Nintendo 64

Tetrisphere

All things considered, Atari, 3DO, Sony, Sega, and third-party developers have had more than two years to come up with a puzzle game that does for 32- and 64-bit hardware what Tetris did for 8- and 16-bit machines, and the only game that comes close is Sony's modest Intelligent Qube. Impressively polished in every area, Tetrisphere provides a new puzzle depth benchmark while doing an excellent job of showing off the abilities of the Nintendo 64 hardware, making the title yet another in the handful of "great" N64 games that contrast sharply with much of the machine's third-party dreck. Against the N64's vaguely similar Blast Corps - another great strategy-intensive action-puzzler - Tetrisphere easily holds its own and offers itself as the N64's first two-player competitive puzzle action. With my hopes for many more successes to come, H2O's first game is highly recommended.

Esférico, tridimensional e ainda mais difícil que o original, Tetrisphere marca o ataque da famosa criação de Alexei Pajitnov na N64.

Wow is the only word that came out when I first played this one. Everything from the graphics to the gameplay was perfect. What's nice is that you can be a novice and still have fun (since the game can be one of luck or skill). On top of this, the funky sometimes ambient, sounds fit the game well. My gripe is that luck often plays too much of a part.

Tetrisphere is a fun puzzler that almost anybody can quickly take a liking to. The game's fast pace, strategy and 3D levels add up for loads of fun that players will surely appreciate. Puzzler fanatics, however, may want to steer clear of this game for fear of permanent addiction.

And really, its one of the system’s best games, too. Not a lot of people have even played it, but Tetrisphere is one of the most enjoyable puzzle games I’ve ever seen. Not only that, but it has the obligatory two-player mode, which makes for some frantic gaming sessions if your opponent is as skilled as you are. Add in a few extra modes I don’t really even care about and you have a package that proves you don’t always need to be the most original kid on the block to be one of the best.

The mesmerizing appeal of Tetris was its elegant simplicity; as the tumbling shapes found their fits, they disappeared. Would that its successor stayed true to its techno-genes. The once quaint blocks have been prettified and accelerated, but they're about as charming as plywood. The fun arrives eventually — keep that in mind while laboring through Tetrisphere's cumbrous two-step tutorial.

Despite a nice overall presentation, the gameplay fails to live up to Tetris standards. It's too complicated, there's a serious learning curve, and I hate how pieces tend to replenish themselves. Unlike other Tetris variations that are relentlessly addictive, Tetrisphere gets more boring as you play.