Summary
- Tetris Forever added Welltris to its collection in a recent update, offering a 3D twist on the classic Tetris gameplay.
- Digital Eclipse announced a roadmap for 2025, focusing on updates for Tetris Time Warp and fixes for Tetris Forever.
- The latest Tetris Forever update also includes control remapping, bug fixes, and the removal of the rewind feature.
Tetris Forever, which features a collection of several Tetris games from the past, has announced the addition of Welltris to its ranks. First released in 1989, Welltris is the sequel to Tetris and was co-designed by Tetris creator Alexey Pajitnov.
Developed by Digital Eclipse, Tetris Forever is the third game documentary in the Gold Master Series which focuses on some of the most groundbreaking games in the industry's history. The compilation packs an array of titles from the long-running puzzle game franchise, ranging from the first-ever Tetris version built for the Electronika 60 to an original game called Tetris Time Warp. It also includes the Famicom variant of Tetris that is similar to the one which recently joined Nintendo Switch Online on December 12. As part of a post-launch update, Tetris Forever has now received Welltris, which was inspired by an unofficial 3D take on Tetris known as Blockout. Similar to Pajitnov's 2D puzzle title, Welltris also involves solving falling-block puzzles, except the players have to do this in a three-dimensional in-game pit or well.
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Digital Eclipse recently shared that Tetris Forever players can get their hands on Welltris, thanks to the update that came out on December 20. It marks the first time Welltris has become available again in any capacity, as the game never got an official re-release. Apart from the newest entry in Tetris Forever's catalog, the latest update also brings a few different features and bug fixes. First off, in Tetris Time Warp, all four players can now remap their controls. Moreover, remapping support has also been extended to the compilation's MS-DOS, Electronika 60, and Apple II games, for players across all platforms. Importantly, the audio stuttering bug on the Switch has been resolved at the cost of disabling the rewind feature in certain titles. However, the developer has stated that the removed feature could make a return in a future update "if possible."
After shipping what it refers to as "3D Tetris," Digital Eclipse has shifted its focus to other areas of interest, within the feature-rich Tetris compilation, that it plans to address in the coming months. In the announcement, the American studio laid out its roadmap going into 2025, which mainly concerns its original game, Tetris Time Warp. The developer shared that a "larger update" containing "many new features and game modes" was in the works for Tetris Time Warp, with plans to release it in early 2025. Further, it said that the save game functionality bug affecting Tetris Forever would also receive a fix in early January.
For longtime Tetris fans, the addition of Welltris is certainly an exciting one, and Digital Eclipse has already confirmed that it continues to "explore the possibility" of adding more games to the compilation. However, fans may have to wait some time before that happens, as the devs are prioritizing resolving the bugs in Tetris Forever—one of the best Nintendo Switch titles to come out in 2024.
Tetris Forever Update Patch Notes
Hello Digital Eclipse fans! It's your editorial director Chris Kohler here. We've been blown away by the reception to Tetris Forever, and we know you want more. Frankly, so do we! That's why we've been working behind the scenes since we launched on November 12 to continue to bring you new features and, today, a new game.
After the success of Tetris, its creator Alexey Pajitnov was inundated with requests for a "3D Tetris." The question was, what is 3D Tetris? What Alexey landed on was a brilliant combination of 2D gameplay and three-dimensional thinking: Welltris!
Pieces -- Tetriminos, of course, but also other polyominoes! -- fall down four sides of a well, and your job is to get them to form lines at the bottom. Can you handle Tetris times four? Much like the other MS-DOS games in Tetris Forever, Welltris has never before been officially re-released. Now you can play it from the comfort of your couch!
In addition to Welltris, we also announced:
- All four players can now remap their controls in Tetris Time Warp.
- Remappable controls are also now available for MS-DOS, Electronika 60, and Apple II games on all platforms.
- We have fixed the audio stuttering issue that affected some games on the Nintendo Switch platform. This was being caused by a conflict with the Rewind feature, which has now been disabled on Switch in certain games. We will look into restoring it in a later update, if possible.
What's Next In 2025
We wanted to get this update to you before the holidays, so you can enjoy Welltris while you're taking some time off! But that doesn't mean we're done. Tetris Time Warp's lead designer and programmer Jason Cirillo has been hard at work on a larger update to our original time-bending Tetris title, with many new features and game modes, which we aim to release early next year.
In addition to continuing to explore the possibility of adding more new playable games, we're also prioritizing a fix for the issue that is keeping saved game functionality from working as it should across the classic games in Tetris Forever. The team is working on a fix that we expect to be able to have ready in early January.
Want more news from us? Sign up for the Digital Eclipse email newsletter and we'll get it into your inbox as it happens. Have a happy holiday season, and we will see you in the new year for more Tetris Forever!
- Released
- November 12, 2024
- ESRB
- E For Everyone: Alcohol Reference, Mild Language
- Developer(s)
- Digital Eclipse
- Publisher(s)
- Digital Eclipse
- Multiplayer
- Local Multiplayer
WHERE TO PLAY
Unrivaled after four decades, Tetris Forever celebrates the original, genre-inspiring puzzle game that escaped from behind the Iron Curtain, onto the world stage, and into our cultural consciousness!
More than 15 playable classic games from the series' history are featured, including many being released for the first time outside Japan. Battle your friends in the multiplayer cult favorite Tetris Battle Gaiden, create massive explosions to clear lines in Super Bombliss, and see where it all began in 1984 with an accurate recreation of the first version of Tetris on the Electronika 60 computer.
As the next release in Digital Eclipse's acclaimed Gold Master Series, Tetris Forever includes more than an hour of all-new documentary featurettes exploring the lifelong friendship and creative partnership between Tetris creator Alexey Pajitnov and The Tetris Company founder Henk Rogers, as they share the extraordinary but true story about Tetris that you never knew.
And as this celebration wouldn’t be complete without an all-new Tetris experience, prepare to enter the… Tetris Time Warp! Up to four players will "warp" between different eras of Tetris in real time to experience a variety of classic graphic styles and play mechanics!
In a world where games come and go – Tetris is Forever!
- Number of Players
- 1-4
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Unknown
- PC Release Date
- November 12, 2024
- Xbox Series X|S Release Date
- November 12, 2024
- PS5 Release Date
- November 12, 2024
- Nintendo Switch Release Date
- November 12, 2024
- Platform(s)
- Steam, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
- Genre(s)
- Puzzle
- X|S Optimized
- Yes
