Tetris is a puzzle game created by Soviet computer scientist Alexey Pajitnov in 1984 or 1985. Nobody seems to know, not even the creator himself. What we do know is that its very, very good.

I'm not sure it's necessary to explain Tetris' gameplay but I will anyway: Blocks fall from the top of the screen into a play field. Players are tasked with neatly arranging these blocks into horizontal lines. Creating a horizontal line erases every block in its row. The object of the game is to create as many lines as possible before the blocks overwhelm you and fill the screen. If even one block settles at the top of the screen, it’s game over. If you're reading something like this, I'm certain you already know that. Still, it doesn't hurt to be thorough.

Prior to this Game Boy release, Pajitnov’s Tetris was gaining popularity among computer owners globally. People loved it. So much so that it was the basis of a major rights dispute. Turns out the Soviets didn’t understand how intellectual property worked. With the eventual release of the Game Boy version, Tetris was no longer confined to office computers and arcades. Now, anyone could play it anywhere.

As a Game Boy game, Tetris plays into every one of the consoles strengths. It's a pick up and play game that anyone can learn in a matter of moments. Furthermore, it's visual language is simple enough that any screen size will suit it. It isn't in color, but neither was the original Electronika 60 version.

I’ve always had this theory that Tetris was the game that taught developers how to make a portable game. Go look at the Game Gear library for a second. It’s rife with console games that were hastily downsized with zero regard for quality. Then there’s stuff like Electro Cop for Atari Lynx. That wouldn’t even work on consoles, let alone a handheld. Looking back, it’s clear that this wasn’t as intuitive for developers as you’d think it would be. It goes to show how we take common knowledge for granted. Nintendo themselves looked as though they’d fall into the same traps their competitors did. Sure, they put extra care into them by comparison, but you can tell that they weren’t quite over the line yet.

However, Nintendo also understood the appeal of portable Tetris and fought very hard to gain the rights to create it. The negotiations Nintendo, BPS, and others made with the Russian government are now the subject of documentaries and movies. They were that intense. Even with as hard as they fought, I don’t think Nintendo or BPS knew exactly how important Tetris would turn out to be. I can definitively say that without this single piece of software, the landscape of all video games would be different. How could they have possibly known that Tetris for Game Boy would fundamentally change the world? I suppose you can’t. You can predict that something will succeed. You can’t predict that something will be more culturally impactful than the moon landing.

Alexey Pajitnov, with Nintendo and BPS’ help, defined handheld gaming. Developers saw how popular Tetris was and chose to adopt its design philosophy. Of course, this was with varying degrees of success. Game Boy was less about direct translations and more about “how can we make this fun on the go?” and I believe playing Tetris gave developers the foresight to begin thinking that way. Nothing of Game Boy’s eventual magnitude happens overnight. Tetris laid the foundation in so many four block pieces.