I was wondering what the forums considers to be a requirement to "beat" NES Tetris (licensed version).  I can think of a few different criteria:

1).  Getting 120,000+ points.  This gives the best "ending" scene, the one with the space ship and castle blasting off.  This is relatively easy since you can play at lower speeds (say starting at level 9) and still reach 120,000 points with a moderate level of practice.

2.)  Getting to the "kill screen" at level 29.  This is SIGNIFICANTLY harder than #1, and requires playing the brutally difficult level 19 speed for at least 100 lines worth of time.  Handling level 19 speed requires more complex understanding of mechanics of the game, including DAS, charging, etc.  It's almost an entirely different game than level 18 and down.

3.) Maxing out the score, i.e. getting 999,999 points.  This is the hardest challenge of them all (especially if you start at level 19 instead of 18).  Only a handful of people have officially done this.

4.) Since people seem to want this option I will add it: Getting beyond level 29.  Only been officially done by 1 person.

So, what say you Nintendoage?  How do you "beat" Tetris.

First of all, Ecstascy of Order is an awesome documentary. You should all watch it.



SPOILER ALERT!





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In it you will witness the ultimate victory over NES Tetris as achieved by Thor himself.

Started at Lv 19 AND
Maxed out the score at 999,999 AND
Reached Lv 30, getting PAST the "kill screen"

not a fan of the limited options.

Where's the option for other?

I am sure what I consider to be beating tetris and it isn't listed.

I call shenanigans.

Spoiler alert.

Ok, then tell me what is missing.

There should be an option "Be Thor".

Where's the option for other?

You're missing OTHER.

At a minimum you are missing the possibility of breaking through Level 29 into Level 30+.

It all depends really on how you look at it. Level progression wise, that would be going through the levels until you reach "the end", or if you look at it the other way "the points way", that would be seeing the best ending. I, personally, would consider hitting the kill-screen the way of beating Tetris.

It's more like reaching level 29 speed/difficulty that matters. The game ends at that speed, regardless if you can survive an additional level or not. You cannot sustain play at that speed for longer than a few seconds (if that).  The programmers intended for that to be the end game, or at least never envisioned play at that speed, as the level number glitches for level 30+.

^^ This.

Thor is THE Tetris master

Thor has been to "level 32 or 33". He couldn't remember.

Both Thor and Jonas consider the max out to be fairly simple.

Do you think he can sustain play at Level 29 speed or is that actually impossible?  Even if it was just going for single line clears or something.

If I had to guess, I'd say as an adult he can sustain 29 speed for about 12 lines when practiced, and in his prime somewhere between 30 and 49 lines

I don't think it matters if you can sustain it, or not, over the long haul.

The fact that it is possible to clear Level 29 means that Level 29 should not be considered "beating" Tetris.

CLEARING level 29 would be a milestone I might accept as "beating" the game, though

So it's possible to sustain that speed indefintely using hypertapping?  Really wish we had a video of that.

I wonder if he just practiced at level 29 speed using a hacked version of the game or something we could see some incredible plays.

If it's possible to get to level 31,32, etc then why would beating level 29 be considered winning?

yes, if one could consistently hypertap without your forearms wearing out (i.e. you built a hyper-tap robot or something), then it would be possible to continue playing the game indefinitely (assuming you got a favorable piece distribution that didn't stack you too high to reach the edge without being able to burn...i.e. repeated z's or s's)

There is a game genie code for that. Or the PAL version

Because it proves you can clear a level at the highest possible in-game speed.


On the flipside, since it is definitely possible to clear Level 29, why would YOU consider merely reaching level 29 to be "beating" the game?

When you aren't dead and you can't play on, you've beat it!

I think the RIGHT answer that is missing from the voting options is:

"In Soviet Russia, Tetris beats you!"

I do because that is where the programmers and designers of the game intended for it to end.  This is shown by the level number glitching out of control beyond 29.

I disagree.

If programmers intended for the game to end, they would have put an ending in the game...

The level number glitching just proves that they never really tested the game at levels that high.  Doesn't really say anything to their intentions, IMO.