The "Help Me" Thread: Ask Quick Questions Here!

[caffeine]

There are no wrong questions! However, try to keep it Tetris-related. (That's what we know best)

This thread is mostly for simple and quick questions. For more in-depth Tetris-related subjects, a new topic might be more appropriate. If you're not sure, post here anyway![/li]

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Where's a good place to start learning how to improve in Tetris?
A: Check out

the Tetris wiki or the "Useful topics and threads" thread.

Q: What does [insert Tetris term here] mean?
A: Check out the glossary of Tetris terms. If it's not there, please ask in this thread so we'll know to add it into the glossary!

Q: Does anyone offer 1 on 1 coaching lessons?
A: Post a request here, and someone might be available to help you.

Q: What kind of keyboard layout do the best players use?
A: Take a gander at the keyboard controls thread.

Q: How do I find more content related to my question?
A: The search function is very helpful.[/li][/list]Message to those who answer questions:

• Your help is very much appreciated. Thank you!
• Anyone can answer questions.
• "Just practice some more" is not allowed!
• The best answers exhibit evidence, reasoning, and personal accounts of past experiences.

[yotipo91]

Help me! I want to improve my multiplayer skills. My request may sound vague, but I'm sure there are a few tips that you can help me with.

This is my Tetris Online Poland graph
[!--ImageUrlBegin--][a href=\\\"http://puu.sh/4NbGm.jpg\\\" target=\\\"_new\\\"][!--ImageUrlEBegin--][img width=\\\"400\\\" class=\\\"attach\\\" src=\\\"http://puu.sh/4NbGm.jpg\\\" border=\\\'0\\\' alt=\\\"IPB Image\\\" /][!--ImageUrlEnd--][/a][!--ImageUrlEEnd--]


I prefer TKI or TSpin Mini openers, I think I downstack fairly efficiently, but it still baffles me that some players can average 80+ APM. Is there a certain field I can focus on training to achieve a greater APM? I think I'm known for being aggressive, but also hesitant when a clear DS solution is unavailable.

I want to improve my attack/speed ratio. I'm currently at 1.096. I see other players on TOP with upwards of 1.2 and 1.5
[!--ImageUrlBegin--][a href=\\\"http://puu.sh/4NbS8.jpg\\\" target=\\\"_new\\\"][!--ImageUrlEBegin--][img width=\\\"400\\\" class=\\\"attach\\\" src=\\\"http://puu.sh/4NbS8.jpg\\\" border=\\\'0\\\' alt=\\\"IPB Image\\\" /][!--ImageUrlEnd--][/a][!--ImageUrlEEnd--]

[!--ImageUrlBegin--][a href=\\\"http://puu.sh/4NbTQ.jpg\\\" target=\\\"_new\\\"][!--ImageUrlEBegin--][img width=\\\"400\\\" class=\\\"attach\\\" src=\\\"http://puu.sh/4NbTQ.jpg\\\" border=\\\'0\\\' alt=\\\"IPB Image\\\" /][!--ImageUrlEnd--][/a][!--ImageUrlEEnd--]


I figured that it's mostly my decisions that will help me become a more confident, and higher-attacking player, and once I'm certain of the decisions I want to make and how I should react, at that point I can start to go faster. In short, how should a 50 APM average  TOP player practice to begin hitting 60 APM average?

[ohitsstef]

Quick solution: You can ask woj to reset your chart. Then see how your chart looks like now, because the TOP chart takes an average of all of your games. If you didn't play well at first it affects your chart.. even if you play well now.

[poopmo]

You clearly need to do more B2B's. A simple way to do this is to try and get into situations like this;

http://harddrop.com/fumen/?m110@adB3kbD3ib...3gbI3gbF3pb?A4G

the tetris set up might come from your garbage, but could also be something you build. What really helps is to stack for tetrises in the middle (not dead center, just not on the sides), because they always give the option of building a t-spin on top. Once you have this down you just have to pay attention to saving up your pieces, keep holding your T piece till you get your stick (or vice versa) and then do a quick B2B. This might seem basic but its what really pushed me to +70apm where before I could only get 65-68. My stats on TOP now are 49lpm-75apm.

