There are many popular video games which aren’t instantly recognizable to casual or non-gamers, but Tetris has to be up there with Pac-Man in terms of universal appeal. Codeco, the designers of this analog Tetris game, kept that in mind when making this art installation.
OhGizmo introduced us to this awesome creation, the colorful and blocky setup quite appealing in and of itself. However, a look behind shows four cubbies housing blocks of various shapes and colors, as well as four buttons. The front features a smooth black surface, angled and featuring yellow and red lines at the top. Once a player is ready to try their hand at analog Tetris, one of the “dealers” in gloves and a visor begins to handpick blocks to slide down the ramp.
The blocks are solid and detailed so that you can see how each is made up of four smaller squares, just like traditional Tetris blocks, be they the “squiggly” or “line piece” as dubbed in this hilarious Tetris God video. The player is tasked with rearranging the blocks while more continue to slide down, twisting and fitting them into the perfect configurations so as to prevent any empty spaces being left. Naturally, as these blocks don’t break apart, one can’t actually clear lines like one can in the game, but the goal is instead to show off your rearranging skills by building the most efficient layout of pieces.
If too many spaces are left, the blocks will eventually reach above the yellow and red lines, resulting in a “loss.” Those four buttons on the back seem to trigger sounds for success and failure, as well as Tetris music to get you in that block-manipulating mood. Check out the video to see this in action, and enjoy the various Tetris music remixes playing in the background. If, however, you’re feeling hungry, perhaps you’ll enjoy some Tetris Waffles or delicious Tetris Brownies.
