Tetris Effect (PS4)

[Okey_Dokey]

This post is only slightly related to Tetris Effect. Tetris Effect introduces names for clearing a huge amount of lines during the Zone mechanics. Decahexatris is the highest goal which stands for clearing at least 16 lines at once. However, clearing 16 lines at once was also possible in some prior games through other mechanics, like cascade, avalanche (clearing 16 lines with one piece placement) or scanner (accumulating 16 lines over a few pieces, completed lines are not removed immediately). Jump to 1:11, 3:04, 5:50, 9:05, 10:00, 10:55 in the video to see some pseudo Decahexatrises. Also see the video description for further examples.

Some people have already made some games dedicated to the Zone mechanics. Most prominently, Oshisaure did such a mod for NullpoMino.  Jump to 10:00 in the video to see him doing the full 20 lines (Decahexatris is not that hard to do with a 2 wide). See video description for a download.

[Okey_Dokey]

Tetris Effect will come out on PS4 & PSVR on November 9th. Prize is 40$. You can pre-order it and get 10 % discount as well as some bonuses (soundtrack, PS4 avatars, PS4 background animation).

The Tetris Effect developers used Classic Tetris World Championship to promote their upcoming game, having a small side tournament and showing a mode that was never seen before. First match is between kitaru and suitou_greentea (you may know him from Puyo Tetris but he is apperantly also good at NES Tetris & TGM). The goal is to complete the 6 levels with the highest score possible. Thus T-Spins and B2B are mandatory, as well as clearing 16+ lines when in the "Zone". Mode is played on Hard difficulty, thus pretty high starting gravity. Second match is between Kevin_DDR and suitou_greentea. Goal is to clear 150 lines as fast as possible but strange things happen while happening (playing upside down, giant tetrominos, tetraminoes with a missing block, bombs that clear all blocks in a column),

Currently, the video is only avaible on Twitch, so it may be gone in 2 weeks.

• talk starts here
• first match starts here
• first match is continued here
• second match starts here

edit:

[XaeL]

Oh wow i didnt realise that greentea was from PPT! I thought they were two different people.
Nice links to the twich videos - maybe mirror it or ask CTWC to?

[Okey_Dokey]

Tetris Effect demo for PS4 / PSVR will come out November 1st and is only playable until morning of November 5th. It's mentioned in the following Game Informer podcast at 2h36min20sec. The Interview basically starts at 1h51min10sec:

[Okey_Dokey]

Every Mode In Tetris Effect (non-marathon stages starting at 18 minutes in the video):

It's confirmed now that Tetris Effect will be a Tetris game for casuals only. I am very disappointed. There's not a single mode I (as an experienced Tetris player) would want to play.

edit: a similar video

[SmartS101]

I got to play the demo on my buddy's account during lunch. (I don't have a PS4.) My biggest problem is not being able to change the controls. I usually use "up" as rotate clockwise, and having up be hard drop really throws a wrench in my stacking. I also wish the rotates were Circle and X instead of X and Square because that's how my thumb rests on the controller.

[simonlc]

I got to play the demo on my buddy's account during lunch. (I don't have a PS4.) My biggest problem is not being able to change the controls. I usually use "up" as rotate clockwise, and having up be hard drop really throws a wrench in my stacking. I also wish the rotates were Circle and X instead of X and Square because that's how my thumb rests on the controller.

Welcome to console gaming.

[SmartS101]

CoD:6 let me choose between a few control setups. Which was nice because the defaults for 360 and PS3 were different.

I played a third game of endless marathon on a different friend's account. Now being more used to the controls, I obviously did much better. I set gravity to max so I didn't have to worry about about ever trying to hard drop a piece. The DAS is a little lower than I want it to be for the gravity, but the one feature they really should add is have the stage rotate every 20 or 30 minutes. The particle effects are crazy enough that a full swap to a different stage wouldn't be nearly as bad as it would on a normal Tetris game, and because entire songs don't loop (just the last 2-4 minutes) means that I don't really want to be listening to any of those song endings for multiple hours at a time.

