List of Tetris variants
This is a list of variants of the game Tetris. It includes officially licensed Tetris sequels, as well as unofficial clones.
Official games
| Title | Year | Platform | Publisher | Description |
| Tetris | 1988 | Amstrad PCW, ZX Spectrum, Atari ST, MSX, Acorn Electron, Amstrad CPC, BBC Micro, Commodore 64 | Mirrorsoft | Ports developed by Rowan Software. |
| Tetris | 1988 | Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST, Apple IIgs, IBM PC, MS-DOS, Mac OS | Spectrum HoloByte | Included in the compilation Tetris Gold. |
| Tetris | 1988 | PC-9800 series, X68000, FM-7, PC-8800 series, MSX2 | Bullet-Proof Software | |
| Tetris | 1988 | Family Computer | Bullet-Proof Software | This version is also available on AtGames' Legends Flashback console. |
| Tetris | 1988 | Arcade | Sega | A port by M2 was included in the Sega Genesis Mini microconsole. |
| Tetris | 1989 | TRS-80 CoCo | Tandy | Developed by ZCT Systems. |
| Tetris | 1989 | Arcade | Atari Games | |
| Tetris | 1989 | Mega Drive | Sega | Developed by Sanritsu Denki. It was cancelled, resulting in less than ten copies being printed. |
| Tetris | 1989 | NES | Tengen | Pulled from shelves following a court ruling. |
| Tetris | 1989 | Game Boy | Nintendo | Bundled in the North American and European releases of the Game Boy itself and the first game compatible with the Game Link Cable, a pack-in accessory that allowed two Game Boys to link together for multiplayer purposes. |
| Tetris | 1989 | NES | Nintendo | |
| Welltris | 1989 | PC | Spectrum HoloByte | Designed by Alexey Pajitnov and developed by Doka. Pieces slide down one of four wall surfaces in a well, the "well" being an 8x8 square. When a piece lands while fully or partially sticking outside of the well, the wall is temporarily blocked. The game ends when four walls are no longer accessible. Other versions: |
| Tetris | 1990 | Microsoft Windows | Microsoft | Part of the Microsoft Entertainment Pack. |
| Hatris | 1990 | NES, Game Boy | Bullet Proof Software | Designed by Alexey Pajitnov. A variety of hats must be made to fall into stacks of five identical hats. Other versions: |
| Faces... Tris III | 1991 | Amiga, MS-DOS | Spectrum HoloByte | Winner of the 1991 Software Publishers Association Excellence in Software Award for Best Action/Arcade Program. Alexey Pajitnov's fourth and final official game in the "Tris" series. Developed by Sphere, Inc.The player must arrange falling pieces to form a complete face, which include famous historical figures. Features 10 themed difficulty levels and a head-to-head mode. |
| Super Tetris | 1991 | MS-DOS, Amiga, Mac OS | Spectrum HoloByte | Developed by Sphere, Inc. Added bombs, new special block types, and two-player co-operative and competitive modes. Bombs appear in some blocks, which explode when the row is filled and removed. |
| Tetris | 1991 | Philips CDi | Philips | |
| Tetris 2 + Bombliss | 1991 | Famicom | Bullet-Proof Software | One mode, "Bombliss", features bomb blocks that destroy surrounding blocks when a line is completed. Bombliss uses the gravity algorithm to re-arrange the stage after an explosion has destroyed some blocks. A "Tetris C" mode automatically raises the playfield one level after a certain number of blocks are used. Other versions:
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| Tetris 2 | 1993 | NES and Game Boy | Nintendo | Uses disconnected colored tetrominos instead of adjacent type tetrominoes, the goal of Tetris 2 is to clear all the bombs by making the blocks of the same color stick together. Released as Tetris Flash in Japan. Other Versions: |
| Tetris Battle Gaiden | 1993 | Super Famicom | Bullet-Proof Software | Similar to Puyo Puyo in use of competitive mode, characters, and humorous storyline. Different characters can also unleash special moves that affect the opponent in some way. Also includes a Rensa mode, in which gravity takes a bigger part. Came to the attention of European gamers by way of a review in Issue 18 of Super Play magazine. |
| Tetris & Dr. Mario | 1994 | Super NES | Nintendo | Compilation of Tetris and Dr. Mario with enhanced graphics and sound. |
| Super Tetris 3 | 1994 | Super Famicom | Blue Planet Software | |
| V-Tetris | 1995 | Virtual Boy | Bullet Proof | is Japanese-exclusive. It is not to be confused with the similar Virtual Boy title 3D Tetris, as the two games are entirely different. V-Tetris is mostly the same as the original Tetris games, the only difference being the cylindrical puzzle mode in which blocks could be placed in a 3-D spiral. By using the L and R buttons, or the right D-pad, the screen shifts a block left or right respectively. |
