For a time, this game could only be experienced on a console. But at A Clockwork Brain, you can play Tetris online for free! Tetris (a shape-based puzzle video game) involves and sharpens pattern recognition, quick thinking, problem-solving, and hand-eye coordination.

A successful game is judged by the score, and the game will continue for as long as a player can keep from becoming overwhelmed. This classic browser-based game uses puzzle-themed principles in an original way by having the puzzle pieces fall from the top of the screen, having to be arranged in the best way possible before landing in place. 

How to Play Tetris

The rules of Tetris are simple.

  • Arrange the falling shapes to create solid lines across the bottom of the play area (or as close to the bottom as possible). When you can create a solid row, the row disappears, creating more space to work with.
  • Rows that are created that have gaps remaining in them will not disappear. If this happens too often, you will creep toward the top of the play area. If the rows with spaces reach the top of the board, it’s game over.

Types of Shapes

Seven shapes are at play and are often described as O, I, T, L, J, S, and Z.

  1. “O” shape isn’t an “O” at all but is a square made from four cells.
  2. “I” shape is a straight line of four cells.
  3. “T” shape is a row of three cells and one cell stacked in the middle.
  4. “L” Shape is four cells in a row and one more stacked on the right-hand bottom side.
  5. “J” is made out of four cells situated in the exact opposite hand of the “L” shape.
  6. “S” shape is made from two cells in a row, with two more cells stacked on top of them, offset toward the right.
  7. “Z” shape is the exact opposite of the “S” shape.

With our game version, you can occasionally get shapes with a bomb attached to one of its cells (which is clearly visible to the player). The bomb-filled cell will clear both sides of the row that it lands in line with.

How to Control the Pieces

As the pieces fall, you’ll need to shift columns and rotate them when necessary to place them as efficiently as possible. Remember, once they have touched the bottom of the grid or any shapes placed across the bottom, no further actions can be taken for that piece.

Use your keyboard’s arrow keys to maneuver the shapes as they fall.

  • Left and Right Arrows moves the piece to the left or right.
  • Up Arrow will rotate the shape counterclockwise at 90-degree intervals.
  • Down Arrow will speedily rush the shape to the bottom. This isn’t wise to use unless you’re sure it is positioned at the right angle and in the desired column of the grid.

Tetris Strategy

There are two trains of thought when it comes to Tetris’s strategy.

The First strategy we’d suggest for beginners is to play it safe and do your best to remove line by line as quickly as possible, not allowing any lines with spaces to accumulate. The downside is that you score the base amount for each cleared row, but the upside is that you remain safer for longer, giving you more opportunity to increase your score.

The second is to try to pile up four lines with one space in each, lined up with each other. Doing this, you can insert the “I” shape directly into the gap, removing four lines at once and collecting more points for doing so. The problem with this strategy? You’re at the mercy of whatever shape the game decides to give you next; there’s no guarantee that you’ll receive the shape you want when you want it.

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