[myndzi]

So, I was framestepping some TE journey mode videos to analyze scoring and such, here's some notes:

- There seems to be no level multiplier
- Single = 100
- Double = 300
- Triple = 500
- Tetris = 800; b2b tetris = 1200
- Mini T-spins = 0; this includes EZ-T and the first TSD of a STSD setup. Not sure on mini rules.
- TSS = ?; B2B TSS = 1150?
- TSD = 1200; B2B TSD = 1800
- TST = 1600; B2B TST = 2400
- T-spin minis net 0 points, but T-spins that don't clear lines do net points:
- Non-clearing mini single = 100
- Non-clearing TSD = 400
- Combos = 50*N for "N combo"
- Perfect clear = 1500
- Push down points = 1 per row
- Harddrop points = 40 - (time taken)?
- Zone = 100 * lines cleared. Even "Ultimatris" doesn't have any special bonus, it's just 2000 points.
- Zone doesn't seem to break B2B or reward any points other than harddrop/push down points

T-spins seem to be ~600 per line cleared, with an extra 600 for B2B, but the numbers don't line up nicely so I'm suspicious that maybe some combo points snuck in before I realized combos gave rewards

An 18 combo would be 7650 combo points, or 425 points per line. If they were all singles, that's 525 points per line (+100 for singles) plus harddrop points. Not quite spin rewards and high risk.

- You get a notch towards the zone meter every 10 lines. Since there are 48 levels per clear, you get zone meter in level 1 at 10, 20, 30, and 40; you get zone meter in level 2 at 2, 12, 22, 32, 42, etc.
- Zone ends with full lockout death or a collision at spawn. Since there's no ARE it can be hard to tell why zone ended early. Here are some gotchas:
-- If you clear a line that looks safe, but the stack moves up under you into the spawn area, it will end
-- There is no gravity in Zone, but there is lock delay. If a piece spawns touching the stack, it can lock and end zone early.
-- You can stack pieces partly out of the matrix in Zone, though I have reports of at least some zone ends with minos inside the matrix that need verification. Fully out of bounds is an end, though.

Given the relatively small point value of huge Zone clears, it's better to take 4 zones of one notch each than 1 zone of 4 notches. It's pretty easy to maximize your gains here since you can stack up at no penalty before entering zone mode, most important is probably ending cleanly in a way you can make more T-spins from.

Based on my observations so far, the main contribution of Zone mode to points is a minor bonus plus the fact that your clears don't count towards ending the level. However, it is an extra t-spin's worth of points and an opportunity to clean up your stack. So, optimal play may look something like "maximize points per line until you get zone meter, then stack all the way up and clean everything as best you can, then do it again". B2B is super valuable.

Best points per line seems to be (non-mini!) t-spins. Haven't found a TSS or non-b2b TST yet; it seems like the b2b bonus is worth more for fewer lines, so technically a spin single is probably most efficient but most difficult to maintain. Luckily, we have Zone to clean up with -- but can someone make 10 tsts and then clear a bunch of lines quick enough to clean everything in the amount of time left for 1 zone notch? That seems like it would be quite optimal! 10 b2b TSS -> high zone -> repeat would be a thing for sure.

(Oh, and don't forget that you can overclear a level, so getting up to one line away and then doing some big point value clear will get the most out of each level)

[myndzi]

Oh, I also saw a TSD net 400 points without clearing any lines at all. That does remind me that I had observed this at CTWC too, not sure if it's a bug or intentional. Really weird that a non-clearing t-spin scores points, but a clearing t-spin that gets counted as a mini scores 0. You could probably inflate your points by doing excessive T-spins when stacking up for Zone or something like that.

Also unexplained: 3-combo PC for about 3000 points

[Okey_Dokey]

Bug reports:

• STSD and Fin TSD (fumen) only count as a T-Spin Minis. I guess it's not a change in the guideline but rather the game misses the "2 rows down and 1 column to the side kick equals regular T-Spin" condition.
• T-Spin Mini Double doesn't score any points. It should score 400 points (100 points more than a regular Double) or 600 points if back to back bonus (+ 50 % points).
• Game crashes when pausing and exiting during line clear delay. Those crashes can delete your progress from time to time (the game loses track of your local high scores (not leaderboard) and your settings).
• When exiting during Zone effect and restarting the level, certain sounds are quieter until reentering the Zone.
• My standard PS4 is at limit on the Effect modes main screen (the fan becomes loud; I mean the screen showing the glowing Zen person)

How the Zone works in Journey mode:

