It was revealed just days ago that a plucky teenager by the nickname of Blue Scuti had technically beaten Tetris, becoming the first person in recorded history to do so, some 34 years after the game was released. He became the first known person to reach a ‘kill screen’, progressing so far and playing in such a way that the game’s coding crashes and prevents any further blocks from falling.
Now, just days later, two more players have secured the same achievement.
That Old Tale
There’s a story about the 4-minute mile that you might not have heard. In 1954, Roger Bannister successfully ran a four-minute mile and became the first person in recorded history to do so. For years, talented runners had been trying to smash the four-minute mark and had fallen short – but Bannister managed to hit the target against all odds.
It was just 46 days later that the record was broken, and then it was broken again, and again. It’s impossible until somebody does it, and then anybody can do it.
To kick off 2024, Blue Scuti – whose real name is Willis Gibson – defeated Tetris. At just thirteen years of age, he did what many players have been trying to do for years, forcing the game to run for so long that it hits a kill screen and prevents any further progress. Just days later, his achievement was replicated by two more players – fractal161 and P1xelAndy.
There’s one challenge outstanding, though, and, likely, it’ll never be hit. It’s the pinnacle of Tetris; the ultimate goal for master players the world over. It requires players to actively avoid all kill screens and push to level 255, whereupon the game will reset back to the base level. That’s the new challenge for these talented, dedicated players.
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