How to Get Better at Tetris
Learn how to do a T-Spin., Do Tetrises., Determine your playing style., Try to avoid garbage., Keep pushing yourself., Battle another player., Practice!, Marathon: A Tetris player can't be called a Tetris player unless they've played Marathon at...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Learn how to do a T-Spin.
In certain versions of Tetris, a T-Spin will count for extra points. (Don't worry, it's easier than it looks!) Set up a T-Slot.
A T-Slot should be exactly the same size as a T-Block, with one central block on the bottom and three horizontal blocks on top.
See the picture at the beginning of this step for reference.
Make sure your space going down to the T-Slot is only two blocks wide.
Let the T-Block fall slowly toward the bottom.
Keep an eye on it as it moves.
When the T-Block is close to the bottom, press up to start rotating it.
It looks impossible, but you can actually rotate the T-Block beneath the overhang.
T-Spins can be worth 400 points.
Clearing 2 lines with a T-Spin is worth even more.
When the level and speed get high, you can rotate the piece constantly to lengthen the amount of time you have to drop it.
Learn to use both clockwise and counter-clockwise keys to rotate, and remember to sometimes hold an I-Piece in your Hold.
You can set up combos by leaving a two block wide gutter at the side of a stack, and then when its almost to the top, insert pieces vertically into it.
Play it smart and you can get up to 9 combo or more. , A "tetris" is when you clear four lines at once.
The easiest way to do this is to build up four solid lines, and leave a one-block column clear on one side.
Then, when you get an I-Block (the long, skinny one), use it to clear all four lines at once.
Tetrises help you gain points fast, and are a good weapon in 2-player mode. , There are several ways to play Tetris, but here are two common beginner styles:
Horizontal:
Most people start out this way, trying to make sure every piece is laid horizontally and not caring about garbage, just making sure that it's flat.
Vertical:
Some people experiment with this after horizontal.
This usually happens when they get more familiar with garbage and the horrors it brings.
They try to usually lay everything vertical, but caring more about filling in holes and and not letting garbage appear. , Garbage is, quite simply, the holes that form in the Matrix because of a misplaced block.
Because of garbage, certain rows cannot be cleared, as there is a hole and an unfilled space where a block should be.
It is usually a pain in the neck to get rid of garbage, so that's one of the reasons it got it's name.
Usually, players try not to let garbage appear, instead opting to do anything but let it.
Or sometimes, if they are sure that they can clear it, they let it happen, then get rid of it. , Don't just restart a game that's going poorly
- try to save it! If you can set your level at the beginning of the game, try to pick one that challenges you without making the game insanely difficult.
Practicing like this will make you better in no time. , 2-Player Battle is a common mode in most types of Tetris.
In this mode, you and an enemy player face off in a battle of wits, determination and calculated button-mashing.
The first person to top out (that is, get blocks all the way to the top of the screen) loses.
Learn how to attack in 2P.
Lines are sent to your opponent's Matrix whenever you clear two or more lines, do a combo, or do a T-Spin.
When you send two lines to your opponent, they receive one, when you send 3, they receive 2, but when you send a Tetris (four lines), they receive the full four.
T-Spins also do hilarious amounts of damage to your enemy, and so do combos.
One thing that is almost never mentioned or done is a Dual-Tetris.
It sends 10 (4 for first Tetris, 6 for second if back to back) lines towards your opponent, and considering that the height of the Matrix is 20 Minos high, that's half their Matrix! Many times it is easy to destroy a person with one of these.
So here's how you do it.
In Tetris, there is a Hold Queue.
You can press C or SHIFT(default) to place a piece in your Hold Queue.
When you get a little bit better, you can set up a stack of pieces at least 8 lines high.
Beware of the risks though, if the enemy does a Dual or even a regular Tetris at that moment, you're pretty much done.
While you're setting up those 8 lines, you should HOLD one I-Piece(stick),then when you receive another one, pull off the move.
When one I-Piece is dropping and you have the other one in your Hold, use one for a Tetris, then press the Hold button again to switch to the other one, using it for a Tetris as well. , You know when they say: when you practice something, it becomes easier.
The cool thing about Tetris is that when you play it once, you feel yourself getting better after 1 minute.
Just play a lot, and if you really love the game, through your playing you will eventually find your own personal style of playing. , This is where it all began.
