In a gaming feat that has stunned the gaming community, 13-year-old Willis Gibson, known as “blue scuti” in the gaming world, has become the first player ever to officially “beat” the original Nintendo version of the iconic falling-block video game Tetris—by breaking it.
Gibson’s remarkable achievement occurred on December 21 when he reached what gamers call a “kill screen,” a point where the Tetris code glitches, crashing the game. While achieving a high score is usually the pinnacle in gaming, reaching a “kill screen” is a coveted accomplishment in the gaming world. It involves pushing the hardware and software to their limits and beyond.
The original Tetris developers had never anticipated players pushing the game’s limits so aggressively, leading to bizarre quirks at higher levels. As players progressed, they encountered issues with the game’s color palette, random color combinations, and challenging patterns, making it harder to distinguish blocks from the background. The game became more challenging, with levels running 40 minutes or more.
Tetris Game Play
Willis Gibson’s extraordinary achievement marks a turning point in the history of Tetris. The 13-year-old triggered a kill screen on Level 157, surpassing all previous records and demonstrating an unparalleled mastery of the game. Tetris CEO Maya Rogers congratulated Gibson on this “extraordinary accomplishment,” emphasizing its significance as Tetris approaches its 40th anniversary.
Early on, Tetris players struggled to reach higher levels, with techniques like “hypertapping” allowing them to reach Level 35 by 2018. In 2020, a gamer combined a multifinger technique with a finger positioned on the bottom of the controller, known as “rolling,” reaching Level 95. However, obstacles continued to arise, such as issues with the color palette and challenging patterns like “Dusk” and “Charcoal.”
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A Tetris-playing AI program called StackRabbit made significant strides, reaching Level 237 before crashing the game. While StackRabbit ran on a modified version of Tetris, its achievements inspired human players to map possible scenarios leading to game-ending glitches. This collective effort, driven by StackRabbit’s experience, resulted in a comprehensive spreadsheet detailing the conditions likely to cause a crash.
Willis Gibson, motivated by the insights gained from StackRabbit’s experience, embarked on his record-breaking run. His livestream video captures the moment of triumph and disbelief when he crashed the game at Level 157. Viewers witness his genuine shock and excitement, highlighting the intensity and unpredictability of this gaming achievement.