[Master]

here is my keyboard settings
Left/Right: Left/Right
Soft Drop: down
Hard Drop: space bar
Rotate Left: Ctrl
Rotate Right: Up
Hold : shift
CAN SOMEONE TELL ME IF I SHOULD CHANGE MY KEYBOARD SETTINGS ?  
(current sprint time : 27.33 in nullpomino )
(here is a picture of my keyboard )
[attachmentid=487]

[caffeine]

CAN SOMEONE TELL ME IF I SHOULD CHANGE MY KEYBOARD SETTINGS ?  

Why do you think you need to? If you want to play faster, I do not believe it will help you. There are plenty of world class 40 liners who use similar controls as yours. In my opinion, the only real reason to change your keys is if you're concerned about ergonomics, RSI, etc. (And people should be concerned about that stuff!) If your hands hurt, and you're already practicing proper typing ergonomics, then your key bindings might be to blame. If so, the Tetris Controls thread would be a good start.

[UJS3]

I heard keeping the rightmost column open for tetrises in 40L is better than the left side, can anyone explain?

[yotipo91]

I heard keeping the rightmost column open for tetrises in 40L is better than the left side, can anyone explain?

The general idea is that since 5 of 7 tetrominos are 3 wide pieces which spawn favoring the left side of the field, it's more efficient to stack towards the left, shaving off a few double keytaps in ideal circumstances assuming you're adept with finesse.

[fumen]v110@7eHWOWaAFLDmClcJSAVDEHBEooRBKoAVBaH8LCzOBA?AUcBTSBSNBRDBX5AV0AAAA[/fumen]

@Poopmo, thanks for the tips. I'll be sure to focus on that a bit more.

[UJS3]

Thanks! When I have the time, I think I'll play a sprint game and compare the number of keypresses with the mirrored version.

[MarioThePhenom]

I heard keeping the rightmost column open for tetrises in 40L is better than the left side, can anyone explain?

[!--quoteo--][div class=\\\'quotetop\\\']QUOTE[/div][div class=\\\'quotemain\\\'][!--quotec--]The general idea is that since 5 of 7 tetrominos are 3 wide pieces which spawn favoring the left side of the field, it's more efficient to stack towards the left, shaving off a few double keytaps in ideal circumstances assuming you're adept with finesse.[/quote]

i believe i read somewhere that the difference is tiny, nothing to awe over. imo, the reason we keep the hole on the right is cause we read left to right so its natural, but that doesn't hold true for every language

either way left stacker 4 life

[caffeine]

In the past, players would use whatever side the I-piece rotated to in the vertical position. (Column 5 = left side, column 6 = right). This made the I-piece's journey that much shorter to the tetrising column. This could really help as the game speeded up.

Nowadays, games let you rotate into either column depending on which rotation button you use. All placements can be achieved with two movements or less. The "hot zones" that tend to require more key presses on average are those one or two columns away from the sides.
[fumen]110@pb0lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp?0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQ?p0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1l?Qp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1?lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp1lQp0lmz0lRp?1lQp0lmz0lRp0lpbA4G[/fumen]

It may be the case that Tetrising on the left might theoretically save key presses. The reason I say that is due to column 8. Columns 2 and 9 are hot zones because they almost always require two movements (mostly autorepeat to the wall + once back). However, which side you stack on doesn't matter since you'll have that problem on one side either way you go.

Columns 3 and 8 lack the same type of symmetry. Pieces spawn closer to 3, so you can get there with one key press instead of two. You might point out how pieces spawn closer to 2 than 9, but that doesn't matter as much when you have to autorepeat to the wall for both cases and are forced into two movements.

