Tetris (Axis) 3DS Review

Tetris has a great and wonderful history on the portable gaming machines. Everyone will always point to the Game Boy version of the game as the one that set it off and they’d be right. Since then we’ve seen Tetris appear on any console that could run it without too much change to its basic formula. Nintendo’s had their pockets in the Tetris 3DS box of blocks a couple of times since the original Game Boy version and they’ve done well with Tetris DS being the best example and most feature packed Tetris 3DS we’ve ever seen. It’s going to be hard to top that.

I love Tetris and played it all the time on the Game Boy, so much so that even when my Game Boy’s batteries were completely dead I would turn off my Game Boy and then try the batteries a few minutes later to get a few seconds more gaming in. It never really worked but I just had to have more.

So Nintendo has a new system now, they don’t have the licence this time but they are publishing Hudson’s umpteenth go at franchise. Previously they have worked on WiiWare, DSiWare and even a DS retail version of the game. If you’ve played those titles then Tetris 3DS on the Nintendo 3DS won’t be entirely new to you, there’s a lot of content here we’ve played before, not that it nessesiarly makes them bad.

There’s around 20 different modes to play around with in Tetris 3DS. Naturally, Marathon Tetris is there and of course you’d have to be an idiot to mess that up, thankfully they haven’t and it’s good old Tetris 3DS just like you remember. Most of the other modes are just along for the ride, but there is a couple of good ones that stand out from the pack. These two modes are the Bombliss and Fever modes. Bombliss is basically normal Tetris, however there are bombs embedded in some Tetriminos and only when those lines get cleared (the ones with the bombs) do the lines clear.

The other big great new mode is the Fever mode. It turns Tetris into a quick score attack type game that can be completed quickly for when you have a few minutes. Fever plays by shrinking the Tetris 3DS field to only six columns, you have one minute to get as many points as possible. Sounds boring right? Well, it’s not, because throughout the game items are thrown at you to mix things up. They start off simple but eventually get more advanced and include items that even use the gyro and micrphone on the Nintendo 3DS. The more you play, the more items you unlock or some of them are even activated over SpotPass. Just playing this mode without online leaderboards would be good enough, but Hudson didn’t do that and will allow you to upload your Fever scores online too. Get ready to get addicted.

Tetris 3DS also includes a rather interesting AR mode. We haven’t seen many developers use the AR Cards outside of Nintendo themselves, so it’s nice to see it included in some part. There’s two of them and one is a cutdown version of Marathon with a smaller field, while the second is called “AR Climber” mode in which you must get your climber to the top of the tower using Tetriminos. The Climber mode can be played without the AR modes as well, which is a good thing because you will probably revert to that after the novelty wears off. I found it hard to concentrate with the 3DS shaking as you’re playing and trying to keep focus on the AR Card. Perhaps that’s just me though.

If you’re one of those people who get out of the house sometimes then you’ll be happy to know there is a wide assortment of multiplayer for the avid Tetris 3DS fan. You can play either with multiple cartridges, which allows you to try out more modes while Download Play is a simpler affair but it does allow up to 8 players to go at it with one card. Online play is included and while it’s by no means as comprehenisve as even the local multiplayer, it’s quite good. You’ll need more players though as with only a few players only simple modes will be unlocked. Once you have more than 3 players, the competitive “Battle Mode” is opened up, which allows you to battle other players while using items.

There’s plenty of customisation in the game as well with most of it centered around your Mii who dances aimlessly on the bottom screen of the system. You can change the actual dance he/she does and change their clothes and hats. I got to say, I do look good in skirt.

The game is presented very well too with clean and clear menus. There are multiple field designs to play on and each of them look good and don’t distract you from the task at hand. The 3D is limited as you would expect in a Tetris game, you can tilt the play field a bit to show off the 3D effect however any major deviation from the default face-on view means you’ll have a harder time actually playing the game. Even in modes such as the top down one the 3D effect is simply there for show, there’s no pespective tricks at all going on. A bit of a missed opportunity in this regard. The classic ’Tetris 3DS’ music is back in a fresh new remix form and it’s come along with a bunch of other soft classic tunes. The music in some modes feels out of place and basically if you like some classical music you won’t be too offended here but otherwise you’re really going to dislike it.

Tetris 3DS at it’s core is still a great game, but really, it’s Tetris, it’s not hard to stuff up. However then there’s online, local and download play along with a bunch of sometimes great and sometimes terrible extra modes. It’s good, but there could have been a little more thought put into some of the modes and how the game is presented.

Graphics 8.0

Bright, colourful and cheerful. Just like Tetris should be. 3D couldn be missing and you wouldnt miss it.

Gameplay 9.0

Its Tetris and then some. Its really hard to mess up Tetris and Hudson have done the name proud with new and fresh ideas.

Sound 7.0

The classic Tetris tune is there and a bunch of others, nothing terribly special but gets the job done.

Tilt 8.0

Tons and tons of value here, some game modes are worse than others but the Fever and Bombliss modes stand out from the pack. Online and multiplayer modes add even more value.

Value 7.5

Its not that often that after reviewing a game Im still playing it. Tetris is still getting a daily work out.