• The zone meter increases by a quarter circle every 10 lines in expert difficulty, every 8 lines in normal difficulty, and every 7 lines in beginner difficulty. Let's say you play on expert and you have cleared 19 lines, then the zone meter is at a quarter circle. When starting the zone, the meter will go down from a quarter to zero. Lines cleared in the zone will not affect the amount of cleared lines in the level, which is still 19. Clearing only 1 line after coming out of the zone will get the zone meter back to a quarter (because 20 cleared lines in total). Let's say a level ends after 30 lines but you finish with a Tetris clearing 33 lines in total, then those 3 surplus lines will count towards filling the meter.
• At the end of the zone, a player is rewarded 2 different scores: one for the quality of line clears (including some multiplicators) and one for the amount of cleared lines (100 * #lines). Latter barely matters.
• Quality of line clears: In the zone, a line clear scores as many points as outside of the zone but multiplied with a certain factor. This factor depends on 2 things: a) was the zone meter maxed out (full circle) when starting the zone, b) how many lines were cleared in total when that line clear happened (the lines from the clear also count). The multiplicator is also used for drop points. Those are the possible scenarios:
  • full zone meter, 8 or more cleared lines: multiplier = 3
  • full zone meter, less than 8 cleared lines: multiplier = 2
  • partial zone meter,  8 or more cleared lines: multiplier = 2
  • partial zone meter, less than 8 cleared lines: multiplier = 1
• Example 1: A player scores 2 Tetrises with initial back-to-back bonus but without a combo. A b2b Tetris usually scores 1200 points. When the zone meter is maxed out, then the first Tetris scores 2400 points (multiplier = 2) and the second Tetris scores 3600 points (multiplier), thus 6000 points in total. When the zone meter is only 1 to 3 quarters of the circle, then the first Tetris scores 1200 points (multiplier = 1) and the second Tetris scores (2400 points), thus 3600 points in total. In both cases, you also get another 800 points for the 8 cleared lines.
• Example 2: A player scores 10 consecutive line clears (9 combo) consisting only of singles (4 wide). The first 7 clears of a combo usually score 100 x 7 + 50 x (0+1+2+3+4+5+6) = 1750 points. The last 3 clears of said combo usually score 100 x 3 + 50 x (7+8+9) = 1500 points. If the zone meter is maxed out, then the whole combo scores 2 x 1750 + 3 x 1500 = 8000 points. If the zone meter wasn't maxed out, then the whole combo scores 1 x 1750 + 2 x 1500 = 4750 points

Conclusion #1: Never fill the Zone to 3 quarters and then start the Zone because you get smaller multipliers compared to a maxed out Zone. If you fill your meter to the half twice, you can theoretically score a little higher than by completely filling it once. Filling the Zone to only one quarter is probably the most effective way to score points for fast players. If so, I would try to start with 2 Tetrises to get the bigger multiplier for every line clear except the first Tetris. Maybe follow up with T-Spin Double if you have the time or make a small combo afterwards. You mustn't necessarily clear 16+ lines, if you get some high-quality line clears instead.

Conclusion #2: Infinite TST and ZT stacking are ineffective ways to play Journey mode as they don't give you the means to clear a high amount of lines when in the Zone. A better way to score high is freestyling: Your Tetris column is pretty much in the center (5-4 , 6-3, 7-2 stacking), you clear as many T-Spin Doubles as possible outside the Zone (try to avoid Tetrises). When your Zone meter is a quarter filled, then set up a T-slot at height 9 (or higher) and start the Zone with an I piece: You should get 2 Tetrises a T-Spin Double (if possible with the 2 x multiplier) plus a small combo.

To illustrate conclusion #2, the first video below shows me using infinite TST and the second video shows the current record by Wumbo. Wumbo uses freestyle, starts the Zone with a quarter circle and gets Perfectrises (17 to 19 cleared lines) all the time. I try different things: starting the Zone with only a quarter filled. In this case, I usually get 2 T-Spin Triples at maximum in the Zone (thus no multiplier). In the beginning, I also try to stack one or two Tetrises on the top to reach a higher multiplier for the Zone T-Spin Triples  - but this is very risky with a high chance of me failing completely. I also tried to use a maxed out Zone. This can pay off, if I can get 4 T-Spin Triples (maybe also another T-Spin Double), but again chance is high that I don't have enough space. There's also the possibility that I clear all T-Spin Triples and try to set up a big combo in this case but if I fail the combo, I won't get any points at all. I've played another game afterwards (video) where I used infite TST much less. At the end I scored higher. I've never practiced 5-4 stacking or whatever but still this works better for me than Infinite TST.

Tetris Effect has no multiplayer but it has a leaderboard - which is nice. There's a leaderboard for each difficulty of Journey mode and there's a leaderboard for each Effect mode. And there's a leaderboard for the best Zone performance - sorted primary by amount of cleared lines and secondary by score achieved. To get the top spot in the Zone leaderboard, players would have to set up a 4 wide and get an Ultimatris (20 cleared lines). Under circumstances, a 21 lines Zone is also possible (see this fumen).