| Tetris Blast | 1996 | Game Boy | Nintendo / Bullet Proof | Known in Japan as Super Bombliss, Tetris Blast was developed by Bulletproof, and published by Nintendo. It was released for the Game Boy in Japan on March 17, 1995, in North America on January 1996. It is the same as the Bombliss mode in Super Tetris 2 & Bombliss. In an added "Fight" mode, there are creatures that traverse the constantly changing 'terrain' of the play field and try to hinder the player from clearing the screen of blocks. Players can battle others by using a link cable. |
| Tetris Attack | 1996 | Super NES and Game Boy | Nintendo, Intelligent Systems | A version of the Japanese game Panel de Pon with redone art made to resemble '. Has no relation to Tetris other than name and genre. Also spawned Pokémon Puzzle League for the N64, Pokémon Puzzle Challenge for the Game Boy Color, Puzzle League for the Game Boy Advance, and Planet Puzzle League for the Nintendo DS. |
| 3D Tetris | 1996 | Virtual Boy | Nintendo | Released only in the United States. Different from the version released in Japan |
| Tetris Jr. | 1996 | LCD game | Blue Planet Software | A keychain Tetris game with 8 game modes. A port for Windows was also developed. |
| Tetris S | 1996 | Saturn | Bullet Proof Software | Released only in Japan |
| Tetris Plus | 19951996 1997 | Arcade PlayStation, Saturn Game Boy | Jaleco Jaleco Nintendo | Added to the classic Tetris is the new Puzzle Mode. Each level begins with a character standing on a different pattern of blocks. This is somewhat is similar to Welltris The goal is to clear the blocks out from under him to get him to the bottom. He climbs to the top of the blocks you're stacking up and the game ends when the professor and the descending spiked ceiling collide. |
| Tetris Plus 2 | 1997 | Arcade | Jaleco | This version is an improved version of Tetris Plus. |
| Tetrisphere | 1997 | Nintendo 64 | Nintendo | Uses some of the tetrominoes with different gameplay than standard Tetris. The object of the game is to reveal the core in the center of the sphere. To achieve this, you need to stack similarly shaped pieces on top of each other. Once three are stacked, the pieces disappear and reveal the layer below. If the player doesn't clear blocks fast enough they lose one life, and if they lose three, the game is over. Wild card pieces, power-ups and a limited ability to slide pieces over the surface of the sphere all help with this task. |
| Tetris DX | 1998 | Game Boy Color | Nintendo | The Game Boy version of Tetris updated for the Game Boy Color |
| Tetris 4D | 1998 | Dreamcast | Bullet Proof Software | |
| Tetris 64 | 1998 | Nintendo 64 | SETA Corporation | Includes Normal Tetris, Giga Tetris that has tetriminoes of different sizes, and Bio Tetris that adjusts itself based on feedback from a heartbeat measuring clip that attaches to the user's ear. |
| ' | 1998 | Arcade | Arika / Capcom | Released in Japan, designed for seasoned and skilled Tetris players. At higher levels, tetriminoes begin to drop so fast that they appear immediately at the bottom, with no airborne phase at all; Players only have a split-second to slide the block into designated locations before they lock down. This distinctive style is called "20G". Subsequent entries in the Grand Master series continued the high-speed trend. |
| Kids Tetris | 1999 | PC | Hasbro Interactive | Tetrominoes start out with two blocks and increase with further lines. Circus, Firehouse, Haunted House and Laboratory stages have different graphical effects with each cleared level. Includes printing option. |
| The New Tetris | 1999 | Nintendo 64 | Nintendo | Tetris with a new feature: when a 16-block square is made, the tetrominos used to form the square are merged as 16-block squares. A square formed using different types of tetrominos is called a combo square or multisquare, and it appears silver. A square formed using four of the same piece is called a pure square or monosquare, and it appears gold. All pieces but the S and Z can form monosquares. |
| Tetris | 1999 | Ericsson T28 | Ericsson | |
| The Next Tetris | 1999 2000 2001 | PlayStation, PC Dreamcast Nuon | Hasbro Interactive Crave Entertainment | The Next Tetris was a version of the game with an emphasis on the cascade mode. |
