Fresh ringtone offers: Tetris Blockout

Tetris Blockout is yet another title based on the popular puzzle game that has you placing falling Tetriminos strategically to clear the board. The twist in this case however comes from the fact that the game is now played in 3D. What this does is completely change the point of view by which the game is played, essentially making it tougher.

This new point of view is top-down and plays as if you were standing at the top of a building and dropping the pieces to the street below. Because of the new perspective, it allows you to rotate the pieces around three axes, thereby giving you full control in order to place them properly and remove each plane created. This does make the game more difficult however, because even though the falling pieces are transparent, it is tricky to discern in what position they are in.

There is a gauge that displays how many planes have been created (specifically how high the stacks are), but in no way is it indicative of how the pieces are actually placed. So many times, it’s possible to place a Tetrimino incorrectly and block out an entire plain, putting you one step closer to failure.

The modes available are Marathon, Ultra and 20 Planes. In Marathon, in order to advance you must clear the required number of planes per level. As you progress through the levels, the drop-speed of the pieces increases, as well as the speed of the game. Ultra is a timed experience for the maximum score possible. Finally, in 20 Planes, well, that’s basically it…you must eliminate 20 planes in order to win. Additionally, there are two difficulty settings where Normal is a typical experience and Easy breaks down the Tetriminos into smaller pieces, thereby making them easier to fit and place.

Overall, Tetris Blockout is a nice switch on the classic game, but know that it is tougher because of the perspective, that is unless you wuss out and play it on Easy. Being able to briefly change the point of view on the Tetrimino just to see its rotated position would have been great (kind of like pressing a button to temporarily look into the rearview mirror in a racing game), but unfortunately that’s not the case here. Still, it’s a decent new challenge for fans of the puzzle game.