THE UNOFFICIAL GAMEBOY TETRIS HOME PAGE > THEORY > FAQ


Frequently Asked Questions





I've received numerous questions and comments about the The Unofficial Gameboy Tetris Home Page. Usually my responses are meanderingly idiotic. So, I've listed some of the most popular (or intriguing) questions here, in no particular order, along with an actual coherent response:

the questions
  1. Why another page on Tetris?
  2. Why a page specifically to Gameboy Tetris?
  3. How'd you get those Gameboy screen shots?
  4. Why isn't there any information on the '2-player' mode?
  5. What is the purpose of having a 'Vote for Your Favorite Tetrad' page?
  6. Problems with teenagers and Tetris
  7. Problems with strange interlaced lines
  8. Where can I find Tetris for my PC?
  9. Where can I find Tetris to download for my PC?
  10. When are you going to update your page again?
  11. Okay, smarty-pants, what's your high score in Gameboy Tetris?
  12. Is there a world-wide high score list?
  13. Why aren't there any Java examples of Tetris on your page?
  14. How do you get a tetrad to stop smoking?
  15. Where can I buy shoes like the ones those tetrads wear?
  16. Will there ever be a Tetris: The Movie?
  17. How the hell is this page used for "research and scholarship" purposes?! Is this some sort of an excuse to put copyrighted material on your website?
  18. Where have I seen those tetrads before?
  19. What did you use to make this site?




the answers
  • Why another page on Tetris?
  • At the time (April 1996) it seemed reasonably original; Tetris was a classic computer game already, there weren't too many (if any) sites on Gameboy games, and I wanted to attract more attention to my other websites. I searched the web for other sites to help in my research. To my surprise, few sites actually delved into the heart of Tetris; the Web was (and still is) dominated by shareware and Java clones.
    I suppose my mission statement therefore is to educate, not just present.
  • Very well. Why a page specifically to Gameboy Tetris? Aren't you alienating some of your audience?
  • It stems out of a fixed belief that Gameboy Tetris is the most popular version - the game was included with every American Gameboy from its 1989 debut until Nintendo's competitive pricing strategy in 1994. It is perhaps the only pre-1990 Gameboy game still in distribution. Most anyone who owns a Gameboy pretty much can therefore be guaranteed to own, or at least have experienced, the game.
    The aesthetics of Gameboy Tetris are also appealing. There's an undeniable elegance in the monochromatic display and the tinny stereo music soundtrack. I have played several other variations of Tetris, including the original Spectrum Holobyte version and Nintendo's Tetris 2 - but in my opinion, nothing can quite match up to the Gameboy. Plus, the 2-player version is extremely entertaining. (I actually received a bitter e-mail regarding my attacks on Welltris. But I mean, come on, it's Tetris with a well! How fun is that?!)
  • How do you get those neato Gameboy shots for your Do's and Don't's pages, etc.?
  • First you have to search the Internet for a good (preferably freeware) Gameboy emulator. Yahoo! is always a great place to start. Second, you have to search for the 'snapshot' of the Tetris cartridge. Snapshots of Gameboy games are considered illegal unless if you already own an existing physical copy of the game (the same goes for MP3s, actually.) Of course, most anyone interested in Gameboy Tetris would probably have its cartridge already.
    To get screen captures, I use the Windows 95 screen capture utility (pressing Alt + PrintScrn while playing) to place the still image of the emulator onto the clipboard. I then import it into a paint program for editing.

  • Why isn't there any information on the '2-player' mode?
  • Since the Gameboy emulator I have does not support 2-player control, currently I am unable to get screen captures of the never-ending feud between the Mario Bros. However, if there are any enterprising programmers out there who can help me in this area, they will have my extreme gratitude.
  • What is the purpose of having a 'Vote for Your Favorite Tetrad' page? I think that is the most inane concept of a poll ever!
  • There is an obvious controversy over which tetrad is the worst and which is the best - I for one did not expect such praise for the T tetrad, and am still wondering why 'Z' is so much more unpopular than 'S'. Most intriguing are the 'underdog' and 'dark-horse' candidates.

  • I have a daughter and she's starting to enter that dreaded 'phase' of teendom! Suddenly she's saying that she's too 'cool' for Gameboy Tetris!! What should I do?!
  • Don't worry. She'll come around eventually and realize that - among other things like smoking, doing drugs and excessive drinking - turning one's back on Gameboy Tetris is just plain wrong. But let her find this out on her own - the more you try to convince her otherwise, the more stubborn she'll get. It'll be painful for you, yes, but sometimes you just have to let things run their course.

  • I went to see a movie one afternoon. It was a hot day, and I left my Gameboy in the glove compartment so it would be in the shade or something. I took it out after the movie, and the Gameboy was burning hot! And now there are these weird vertical lines on the edges of the screen. Help me!!
  • Ah yes: the blight of any Gameboy Tetris'er. Strange interlaced lines. I know of no cure, but perhaps as a preventative measure, you could keep a small ice chest (with no ice, but at room temperature) in your car at all times. Or leave your Gameboy at home. Heh.






  • How do you get a tetrad to stop smoking?
  • Surprisingly enough, tetrads can go cold turkey. Just lock him/her up in a hope chest or something for a little while. After a while, the little fella won't put up much of a fuss for cigarettes. Just remember that those nicotine transdermal patches were made for humans, who weigh, like, many, many times more than tetrads; one of those patches will overload their system but fast.

  • Where can I buy shoes like the ones those tetrads wear?
  • I have no idea. I think those shoes are from The Transformers or something.

  • Will there ever be a Tetris: The Movie?
  • One can only hope. But if it will ever be produced, I'm assuming it'll be live-action of course, take place during the Cuban Missile Crisis, and will feature a special task force headed by a group of seven spunky, yet highly individualized, tetrads. Or the tetrads could cameo in a Cheech & Chong sequel (or, I'm sure, at least one of them could play Chong himself.)

  • How the hell is this page used for "research and scholarship" purposes?! Is this some sort of an excuse to put copyrighted material on your website?
  • Glad you asked. I actually received e-mail from a man teaching a computer game class a few months back, saying my page was incorporated into his course material. So I am changing the educational world with The Unofficial Gameboy Tetris Home PageÖ for the better I hope.

  • Where have I seen those cute little tetrads before?
  • Well, to be honest, the very first clay-like tetrad characterizations were from a very old issue of Nintendo Power. Then I gave them the human arms, legs, and gloves (like the M&M guys) and shoes from The Transformers, occasionally with costumes reminiscent of McDonalds' McNugget Buddies. So yeah, you might've seen 'em before - a lot!

  • What did you use to make this site?
  • Mostly Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator for the graphics, typography, and animations; Microsoft Notepad for the HTMLing; Microsoft GIF Animator for the GIF building; Virtual Gameboy for DOS for screen captures; and Cakewalk Home Studio for the MIDI sequencing. There might've been others here and there.




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Brian Kobashikawa
Last updated: 10 April 1998