| Magical Tetris Challenge | 1999 2000 | Nintendo 64, PlayStation Game Boy Color | Capcom Activision SCEE | Story mode with Disney characters. The game implements a new Tetris deviation of combos, where consecutive cleared lines give those clears greater value. Non-story variations include magical, updown, and endless mode with other mdes which can be unlocked in the story mode. |
| Sega Tetris | 2000 | Dreamcast | WOW Entertainment | |
| ' | 2000 | Arcade | Arika / Psikyo | Sequel to Tetris: The Grand Master, featured faster gameplay than its predecessor. A later upgrade, Tetris: The Absolute - The Grand Master 2 Plus, featured several new modes including the "Death Mode" where tetriminoes fall furiously fast right from the beginning. |
| Tetris With Cardcaptor Sakura: Eternal Heart | 2000 | PlayStation | Arika | Released only in Japan, a Cardcaptor Sakura-themed Tetris game. It presents puzzles in which the player has to transform the Clow Cards into Sakura Cards by defeating Eriol's Tetris style Puzzles. The game also features player vs CPU and contains hidden extras based on the anime series. |
| Tetris | 2001 | Ericsson T68m | Ericsson | |
| Tetris Worlds | 2001 | PC | THQ | Includes Tetris, Square Tetris, Cascade Tetris, Sticky Tetris, Hot-Line Tetris, and Fusion Tetris. Other versions:
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| Tetris | 2002 | WonderSwan Color, SwanCrystal | Vanguard | |
| Pokémon Tetris | 2002 | Pokémon mini | Released only in Japan and Europe, a tiny keychain Tetris game with a Pokémon theme. | |
| Tetris Elements | 2004 | Windows PC, Mac OS | ImaginEngine | Includes classic Tetris and five variations: Stratosphere, which features meteors that can either help or hurt in eliminating rows; Earthquake, where tremors shake the falling shapes and move them around; Tempest, a double Tetris game where players are switched back and forth between screens; Ice, which has falling icicles that will knock into the falling shapes and make them crash down; and Fire, where heat can cause a chain reaction and melt multiple rows. |
| ' | 2005 | Arcade | Arika / Taito | Sequel to Tetris: The Absolute - The Grand Master 2 Plus with several changes in game mechanics and a "Shirase" mode, analogous to Death Mode but with a drastic speed increase. |
| ' | 2005 | Xbox 360 | Arika / AQ Entertainment | First console version in the Grand Master series, one of the launch titles for the Japanese launch of the Xbox 360. |
| Tetris Mania | 2006 | Mobile Phones | Electronic Arts | Cascade Tetris, Sticky Tetris and Fusion Tetris, all previously in Tetris Worlds. |
| Tetris DS | 2006 | Nintendo DS | Nintendo | First version for Nintendo DS. Includes local multiplayer and online multiplayer support. All based around the NES era of games. |
| iPod Tetris | 2006 | iPod | Electronic Arts | - |
| Tetris Evolution | 2007 | Xbox 360 | THQ | First seventh generation Tetris game to be released in the United States. Includes play over Xbox Live. |
| Tetris Zone | 2007 | Windows PC and Mac OS | Blue Planet Software | Features four game modes and the Combo system. Includes online Leaderboards and game playback. |
| Tetris Splash | 2007 | Xbox 360 | Tetris Online | First Xbox Live Arcade title for Tetris. It is also the first game published under The Tetris Company's new third party Tetris Online. |
| Tetris Online Japan | 2007 | PC | GungHo Online Entertainment | Official online game for Japanese region. |
| Tetris Friends | 2008 | Tetris Online | Featured ten game modes, including Marathon, Ultra, Sprint, N-Blox, Sprint 5-Player, 1989, Survival, Battle 2-Player, Battle 6-Player, and Rally 8-Player. Leaderboards were based on Facebook friends, encouraging the "friends" aspect. | |
| Tetris Party | 2008 | Wii | Tetris Online / Hudson Soft | A WiiWare title released on 20 October 2008; there were 18 modes, including one which involves building a tower that a tiny person on the stack can climb, and one using the Wii Balance Board. |
| Tetris Pop | 2008 | Mobile | Electronic Arts Mobile | Features 17 mini-variations, including Ball, Circuit, Erosion, Filler, Flood, Furnace, Limbo, Meteors, Touchdown, Scanner, Split, Stacker, and Vanilla. Three game modes: Pop, Mix, Chrono. Tetris Pop to be released worldwide for mobile devices. Expected Winter 2008. |