Other notes:

• Game has no adjustable controls which is bad for PC players. However, there're options to buffer your hold & rotation keystrokes (I only use hold but that works fine). The game is pretty responsive - I can move quickly to the side with DAS and I often end up in the desired column when skillstopping.
• Tetris Effect hasn't really any speed-runnable modes. Of course, there are 40 lines sprint and that 300 lines (?) master mode but otherwise it's usually about getting the highest score possible (which only has some depth because of the leaderboard). For example, there's no goal marathon (like Tetris Friends) where you can reach the goal faster with T-Spins. So, if you want to speedrun any mode, you leave a column open on the wall and score some Tetrises which is pretty boring.
• Mistery mode is very luck-heavy. There's even a positive effect which doubles your gained points. However, usually you set up a T-Spin and then something bad happens. There's only one effect which can push you towards the top and that's the one which makes you play upside-down Tetris. If you have got self-made garbage, then bombs can become dangerous, too (otherwise you just defuse them).
• Another Wumbo video (2 PCs, one big 4 wide combo, one Ultimatris):
  

[myndzi]

Thanks for the more direct detail hunting  I guess I shouldn't have trusted the reported score, in that last video the score clearly jumps from ~3200 to  ~3950 even though it only says +2000 ��

During Zone the points only seem to go up by drop points, but I guess all the other factors you describe get added when zone ends, without any real way to clearly attribute them. At least it doesn't seem as dire as "oh, you just get 100 points per line".

I'm not sure how you arrive at the TSD things being certain bugs though... for all we know that could just be changes to the guideline (how minis are interpreted, etc.)

Not sure I agree with conclusion 2 -- you can enter zone whenever you want, it's not like you have to start clearing from your position when you bump the zone meter? All you have to do is stack up...

(TST is clearly not beneficial though, TSD is more effective points-per-line, and unless I mistook my count by a lot, TSS is even better)

[Okey_Dokey]

Not sure I agree with conclusion 2 -- you can enter zone whenever you want, it's not like you have to start clearing from your position when you bump the zone meter? All you have to do is stack up...

I meant staying in the looping technique the whole time. In my current journey highscore, I also used Triple Towers 2 or 3 times, then got rid of the overhang with a L or T piece, and finally left the column empty on the wall to start the zone with 2 easy Tetrises. That said, once you've dismissed the loop, it's not that easy to get back into the technique; you probably have to skim one or two lines. Getting back into ST / ZT stacking is even much harder. However, ZT stacking has the advantage that it works excellently under high gravity. It's hard to set up a T-Spin Double in the middle, once the pieces fall down faster than 1 column per frame.

(TST is clearly not beneficial though, TSD is more effective points-per-line, and unless I mistook my count by a lot, TSS is even better)

Yes, a T-Spin Single scores as many points as a Tetris (800 points without b2b bonus). Thus T-Spin Singles are 4 times as score-effective as Tetrises (points per cleared line), whereas T-Spin Doubles are 3 times as effective (1200 points without b2b) and T-Spin Triples are 2.67 times as effective (1600 points without b2b).

[myndzi]

When you say it's hard to get back into the ST loop, do you mean cleanly or at all? Like, is it a stack shape/arrangement/bag sequence thing? or just hard to establish the base to build on? I've never really practiced ST stacking but it seems like you could just leave the field at whatever you want and then just stack over it.

Thanks for the clarification on TSS scoring, too

[Okey_Dokey]

When you say it's hard to get back into the ST loop, do you mean cleanly or at all? Like, is it a stack shape/arrangement/bag sequence thing? or just hard to establish the base to build on?

I meant it's hard to get back into the loop cleanly. It depends on how the left side of your playfield looks like. Sometimes, you can get back directly. Sometimes, you can use T-Spin techniques like DT Cannon or King Crimson with S piece overhang (note that some techniques will result in the reversed build where you must pay attention to J pieces instead of L). In most other cases, you have to burn a few lines to shape your left side in the right way. Infinite TST is loosely connected to 4-wide with 3 residuals, so burning lines works best if you've got 3 or 7 filled cells in the 4 left-most columns.

It's not a bag sequence / stack shape thing and parity doesn't play a role either. Once you are in the loop, it's easy to maintain because there are several ways to skim lines, if you are too high in the matrix because of wasted T pieces: Either insert an additional S, Z or O piece in your stack to burn 2 lines, or complete some lines above your stack (latter prefarably with a Tetris). There are also some other tricks. ST stacking is harder to maintain: If you have to waste a T piece, you need to waste another T piece and that means your right side grows by about 8 rows. On the long run, Infinite TST is also a little more score-effective than any T-Spin Double technique because you don't need to make some Tetrises to prevent your stack from growing; this doesn't matter in Journey mode though because you can move the Tetrises into the Zone.