Tetris 99 Test – IGN

By Steven Petite

Tetris 99 is the same "This is perfect" form of video game – instead of ignoring the flames that are invading you, you have to keep your cool during an attack of gray trash blocks superimposed on the Screen by one of the 98 other players of the match. every moment more panicked than the last. Sometimes, everything is fine, and the right sequence of movements mixed with a little luck gives my grid an orderly and pleasant structure. Other times, the trash is too heavy and all that remains of my screen is a gray dumpster signaling an anticipated release of this frenzied and thrilling ride on one of the most challenging puzzle games appreciated all the time.

I become irrationally nervous during a seemingly solid race; sweaty palms, beating heart of my chest, a little nervous. If I had a blood pressure cuff during a top 10, my doctor would probably tell me that I have to take medication. When I'm in the top five, I feel like I can run through a brick wall. I also feel that I am going to faint. I am 99% sure that Tetris 99 is bad for your health. This is a vice that I will live with, because the prevailing tension also makes it a thrilling and rewarding multiplayer experience.

The Tetris multiplayer is not new, but the large number of players really increases the intensity, because the danger can come from any direction. It's you and 98 strangers in a battle to see who can be the last person standing, with all its displays shown, in miniature, within the boundaries of yours, giving it a very busy look. Apart from that, Tetris 99 seems to be pretty much the same old competitive Tetris, including classical music (only Nintendo is allowed to use it). Clear lines and get combinations sends trash blocks to your opponents, but here is a new layer of risk and reward strategy in which you choose to send them.

In both games that I managed to win, I used to my advantage a combination of targeting options. You can move the cursor manually to choose the player to target or choose one of the following four presets: Random, OK, Attacker and Badges. KO stacks players who are already on the verge of death, and if you are the one who hits the death blow, your multiplier increases (by 25, 50, 75 and 100%) by the number of lines of memory you send to future ones targets. when you erase them. The attacker automatically sends deleted lines to those who target you – represented by yellow lines on their miniature screen to yours – which can be useful as a defensive strategy. Badges also target players with the most KO, which is a risk because they are usually among the best in the industry and may fight back, but the reward is that if you knock them out, you absorb their multiplier. It would be nice if Tetris 99 had a tutorial explaining that these new great mechanisms exist, because that does not bother for the moment.

Tetris 99 often seems difficult to manage, especially when speed increases to the top 50 and 10 brands; But as in any version of Tetris, if you play fast enough, it's possible to keep your board relatively clean, allowing you to fight back when attacks occur. A useful time of a few seconds passes between the moment you are notified and the moment it actually fills the bottom of your grid, and clearing the lines during this brief window goes in the direction of eliminating the attack waiting rather than send it to the screen of another player.

However, it's not only skill, it's sometimes that luck plays an important role, whether for or against you. In my 125 games played and over, until now, there have been at least half a dozen players in which I have figured in the top 10 without being targeted more than once . And then there are rounds where I found myself perpetually in the line of sight of five or more players until my untimely death, outside the top 50. The random targeting seems to lead to this excessive deluge of garbage blocks on my wire rack. And that only multiplies when you approach death and you start losing heat to those who are looking for knockouts. Reversing my fortune when I am in the back of death is incredibly beneficial, and falling enough to throw the trash from where it comes gives me a feeling of dizziness.

Even with occasional losses deemed unjust, Tetris 99 largely rewards skills. I am certainly not an expert in Tetris, but I consider myself above average. Playing both quickly and with foresight led to a ton of good finishes. Winning this spot for the first time for the first time has honestly been one of my best triumphs.

My longest round took less than 10 minutes, so Tetris 99 is an ideal game to play in pocket mode. My switch, however, has been glued to my hands since the launch of Tetris 99 (free for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers), as I've dutifully noted by my total playing time in statistics. It also follows a series of statistics like eliminated lines (single, double, triple, Tetris, T-spins, etc.) and career wins. I wish it keeps counting the top five or ten places, too. There is technically an upgrade system, but for the moment, this is nothing more than a figure that shows how much you are addicted to Tetris 99. It does not have a number. There is no other mode or feature than this one, which gives the impression of being a little naked – but this unique mode is interesting enough alone.