Tetris 99 (2019)

When the “99” thing exploded I wansn’t using Nintendo Online so I missed it but last year I finally subscribed it and I had to try. Well, Tetris 99 si fucking addictive. Getting into it is quite easy, because, well, it’s Tetris, and the abyss opens up. Easy to play, even easier to play it again without even realizing you started a new match, and you get very quickly to that liminal zone where you convince yourself one day you’ll be able to win (and you will not). I managed once to get into the top 5 and that was enough for me. I’m satisfied. But still, every once in a while I play a couple of matches.

Oh, I also tried F-Zero 99, which has got a completely different first impact: tutorials, long explanations, limits, rules, tests, so fucking boring. I immediately lost interest, but I’m sure it’s me, not him.

Got my 1st win tonight after playing for 2-3 hours a day all week, so it’s as good a time as any to stop and review the game. I did not particularly enjoy this game on release, but came back to it last weekend with an open mind and now I love it. It’s flawed in some ways, but the core game is the most tense and exciting of all battle royales I’ve tried.

Pros

• Solid implementation of the familiar fast-paced modern Tetris gameplay
• Well-balanced garbage system for battle royale — the game feels fair even when 5 people attack you at once
• Great new mechanics such as attack multiplier being stolen on kill and auto-targeting system enable multiple viable playstyles
• Very challenging and rewarding to master
• Free to play (with Switch online sub)

Cons

• Visibility issues in-game: excessive particle effects, opponents’ play area too small in late game
• Mechanics are unintuitive, not properly explained in-game, and there’s no good way to practice for those who don’t own another Tetris game
• UI looks cheap and unappealing compared to other contemporary Tetris games
• Lacks no-brainer options such as volume sliders

Now can they make a Tetris Attack version?

This is the best Battle Royale game I've played so far. My heart starts racing when I make it to the top 5. I never get even close to this feeling from other BR games. Also, you just play Tetris the whole time which is probably the greatest game ever made.

In BR shooters, I spend most of the time picking up stuff and avoiding fights until the end. They are shooters and I spend most of my time not shooting. It gets boring. Tetris 99 solves this problem.