| Tetris Giant | 2009 | Arcade | Sega | A giant version of Tetris that features a playing field that is 6 cells wide by 7 cells high as opposed to the almost universal 10 cells wide by 20 cells high. The game is played on a large 70" DLP Projection Monitor and is controlled using giant joysticks with a built-in rumble motor. The base unit is actually a projector which can optionally be detached from the default screen and projected onto a large wall. |
| Tetris Party Deluxe | 2010 | Wii, Nintendo DS | Tetris Online / Majesco / Hudson Soft | Sequel to Tetris Party. Online players can compete with Tetris Party players. |
| Tetris Party Live | 2010 | Nintendo DSi | Tetris Online / Hudson Soft | A DSiWare title featuring several modes. The focus of the game is multiplayer, where players can compete with other players around the world in real-time. |
| Tetris Battle | 2010 | Tetris Online | Similar in design to Tetris Friends, this game features competitive Tetris modes against friends or random people. Both direct "battles" and competitive 40-line sprints are included. | |
| Tetris | 2011 | PlayStation 3, PSP | Electronic Arts | Features over 10 modalities, including Original, Gravity and Laser. It's also possible to play a bonus modality named "Variant", what includes some modified variants of these modalities. It also includes new soundtracks. Available for download in the PlayStation Network as a Mini. The PS3 version features exclusive Power Ups, Shared Mode, and Team Battle. |
| Tetris | 2011 | iOS, Android, Windows Phone, BlackBerry | Electronic Arts | Features two modalities of gameplay: the classic Marathon mode and a new mode named "Magic", what features a new gameplay style and over new 20 levels. It also includes new soundtracks. In fall 2011 the game was removed from the iOS and Android app stores. However, the Android version can actually be purchased on the Amazon Appstore. |
| ' | 2011 | Nintendo 3DS | Nintendo | Published in October 2, 2011. It featured modes that used the 3DS's AR card functionality. |
| Tetris Stars | 2011 | Tetris Online | Free-to-play, this casual arcade "digging" style game features a social leaderboard with friends, mouse-based controls, and power up items. | |
| Tetris Blitz | 2013 | iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Microsoft Windows PC | Electronic Arts | Each game completes in two minutes, Features exclusive Power Up of the Week, Bonus Blitz minigame, and online leaderboards. |
| Tetris | 2013 | iOS, Android, Windows Phone | Electronic Arts | Features two modalities: the classic Marathon mode and a new mode named "Galaxy", what features a new gameplay style and over new 50 levels. It also includes new soundtracks and the classic 8-bit theme from the original Tetris game. Not to be confused with the 2011 game. Following N3TWORK INC.'s acquisition of the Tetris license, both the iOS and Android versions of this game will be discontinued and retired from their respective app stores on April 21, 2020. |
| Puyo Puyo Tetris | 2014 | Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows PC | Sega | Tetris versus Puyo Puyo. The game features modes that allow for playing standalone Tetris, standalone Puyo Puyo, and a Fusion mode that combines the two. |
| Tetris | 2014 | Amazon Fire TV | Tetris Online | Featuring 3 game modes: Marathon, Sprint, or Ultra. Also has over 40 different achievements to earn along the way, as well as global leaderboards to compare a player's progress against other GameCircle participants. |
| Tetris Battle: Fusion | 2014 | Amazon Fire TV, Ouya | Tetris Online | A game based on Tetris Battle, the hugely popular multiplayer game on Facebook that has been played over 60 million times, this game introduces an all-new interactive adventure where players can battle their way through a series of challenging opponents and goals to become a Tetris Master, where they have to collect special Amulets that can be used to give them an added boost as they progress their way to victory. Over 50 Amulets can be collected. |
| Tetris Ultimate | 2014 | Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows PC | Ubisoft | To coincide with the franchises' 30th Anniversary and in partnership with The Tetris Company and SoMa Play. |
| Tetris Effect | 2018 | PlayStation 4, Windows PC | Enhance | Has support for Virtual reality and features a brand new "Zone" mechanic which allows the player to freeze time and clear more than four lines at once. |
| Tetris | 2018 | J2ME | Gameloft | |
