In the gaming world, there are many games that people consider themselves pro-gamers at. One of them is Tetris.
As mundane as it sounds, pro level Tetris is not as bad as you might think. It is a game after all, one where the goal is to get the highest score whilst trying to avoid certain doom from overloading the playing field with colored tetrominos. And that certainly sounds like something pro gamers excel at, which is why there is a new documentary about this subject.
Produced by Adam Cornelius – an independent filmmaker, achiever of 18th best score of all time on Tetris (421,313), and also created the equally interesting “Max-Out” (featuring pro Tetris player Harry Hong), and Robin Mihara – a verified Tetris expert, both have created a documentary detailing the subject of hardcore Tetris, and the people who inhabit the scene. Called Ecstasy Of Order: The Tetris Masters, Cornelius (along with info from Mihara) filmed contestants in the pro Tetris league, as they try to win the Classic Tetris World Championship (Facebook link HERE)
The rules for the competition were simple: play “Classic” Tetris (The original NES version of the game. None of the newer, more modern day variations, especially the ones from Japan that focus more on reaction times/survivability, but the classic one that the competition judges on high score/survivability). The competition was spearheaded by Russian born Tetris creator Alexey Pajitnov, and over 200 players entered to win $1000, a nice trophy, and bragging rights to the world’s “best” Classic Tetris player.
A nice touch to the documentary is that it talks about the history of the game, not just the competition. It documents the start of a worldwide phenomenon, it’s competitive scene back in the 1990′s, and why people get so addicted to the such an old fashioned puzzle game. So if you watch it, you’re bound to learn something, other than knowing who the best Classic Tetris player is in the whole world. Sadly, the film isn’t completed yet, as it is still in post-production, but there is a preview trailer on the main site, and it all looks very interesting.
More info via [Ecstasy Of Order: The Tetris Masters]
