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  23. 1 2 "Tetris DS". Nintendo Power . Vol. 203. Nintendo of America. May 2006. p. 90.
  24. 1 2 Jordan, Jon (2006-04-30). "Tetris DS". Pocket Gamer . Retrieved 2021-07-28.
  25. 1 2 Jason Hill (April 27, 2006). "Tetris DS". The Sydney Morning Herald . Fairfax Media . Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  26. 1 2 Nigel Kendall (May 13, 2006). "Tetris DS". The Times . Retrieved September 24, 2018.(subscription required)
  27. ↑ Bonnie Ruberg (August 16, 2006). "Tetris DS". The A.V. Club . The Onion. Archived from the original on August 19, 2006. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  28. ↑ Jenkins, David (2006-08-01). "DS Becomes Fastest Selling Japanese Console". Gamasutra . Retrieved 2021-07-28.
  29. ↑ Matt Casamassina (July 25, 2007). "Nintendo Sales Update". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  30. ↑ "GameSpy's Game of the Year 2006". GameSpy. 2006-12-13. Archived from the original on 2007-01-10. Retrieved 2021-07-28.
  31. ↑ "Editors' Choice (Nintendo DS)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on September 1, 2007. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  32. ↑ Fletcher, JC (2008-04-10). "Navigating your Japanese copy of Tetris DS". Engadget. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
  33. ↑ Totilo, Stephen (2011-09-28). "In the Case of the Inferior New Tetris Game, I Declare the 3DS: Not Guilty". Kotaku. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
  34. ↑ Welsh, Oli (2018-11-14). "The evolution of Tetris - and why Tetris Effect is "the perfect game"". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
  35. ↑ Donlan, Christian (2020-11-12). "Tetris Effect: Connected review - pure multiplayer joy". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.