Editing Tetris (section)

{{Short description|Series of puzzle video games}}
{{About|the series|specific versions|List of Tetris variants{{!}}List of ''Tetris'' variants|other uses}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox video game series
| title = Tetris
| image = Tetris logo.png
| alt = The word "Tetris", each letter a different color, engraved on a blue, T-shaped tetromino.
| creator = [[Alexey Pajitnov]]
| platforms = [[List of Tetris variants|Various]]
| first release version = [[Tetris (Spectrum HoloByte)|''Tetris'' (Spectrum HoloByte)]]
| first release date = January 27, 1988
| latest release version = ''[[Tetris Forever]]''
| latest release date = November 12, 2024
| genre = {{cslist | [[Puzzle video game|Puzzle]]}}
| spinoffs = ''[[Tetris: The Grand Master]]''
}}

'''''Tetris''''' ({{langx|ru|link=no|Тетрис}}){{efn|Pronounced {{IPA|ru|ˈtʲetrʲɪs|}} or {{IPA|ru|ˈtetrʲɪs|}}}} is a series of [[puzzle video game]]s created in 1985 <!-- Please consult the talk page of the article before changing the date. -->by [[Alexey Pajitnov]], a Soviet [[software engineer]]. In ''Tetris'' games, falling [[tetromino]] shapes must be neatly sorted into a pile; once a horizontal line of the game board is filled in, it disappears, granting points and preventing the pile from overflowing. Different versions of ''Tetris'' have introduced altered game mechanics, with some becoming standard over time. More than 200 versions of ''Tetris'' have been published by numerous companies on [[List of Tetris variants|more than 65 platforms]]. ''Tetris'' is the [[List of best-selling video game franchises|second-best-selling video game franchise]], with over 520 million sales, mostly on mobile.

In the 1980s, Pajitnov worked for the [[Computing Center of the Academy of Sciences]], where he programmed ''Tetris'' on the [[Elektronika 60]] and adapted it to the [[IBM PC]] with the help of Dmitry Pavlovsky and [[Vadim Gerasimov]]. [[Floppy disk]] copies were distributed freely throughout Moscow, before spreading to Eastern Europe. Robert Stein of Andromeda Software licensed ''Tetris'' to [[Mirrorsoft]] in the UK and [[Spectrum HoloByte]] in the US. [[Tetris (Spectrum HoloByte)|Both companies released the game]] in 1988 to commercial success and sold licenses to other companies, including [[Henk Rogers]]' [[Bullet-Proof Software]]. Rogers negotiated with [[Elektronorgtechnica]], the state-owned organization in charge of licensing Soviet software, to license ''Tetris'' to [[Nintendo]] for the [[Game Boy]] and [[Nintendo Entertainment System]] (NES); both versions were released in 1989. The [[Tetris (Game Boy)|Game Boy version]] became the best-selling version of ''Tetris'' and is among the [[best-selling video games]], with 35 million sales, which popularized the console. In 1996, after the rights reverted to Pajitnov, he and Rogers formed [[the Tetris Company]] to manage licensing. 

''Tetris'' has been influential in the genre of puzzle video games and [[popular culture]]. It is an early example of a [[casual games|casual game]] and it is represented in a vast array of media such as architecture and art. It has been the subject of academic research, including studies of its potential for psychological intervention. A competitive culture has formed around ''Tetris'', particularly the [[Tetris (NES)|NES version]]. Players, typically adolescents, have competed at the annual [[Classic Tetris World Championship]] since 2010. ''Tetris'' is often ranked among the [[List of video games considered the best|greatest video games]] and was among the first games inducted into the [[World Video Game Hall of Fame]] in 2015. A [[Tetris (film)|film dramatization]] of the game's development was released in 2023.