Tetris Forever

''Tetris Forever'' is a 2024 video game compilation and interactive documentary developed and published by Digital Eclipse. Released in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of ''Tetris'', the compilation includes over fifteen different versions of ''Tetris'', including the new game ''Tetris Time Warp''. It released for the Atari VCS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on November 12, 2024.

The game is part of Digital Eclipse's ''Gold Master Series'' of interactive documentaries, which are presented as a historical timeline, featuring interviews with key people in the development of ''Tetris'' such as Alexey Pajitnov and Henk Rogers, alongside several playable games.

Content

''Tetris Forever'' is the third entry in Digital Eclipse's ''Gold Master Series'' of documentary video game hybrid releases, following ''The Making of Karateka'' (2023) and '' Llamasoft: The Jeff Minter Story'' (2024). As with other releases, the games are presented in a digital museum format, divided into five distinct timelines. These feature photographs, interviews, scans of original advertisements.

90 minutes of documentary footage about the history of ''Tetris'' is included, which predominantly contains interviews and perspective of ''Tetris'' from the point of view from people who had created and sold ''Tetris'' games. It includes interviews with game developers Alexey Pajitnov and Henk Rogers, former Spectrum Holobyte president and chairmain Phil Adam and Gilman Louie, Broderbund Software founder Doug Carlston, ''Tetris Effect'' producer Tetsuya Mizuguchi, and The Tetris Company president Maya Rogers.

''Tetris Forever'' includes several different ''Tetris'' games. These include a recreation of Pajitnov's version of ''Tetris'' for the Electronika 60, the 1988 Apple II version developed by Spectrum Holobyte, and several other ''Tetris'' titles developed by Bullet-Proof Software between 1988 and 1998, some of which have never been released outside of Japan. A new game included in the compilation is ''Tetris Time Warp'', which supports up to four players. During the game, special pieces will drop that changes the gameplay style to an earlier ''Tetris'' version, and the player must clear a challenge to return the game to normal.

Games

The following games are included in ''Tetris Forever'':

Development

''Tetris Forever'' was developed by Digital Eclipse, who had developed similar interactive documentaries in the past. It was first announced during a Nintendo Direct stream on August 27, 2024; while the collection excludes games developed by Nintendo, their NES version was revealed to be heading to Nintendo Switch Online in the same announcement. In October, Digital Eclipse revealed that the MS-DOS versions of ''Tetris'' by AcademySoft and Spectrum HoloByte would be included in the release. Chris Kohler, the game's editorial director, said these additions involved "a lot of work went into being able to make this simple announcement." Additional games are planned for inclusion via free updates, beginning with the MS-DOS version of ''Welltris'' in December 2024.

Release and reception

''Tetris Forever'' was released on November 12, 2024 for the Atari VCS, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and for PC through Steam and GOG. The release is in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the original ''Tetris''.

Critics commented on the documentary portion of the ''Tetris Forever'', with Ollie Reynolds of ''NintendoLife'' saying it was "certainly the best breakdown of the franchise's creation and evolution so far." Christian Donlan of ''Eurogamer'' wrote that the best parts of ''Tetris Forever'' was when its documentary "steps away from the familiar story, the familiar falling shapes, the familiar talking heads and talking points, and makes ''Tetris'' feel really weird again."

Willem Hilhorst of ''Nintendo World Report'' complimented the emulation of the games, noting that they even captured the slow down of the original versions. Critics generally found the game lacked some key titles to play, such as titles developed by Nintendo. Nick Thorpe of ''Retro Gamer'' commented on the rights issues for the games, stating that Digital Eclipse was "doing its best with a very awkward situation – Nintendo is simply never going to license the Game Boy version of Tetris for a game like this, no matter how important it is to the historical story being told."

In December 2024, ''Tetris Forever'' was nominated for a 2025 British Academy Games Award for Game Beyond Entertainment, an award for video games which "raise awareness through empathy and emotional impact, to engage with real world problems, or to make the world a better place."

References

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Further reading

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{{Digital Eclipse video games

2024 video games
Video game compilations
Digital Eclipse games
Nintendo Switch games
PlayStation 4 games
PlayStation 5 games
Video games developed in the United States
Web documentaries
Windows games
Xbox One games
Xbox Series X and Series S games
Multiplayer and single-player video games
Tetris games