| Tetris 99 | 2019 | Nintendo Switch | Nintendo | A battle royale game exclusively for Nintendo Switch Online members where only 1 of 99 players can win. |
| Tetris M1ND BEND3RS | 2019 | Browsers | Red Bull | A browser version created by Red Bull. Tetris M1ND BEND3RS is a twist on the traditional formula by having different effects whenever the player clears a certain line. |
| Tetris x Hello Kitty | 2019 | Browsers | Sanrio |
Unofficial games
| Title | Year | Platform | Developer | Description |
| EGAint | 1989 | PC, MS-DOS | Eric Ng | Like "Standard Tetris" but with options of more/less complex dropping figures. Easiest level included 1 box figures. Hardest level included figures of up to 8 boxes, including "holes". |
| Blockout | 1989 | Mega Drive/Genesis Commodore 64 Arcade Apple IIGS PC Atari Lynx | California Dreams | Object is to move and rotate polycubes falling into a well, viewed from the top, in order to make complete planes. |
| Tetris 2 | 1990 | ZX Spectrum | Fuxoft | Designed by František Fuka. 8bit ZX Spectrum game for two players. |
| Twintris | 1990 | Amiga | Digital Marketing | Duel version of Tetris originally designed for the Commodore Amiga, with less known ports to other platforms. |
| Super Twintris | 1991 | Amiga | Big Brother Copy | Supposed sequel to Twintris with nothing but minor improvements. |
| T-Tris | 1996 | Atari Lynx | B.Schick/L.Baumstark | Adoption with savegame option and up to 16 players. First Lynx homebrew game. |
| Frac4D | 1990 | Max Tegmark | A version in which the falling pieces are tesseracts that can be rotated in four dimensions. | |
| Tetris Max | 1992 | Mac OS Classic | Steve Chamberlin | A shareware Tetris game. In 1993, Tetris Max received an honorable mention in the MacUser shareware awards. |
| Tetris II | 1996 | MSX2, MSX2+, MSX turbo R | Renegade, Artic Soft, MicroTec | |
| Quadrapassel | Linux | A part of GNOME Games, and comes with the GNOME desktop environment. | ||
| Wordtris | Windows PC Super NES Game Boy | Players try to complete words found in the dictionary file. | ||
| La Bastille | 2000 | Linux | Tech House, Brown University | A version implemented on the 10-story tall science library building at Brown University, using Linux. |
| Tetris 1D | 2002 | Ziga Hajdukovic | A joke version with a single column. The player is repeatedly given only the long piece, and only has one control key 1D Tetris was included in the "Zero Gamer" Exhibition as a "game that tests the viewers' endurance in meditative inaction." | |
| Quinn | 2006 | Mac OS X | Simon Haertel | Recreation of Tetris with network capability through TCP/IP and Bonjour. The Tetris Company requested removal in 2006, but it was available as of 2008 with a disclaimer that it is not “affiliated with or sponsored by The Tetris Company or part of their Tetris line of products.” |
| Tris | 2008 | Mac OS X | Witherspoon | Removed from Mac App Store at the request of The Tetris Company. |
| Tetris Grand Master 3 | 2008 | Nintendo DS | MeRAMAN | A remake of the arcade game with additional features such as invisible blocks. |
| NullpoMino | 2008 | Windows PC Linux Mac OS X | NullNoname | Tetris fan game notable for variety of gameplay modes and customizability. NullpoMino gameplay videos of Mario and Luigi patterns were shown in the Yoasobi Sanshimai show. |
| Mino | 2009 | iOS | Xio Interactive, Inc. | A game with the same mechanics as Tetris. Mino also featured multiplayer support for up to four players. In a 2012 U.S. District Court ruling, Mino was found to have infringed on the Tetris Company's copyrights because it had replicated a combination of visual elements from the official Tetris. |
| Bastet | 2009 | Linux Windows PC | Federico Poloni | Unlike normal Tetris, Bastet does not choose your next brick at random. Instead, Bastet uses a special algorithm designed to choose the worst brick possible. |
| Not Tetris | 2010 | PC | Maurice Guegan | Adds physics engine behavior to the falling blocks. |
| Jstris | 2014 | Web Browser | jezevec10 | An online multiplayer variant of tetris which places players against each other to see who beats the rest |
| Tetraminos | 2016 | PC, Xbox One, PS4, Wii U | Sanuk Games | Adds 5 non-default tetramino shapes, combos and extra point for single color lines. |
| TETR.IO | 2020 | Web Browser | osk | An online multiplayer game with a focus on ranked 1 versus 1 matchmaking. |
| Astris | 2020 | Android, iOS, Windows | Asterinia | Version for mobile phones with modern graphics and smooth movements and rotation of blocks. |