The History of Puzzle Games


Pre-Tetris (1976-1987)
Tetris (1988)
Post-Tetris (1989-1995)
Beyond Tetris (1996-Present)
The Ten Best Puzzle Games
Table of Contents
Beyond Tetris (1995-Present)

As video-game systems grew more advanced in the second half of the '90s, puzzle games stayed firmly rooted in the past. With a few notable exceptions, like Intelligent Qube, Mario's Picross, and Devil Dice, the genre has been dominated by Tetris and Bust-A-Move variations and sequels.

 
Edtris 2600 cartridge.
 
Edtris 2600 title screen.
 
Edtris 2600 gameplay.
Edtris 2600/Tetris26
Released: 1995/1997
Systems: Atari 2600

While these two games are not official Tetris releases, they are worth mentioning because they are "home-brewed" versions of Tetris created by individuals without any game company affiliation. Edtris 2600 was designed by Ed Federmeyer, and Tetris26 was designed by Colin Hughes. While Edtris 2600 is definitely the more polished of the two, both games are faithful adaptations, and they illustrate that Tetris is at home on any system, even one that is over 20 years old!

Edtris 2600 can be purchased as a cartridge from Randy Crihfield [randyc@east.sun.com]. Tetris26 is available for download as a ROM image for use with Atari 2600 emulators.


Kirby's Avalanche
 
Are those beans, blobs, or what?
 
Title screen.
Released: 1995
Systems: SNES

For some reason, Nintendo got Compile, the company behind Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, to retrofit that game with characters from Kirby's Dreamworld. So, what we end up with is Kirby's Avalanche, a puzzle game that plays exactly like DRMBM, right down to the layout of the game screens and the structure of the battles. Strange, huh? The explanation is that both games are based on Puyo Puyo, a Japanese puzzle game that has yet to make to the US.

The only real difference between the two US-released games is that Kirby is a much better mascot than Dr. Robotnik, so the edge goes to Kirby's Avalanche.

Next: Now show me Mario's Picross>