Basically, Marathon is the classic game mode of Tetris, where different blocks fall from the top, you have to rotate them and stick them into holes so you can fill entire rows and clear lines.
A line gets taken off of the Matrix (playfield) when an entire row is solidly filled with squares.
When the line is cleared, all the pieces on top of it move down one row to fill in the empty space. -
Step 2: Do Tetrises.
The way you score is the same, but different strategies are necessary.
Sprint is exactly like Marathon, the only difference is that you're not trying to survive as long as you can (hopefully to level 16 when the game ends at Tetris Friends).
Instead, your goal is to clear 40 lines as fast as you can.
You don't worry about score or anything, just wanna clear those 40 lines.
There's a timer at the top of the screen that tells you how well you're doing.
Generally, anything under 2 minutes is a very good score, anything under 1 minute and 30 seconds is excellent, and if you can get under one minute, you are a top dog. , The thing is though, that instead of clearing more lines every time, you always have to clear 10, and instead of getting to level 15, you have to get past level 20 for it to count as a very good game and 40 Tokens.
There's a catch, though.
As soon as you beat level 20, a Bonus Round commences and all the blocks you've laid down so far start to flicker and disappear.
Every once in a while, you get a glimpse of the pieces.
This is why it's called Survival.
In order for you to truly get far in the Bonus Round, you need to have an excellent memory, and remember exactly where every single piece has fallen. , In Ultra, you have 2 minutes to get as much points as possible.
Think of is as a time trial.
This is a good training mode for speed.
Speed is a huge component of Tetris. , The reason is that it's the first multiplayer mode you get (and the only one you get if you don't have an account).
In it, you go face to face with 4 other people and attempt to make them breathe your dust as you try to clear 40 lines faster than any single one of them.
It gets pretty hectic at times.
In this mode you can gain Ranks (which is kind of like leveling up), and the higher Rank you are, the harder the competition gets. -
Step 3: Determine your playing style.
-
Step 4: Try to avoid garbage.
-
Step 5: Keep pushing yourself.
-
Step 6: Battle another player.
-
Step 7: Practice!
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Step 8: Marathon: A Tetris player can't be called a Tetris player unless they've played Marathon at least once in their lifetime.
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Step 9: Sprint: Now that Marathon has been explained
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Step 10: all other game modes of Tetris are based off of this.
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Step 11: Survival: Survival is just like Marathon
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Step 12: in that you have to clear lines to get to the next level.
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Step 13: Ultra: This mode is also a fairly classic mode of Tetris
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Step 14: and back in the day
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Step 15: the only two modes available were this and
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Step 16: of course
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Step 17: Marathon.
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Step 18: Sprint 5-Player: This is going to be a mode that you will play a lot in the beginning
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Step 19: and then maybe leave later on.
Detailed Guide
In certain versions of Tetris, a T-Spin will count for extra points. (Don't worry, it's easier than it looks!) Set up a T-Slot.
A T-Slot should be exactly the same size as a T-Block, with one central block on the bottom and three horizontal blocks on top.
See the picture at the beginning of this step for reference.
Make sure your space going down to the T-Slot is only two blocks wide.
Let the T-Block fall slowly toward the bottom.
Keep an eye on it as it moves.
When the T-Block is close to the bottom, press up to start rotating it.
It looks impossible, but you can actually rotate the T-Block beneath the overhang.
T-Spins can be worth 400 points.
Clearing 2 lines with a T-Spin is worth even more.
When the level and speed get high, you can rotate the piece constantly to lengthen the amount of time you have to drop it.
Learn to use both clockwise and counter-clockwise keys to rotate, and remember to sometimes hold an I-Piece in your Hold.
You can set up combos by leaving a two block wide gutter at the side of a stack, and then when its almost to the top, insert pieces vertically into it.
Play it smart and you can get up to 9 combo or more. , A "tetris" is when you clear four lines at once.
The easiest way to do this is to build up four solid lines, and leave a one-block column clear on one side.
Then, when you get an I-Block (the long, skinny one), use it to clear all four lines at once.
Tetrises help you gain points fast, and are a good weapon in 2-player mode. , There are several ways to play Tetris, but here are two common beginner styles:
Horizontal:
Most people start out this way, trying to make sure every piece is laid horizontally and not caring about garbage, just making sure that it's flat.
Vertical:
Some people experiment with this after horizontal.
