The latest (as of this writeup) official Tetris game, currently available for GBA, PS2, X-box, GameCube, and PC. Written by Blue Planet Software (authors of The New Tetris and Tetrisphere for the N64).
It's Tetris, redone for the millionth time, sporting a few new gameplay variants to justify the thirty dollar price tag. This time around, the powers that be have decided to throw in a rudimentary storyline, something about little creatures named Minos that have to escape their dying planet by aligning falling Tetris pieces in order to open a warp gate. If anything, the dubious plot just ends up detracting from the Tetris experience, and is especially unnecessary considering how strongly Tetris has endured under its own power over the past decade and a half.
The overall sense of feel and control for the game is more or less identical to TNT. There have been a number of minor modifications to the basic engine, including the ability to see the next six upcoming pieces, instead of four. There are also now six different Tetris variants to choose from:
- Tetris. The classic. No frills whatsoever.
- Square Tetris. Virtually identical to TNT, with 4x4 squares yielding extra points.
- Hot Line Tetris. Possibly the worst variant, wherein only lines cleared at a certain height count for points.
- Cascade Tetris. Classic Tetris with a twist: gravity exists, so clearing a line results in pieces stacked above plummeting down, ideally to clear more lines.
- Sticky Tetris. Cascade Tetris, with the modification that when 25 or more squares of the same color are connected, they are cleared from the board. The goal is to clear the bottom line from the board.
- Fusion Tetris. Probably the most imaginative (and confusing) variant. It's Cascade Tetris again, except this time you're digging your way through a whole bunch of junk lines to fuse special 'fusion blocks' to others at the bottom of the board.
Tetris Worlds also suffers from one glaring design flaw. Each player you create has a persistent rank for every game type, which is denoted by a number 1-15. You rise in rank by completing your objective in under two minutes, and can never decrease in rank. Players with higher ranks will always start a game at a higher speed and difficulty level. The practical upshot of this is that you're forced to try to compete at the best level of play you've ever achieved, or in other words, it becomes impossible to play a leisurely game of Tetris without creating a whole new character.
Overall, Tetris Worlds is not recommended, unless you're a diehard Tetris fan. Sticking with TNT for the N64 is a better bet.