Tetris: the "definition of a virtual sport"

By Robert Purchese Published 15 June, 2009

Creator Pajitnov sees a mental future.

Tetris father Alexey Pajitnov thinks his creation can adapt to fit a world where mental fitness will soon replace physical fitness.

Pajitov and Tetris Company co-founder Henk Rogers explained that Tetris sells more copies now than ever, thanks to mobile phones, and that the Western world will soon emulate the casual-game explosion of Korea.

"People ask me, 'Are you still alive? I think you are a legend,'" Pajitnov told Kotaku. "I expected [Tetris] to be a good game - not worse than anything else. I never expected this."

Henk Rogers added: "We are going to turn Tetris into the first real virtual sport. Sports like baseball and football were created at a time when our future was a lifetime of physical activities and physical fitness. But now that's not as important, it's more about mental fitness today.

"Tetris is a virtual sport that exercises the mind. That is the definition of a virtual sport," said Rogers.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (21) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Wastelander #1 3 years ago

    Is Pajitnov talking to us from 1982?

  • DFawkes #2 3 years ago

    It's not really a sport though, is it? Pressing buttons. Sure, I feel like a king when I get those 25 lines on Level 9 Height 5 and watch that rocket blast off, but it's not a sport. A mind sport would be telekinetic no contact basketball.

  • Bealsy #3 3 years ago

    Only a real geek would call any game "virtual sport".

    It's virtually a sport, but then OH WAIT, no its not. Not in any way shape or form.

  • layleeloo #4 3 years ago

    Only thing i dissagree with is the fact that physicality is less important now. haha. I'd say is more important now with the amount of overweight people (and im not being biased either cos im one of them!). haha

  • gohda #5 3 years ago

    uh, he's a bit crazy isn't he?

  • rhubarbandcustard #6 3 years ago

    "People ask me, 'Are you still alive? I think you are a legend,'" Pajitnov told Kotaku.

    WTF?!

    Tetris was a hit in the day because it was a shitty little puzzle game that was perfectly playable on a shitty little handheld - the gameboy.

    Tetris remains popular because it is a shitty little puzzle game that remains perfectly playable on shitty little handhelds - mobiles.

  • layleeloo #7 3 years ago

    rhubarbandcustard

    I think regardless of what egotistical claims he makes, you can not call the game shitty consideing its a gaming masterpiece, regardless whether you play it on a small screen or a 60 inch plasma. No video game is played so frequently by so many people of all different ages. That my friend, is not shitty. Its sheer genius.

  • LazyDan #8 3 years ago

    Tetris has to be the one game which is taken far, far far far too seriously be some people.

  • layleeloo #9 3 years ago

    LazyDan

    As opposed to.....Halo for example? haha.

    I do agree with you though. Sure i have it on my PC and DS, but like any game, people can take them way too seriously and creating a virtual sport is a bit of a joke to be honest. But its still gaming genius. ;-)
    Edited by 1 at 15/06/09 @ 11:19

  • paulf #10 3 years ago

    @rhubarbandcustard

    anyone who calls tetris 'shitty' really has no place on a gaming forum, begone heathen !

    on another note has Pajitnov actually made any money from tetris yet?

  • Mr_Bogus #11 3 years ago

    But...but...but....TETRIS NATAL! Want to stand in front of the tv & wave armd & legs around to try rotate the shapes.... erm... oh. Ok. Perhaps he's right.

  • raion #12 3 years ago

    lazydan, that can be said for any and all games. there's always the obsessed, the perfectionist, etc.

    rhubarbandcustard is partly right. the secret of tetris is not entirely based on it's simple and addictive gameplay, but also on it's platform indipendence. wherever you have a screen and an imput control, you can have tetris.
    granted, the quality of the gaming experience on any said platform is only as good as it's controller (tetris is rubbish almost on any mobile phone since keypads are uncomfortable and poorly responsive).

  • peak_performance #13 3 years ago

    Tell that to the 35 million persons who bought the game for Game Boy. Of course it helps that it's available for every platform, but the game made itself popular because it's bloody fantastic.

    This is a great documentary about the creation and distribution of Tetris.

    Edit: Yeah, it was my first game.
    Edited by 1 at 15/06/09 @ 14:02

  • the_mtfr #14 3 years ago

    @peak_performance, thanks a bunch for the documentary link man, it's great!

  • bad09 #15 3 years ago

    "Tetris was a hit in the day because it was a shitty little puzzle game that was perfectly playable on a shitty little handheld - the gameboy.

    Tetris remains popular because it is a shitty little puzzle game that remains perfectly playable on shitty little handhelds - mobiles. "

    You sir are dead inside. It's probably one of the most playable (and addictive) games ever!

    / hears THAT music in his head.....

  • Alkeno #16 3 years ago

    Dear Pajitnov, Tretris is one of the greatest games ever, you deserve a huge pat on the back. However, don't try to put it as the "definition of virtual sport" because chess was there first both as physical and a virtual mind-sport game.

  • Janyamik #17 3 years ago

    Tetris, Super Pang 2,..examples of how the content is as important as the form. Simple graphics but a huge amount of diversion! :)

    Is it amazing how after all ancient Pythagoreanism talk, tetrominoes can still give fun!

    Is this what ESL tries to do, besides a few more ones? (Electronic Sport League, just in case somebody may not know about it)

    I see Tetris as a modern Chess or an electronic backgammon: another classic game for humankind with the pass of time. But for 1 player only and in a virtual reality: Theres no table needed as there is no physical game. Obviously. :)

    @ rhubarbandcustard, I met Tetris first in a video game arcade cabinet, not gameboy. But funny version one, anyway. :)
    Edited by 1 at 16/06/09 @ 00:10

  • wellzy4eva #18 3 years ago

    I thought the first proper virtual sport was FPS played on a competitive level.

    Professional gamers (I refuse to call them cyber athletes) like Dennis "Thresh" Fong and Arrogant "Fatal1ty" Bastard have really set the bar when you think about it.

    But then again, people moan about FPS/RPG/Fighting games are not proper sports, but Snooker/darts/Bowling are called sports, hell people even call poker a spectator sport.

    So why not competitive Tetris multiplayer? although I would not call it the definition by any means.

  • TwinFire #19 3 years ago

    I play for about 10 minutes every other night on my mobile before falling asleep.

  • quantumsheep #20 3 years ago

    It's the only game I've played for serious amounts of time EVERY YEAR since I got it for the original Gameboy - an absolute classic in my opinion.

    Met the guy myself, and he's lovely. Oh, and after playing for a while he *doesn't* see blocks falling when he shuts his eyes apparently...

    /does
    Edited by 1 at 16/06/09 @ 15:27

  • electrolite #21 3 years ago

    I've seen some stupid posts on this and other sites, indeed other non-gaming sites, but rhubarband custard, just from the post in this thread alone, could be literally the most supid person I've ever encountered, or indded in the history of humanity.

    It's Tetris. It's perfect game design. It's flawless. I'm a great fan of subjectivity, but it doesn't apply in this case, that's how it is. If it isn't the best game ever, it's very very close.