Tetris Party Deluxe (Wii) Review

Tetris is one of those games that almost everyone has had a chance to play at some point in their lives. Whether it be the version that was packed in with the original dot matrix Game Boy all those years ago or a cheaper, much more available flash version over the internet. It’s a fact that the game has been pretty widespread, and naturally you’d expect the formula to continually evolve over time. Nintendo added their own classic twists with Tetris DS, with more new and interesting ways to play the puzzle classic. Hudson Soft eventually released their own version, Tetris Party, on the WiiWare service. Fast forward a couple of years and we have Nintendo picking up Tetris Party, adding a whole lot more content to it, and releasing Tetris Party Deluxe – the first disc-based Tetris game for the Nintendo Wii.

The notion of Tetris is one that I hopefully don’t have to explain to everyone, but just to be safe, we’ll go over it quickly. Tetris involves controlling several differently shaped objects, known as tetrominos, as they descend to the bottom of a play area. The main thing players must do is make sure that the blocks create certain lines, with more lines being created yielding more points. There is a bonus known as a “Tetris” in which players can clear four lines with the placement of one block. It’s pretty simple and the simplicity is what makes it appeal to so many people.

Originally being a WiiWare game, Tetris Party Deluxe is understandably quite barebones in the graphics department. The blocks are colourful, and yet lacking, and the menus appear quite poorly on some larger TV sets. Additionally, the team has tried to jazz the game up a little bit by including lively backgrounds during the gameplay. However, not much care has gone into these and as such the visual fidelity of them is compromised. That being said, this game isn’t really all that dependent on graphical presentation – not much needs to change between the game’s original release and now, and as such not much has been changed. The implementation of Miis is a nice added feature, however for some reason they look a little bit less smooth than when used in titles such as Wii Sports and Wii Party. Their inclusion feels a bit shoehorned though, as all they do is look stressed when the player is near their end. They can be turned off too.

Tetris Party Deluxe mixes things up quite a bit by including several different modes to play Tetris. Besides standard Tetris modes, players can participate in different modes to make the experience a little bit more interesting. Beginner’s Mode inflates the blocks to a rather large and similar size, as well as reducing the playing field – this is an effective way to make the game much more approachable, especially to younger people – however those who can’t play normal Tetris probably shouldn’t even be touching a game like this one. Balance Board support is also included, and works remarkably well, although sometimes your own movements may inadvertedly stuff up a setup of blocks and will no doubt cause frustration. Still, the addition of such a feature is welcome, especially since it works so well, despite being ever so slightly gimmicky.

In addition to the standard modes and control methods, the game also has a few interesting twists on the classic gameplay style. Field Climber requires players to build a pathway for a small climbing man to the top of the playing area, while also being careful not to crush him. This is a bit more challenging due to the climber moving constantly, and is probably one of the more dynamic modes that I enjoyed. Similarly, Shadow mode requires players to fill a shadow with tetromino blocks while trying not to clear lines and thus lose progress on their built shadow – think of it as a jigsaw puzzle but with Tetris blocks. Stage Racer allows players to guide one single tetromino through a neverending “course”, rotating the block to get it through small openings and such too. Finally, Dual Spaces allows players to section off empty areas with tetrominos and earn scores depending on the empty space they section off. This game in particular reminded me of the classic Reversi, and provides even more reasons to indulge in this package – it’s not just Tetris.

Obviously, Tetris Party Deluxe, as the name would suggest, also provides players with a multitude of multiplayer options. Not only can players choose to play together to score as many points as possible, they can also work separately to create more opportunities for points, or play against each other. Playing against each other is the most intense version of the classic puzzler I’ve played, where players can earn items to slow the progress of the enemy player, and destroying lines adds them to the enemies side too, hindering their process similarly to Puyo Puyo.

Perhaps one of the most surprising elements of Tetris Party Deluxe is the support for Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, as well as the support for Wii Speak. Both are implemented quite well, and allow for playing against friends and worldwide. While waiting for a partner, or up to seven people to join you, players can practise themselves too. This is an extremely well put together touch that you really appreciate. That being said, we found quite a few people online, and the game performed phenomenally in both international and local matches online.

Tetris Party Deluxe’s soundtrack is nothing major. The menu and online lobby music is quite cheesy but cheery music that will appeal to an older generation, with a very tame remix of the classic Tetris theme playing during most matches too. It’s nice to see them including the original theme – though we’d think it’d be criminal not to.

Tetris Party Deluxe is the most complete experience available for Tetris fans and everyone else. There’s a multitude of elements for both the solo player and the group of players, and the online mode extends the replayability beyond what you would usually expect of a title of this calibre. If you’re a huge fan of puzzle games, know this: Tetris Party Deluxe will not disappoint. If you can’t really get into this kind of thing, Tetris Party Deluxe won’t do anything to change your mind.

Graphics 5.5

Rather average presentation and confusingly weird looking implementation of Miis. To be fair, graphics arent a huge deal in this kind of game, though.

Gameplay 8.0

Tetris is still as addictive and sometimes as fast-paced as it was back in the day. New modes add new and fun ways to play, although nothing will amaze you too much.

Sound 6.0

A remixed Tetris theme really brought nostalgia when playing the original version on the Game Boy, but outside of that the offerings are quite cheesy.

Tilt 9.0

A huge amount of modes, support for the Balance Board and Wii Wheel, and online playability that works perfectly makes this a well put together package that is bound to keep aficionados busy for a while.

Value 7.5

Despite being quite indifferent to Tetris, I enjoyed the different modes on offer. That being said, I can not see my attention being held for much longer by the title due to my own personal tastes.