Tetris (Sega)
| Tetris | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Sega |
| Publisher(s) | Sega |
| Platform(s) | Arcade |
| Release | 1988 |
| Gameplay info | |
| Next pieces | 1 |
| Hold piece | No |
| Hard drop | No |
Sega's 1988 Arcade version of Tetris was the version that took Japanese arcades by storm, becoming one of the most commonly known versions of the game. Due to its popularity, it became the base of rules for many other Japanese games created later on, both licensed and unlicensed. Such games include the TGM series, Tetris Plus series, Shimizu Tetris and, to less extent, DTET. It was one of the first games to instate lock delay, improving maneuverability greatly at high speeds compared to games which did not have the feature.
Power-on Pattern
One characteristic of this version of Tetris was the existence of a "Power-on pattern". This referred to the game's behavior that the string of pieces it dealt in the very first game after starting up the system was always the same. This was most probably caused by the state of the randomization seed in the system. After its discovery, players began constructing gameplay plans around the power-on pattern in order to max out the score in the least lines possible. Sega's 1998 version of Tetris (Arcade, Dreamcast) pays tribute to the power-on pattern, by dealing the sequence in the final level of the single-player game.
Availability
A fairly accurate representation of the game, along with Tetris: New Century, Flash Point and Bloxeed, can be obtained in the Japanese PS2 game Sega Ages 2500 Series Vol.28 Tetris Collection.