This usually happens when they get more familiar with garbage and the horrors it brings.
They try to usually lay everything vertical, but caring more about filling in holes and and not letting garbage appear. , Garbage is, quite simply, the holes that form in the Matrix because of a misplaced block.
Because of garbage, certain rows cannot be cleared, as there is a hole and an unfilled space where a block should be.
It is usually a pain in the neck to get rid of garbage, so that's one of the reasons it got it's name.
Usually, players try not to let garbage appear, instead opting to do anything but let it.
Or sometimes, if they are sure that they can clear it, they let it happen, then get rid of it. , Don't just restart a game that's going poorly
- try to save it! If you can set your level at the beginning of the game, try to pick one that challenges you without making the game insanely difficult.
Practicing like this will make you better in no time. , 2-Player Battle is a common mode in most types of Tetris.
In this mode, you and an enemy player face off in a battle of wits, determination and calculated button-mashing.
The first person to top out (that is, get blocks all the way to the top of the screen) loses.
Learn how to attack in 2P.
Lines are sent to your opponent's Matrix whenever you clear two or more lines, do a combo, or do a T-Spin.
When you send two lines to your opponent, they receive one, when you send 3, they receive 2, but when you send a Tetris (four lines), they receive the full four.
T-Spins also do hilarious amounts of damage to your enemy, and so do combos.
One thing that is almost never mentioned or done is a Dual-Tetris.
It sends 10 (4 for first Tetris, 6 for second if back to back) lines towards your opponent, and considering that the height of the Matrix is 20 Minos high, that's half their Matrix! Many times it is easy to destroy a person with one of these.
So here's how you do it.
In Tetris, there is a Hold Queue.
You can press C or SHIFT(default) to place a piece in your Hold Queue.
When you get a little bit better, you can set up a stack of pieces at least 8 lines high.
Beware of the risks though, if the enemy does a Dual or even a regular Tetris at that moment, you're pretty much done.
While you're setting up those 8 lines, you should HOLD one I-Piece(stick),then when you receive another one, pull off the move.
When one I-Piece is dropping and you have the other one in your Hold, use one for a Tetris, then press the Hold button again to switch to the other one, using it for a Tetris as well. , You know when they say: when you practice something, it becomes easier.
The cool thing about Tetris is that when you play it once, you feel yourself getting better after 1 minute.
Just play a lot, and if you really love the game, through your playing you will eventually find your own personal style of playing. , This is where it all began.
Basically, Marathon is the classic game mode of Tetris, where different blocks fall from the top, you have to rotate them and stick them into holes so you can fill entire rows and clear lines.
A line gets taken off of the Matrix (playfield) when an entire row is solidly filled with squares.
When the line is cleared, all the pieces on top of it move down one row to fill in the empty space.
The way you score is the same, but different strategies are necessary.
Sprint is exactly like Marathon, the only difference is that you're not trying to survive as long as you can (hopefully to level 16 when the game ends at Tetris Friends).
Instead, your goal is to clear 40 lines as fast as you can.
You don't worry about score or anything, just wanna clear those 40 lines.
There's a timer at the top of the screen that tells you how well you're doing.
Generally, anything under 2 minutes is a very good score, anything under 1 minute and 30 seconds is excellent, and if you can get under one minute, you are a top dog. , The thing is though, that instead of clearing more lines every time, you always have to clear 10, and instead of getting to level 15, you have to get past level 20 for it to count as a very good game and 40 Tokens.
There's a catch, though.
As soon as you beat level 20, a Bonus Round commences and all the blocks you've laid down so far start to flicker and disappear.
Every once in a while, you get a glimpse of the pieces.
This is why it's called Survival.
In order for you to truly get far in the Bonus Round, you need to have an excellent memory, and remember exactly where every single piece has fallen. , In Ultra, you have 2 minutes to get as much points as possible.
Think of is as a time trial.
This is a good training mode for speed.
Speed is a huge component of Tetris. , The reason is that it's the first multiplayer mode you get (and the only one you get if you don't have an account).
In it, you go face to face with 4 other people and attempt to make them breathe your dust as you try to clear 40 lines faster than any single one of them.
It gets pretty hectic at times.
In this mode you can gain Ranks (which is kind of like leveling up), and the higher Rank you are, the harder the competition gets.
About the Author
Margaret Stevens
Committed to making creative arts accessible and understandable for everyone.
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