So, the reason I think Tetrising on the left side might save keys is due to how it allows column 10 placements other than the vertical I-piece. You can stack 3-wide pieces horizontally there with one movement (autorepeat to the wall). As a result, you're getting minos on column 8 without needing as many key presses. This might happen naturally, or it might not have much of an effect at all. In any case, I think the difference would be very small.

[Flatlandr]

Hello everyone. I am new to the Tetris community, but I was wondering if  anyone has ever created a Tetris game in which the boards are non-rectangular? (not all columns are of even height).


This journal made me think that it might be interesting to play in other well-sizes.
http://euclid.trentu.ca/aejm/V4N1/Tsuruda.V4N1.pdf


If not, would programming a version of variant tetris provide any challenges not found in programming a regular tetris variant? I am quite curious, but lack much programming experience.

[Integration]

Hello everyone. I am new to the Tetris community, but I was wondering if  anyone has ever created a Tetris game in which the boards are non-rectangular? (not all columns are of even height).

You mean unclearable minos/squares/blocks at the bottom? If a line is completed, all minos but the unclearable ones disappear? I've never seen that. The problem is that if you stay at the bottom, then you could fill a line with less pieces. So it is not suited for multiplayer. For singleplayer I could imagine a usage though:

[fumen]110@JeA3nbB3nbC3lbD3lbB3pbA4G[/fumen]

It's easier to make sidestacked Tetrises (Tetris column on the wall). However, if you have unclearable minos on the wall, you must stack higher to make sidestacked Tetrises. This gives you more pressure under high gravity. You could also force people to make midstacked Tetrises by making them score higher than sidestacked Tetrises.

Another usage is to choose an uneven number of unclearable minos. Normally, the number of minos is always even in a mode without garbage or maps (sidestacked 4-wide with 3 residue is a technique based on that). With an uneven number of unclearable minos the total number of minos in a matrix would switch between even and uneven.

If not, would programming a version of variant tetris provide any challenges not found in programming a regular tetris variant? I am quite curious, but lack much programming experience.

There are other ways to vary Tetris. Hold/ no hold, randomizer, number of previews, enter garbage lines from time to time etc. Some games don't even use 10 columns. For example Tetrinet and Blockles did use 12 columns; Tetris Monster RPG and Dream of Pixels use 8 columns, NullpoMino Big Mode use 5 columns. I think 9-11 columns are ideal. Less columns means less options/less depths; more columns makes stacking without holes too easy.

[Antifate]

here is my keyboard settings
Left/Right: Left/Right
Soft Drop: down
Hard Drop: space bar
Rotate Left: Ctrl
Rotate Right: Up
Hold : shift
CAN SOMEONE TELL ME IF I SHOULD CHANGE MY KEYBOARD SETTINGS ?  
(current sprint time : 27.33 in nullpomino )
(here is a picture of my keyboard )
[attachmentid=487]

I have to say that I find your layout quite awkward. Maybe you have monster hands, but I would rearrange what your left hand is doing. Hitting ctrl/shift (presumably with your pinky/ring) isn't the best especially when you also aim to hit the relatively distant space bar frequently (can stress your fingers). Similarly, having rotate above soft drop (both presumably hit with the middle finger) will make spins more stressful as your middle finger might need to do up to 3 consecutive actions. These issues aren't that important in pure sprinting though. But when you're doing a lot of spins/holding in multiplayer, you will be putting your fingers through some unnecessary work.

[Flatlandr]

You mean unclearable minos/squares/blocks at the bottom? If a line is completed, all minos but the unclearable ones disappear? I've never seen that. The problem is that if you stay at the bottom, then you could fill a line with less pieces. So it is not suited for multiplayer. For singleplayer I could imagine a usage though:

[fumen]110@JeA3nbB3nbC3lbD3lbB3pbA4G[/fumen]

Yes, this is exactly what i meant! Good points about the multiplayer, but I was envisioning it in single player anyways.

The scoring would be interesting to tweak with as well. I may attempt to program something this winter break, but it's been a while since I've been in a programming class so it will be a long process I am sure haha.