The story of Tetris, ‘the perfect game’, as told on Apple TV+: the ‘Cold War thriller’ behind its Nintendo Game Boy debut – and why we still love to play

Created by a programmer in the Soviet Union, Tetris was the launch title of Nintendo’s Game Boy, and is one of the best-known and bestselling video games ever

The story of how it made it to the console is told as an East-West love story in Apple TV+ movie. Meanwhile, experts explain why gamers find Tetris so addictive

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Taron Egerton, left, and Nikita Efremov in “Tetris”. The 1989 launch title of the Nintendo Game Boy is called “the perfect game” in the Apple TV+ film about the backstory to its console debut. Experts explain why we love it still. Photo: TNS

Published: 6:15pm, 9 Apr 2023

The real story behind how Tetris became a video game phenomenon is more compelling than most imagined narratives.

A computer game created by Russian programmer Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union, Tetris eventually hit the burgeoning global market in 1989 as the launch title of Game Boy, a handheld console developed by Japanese company Nintendo, after Dutch American game designer and publisher Henk Rogers doggedly pursued the rights.

Much like the game itself, it is a story that involved a lot of moving pieces that needed to be manoeuvred just right for its players to achieve success.

This backstory is at the centre of Tetris, which is now streaming on Apple TV+.

From left, Togo Igawa, Nino Furuhata and Egerton in “Tetris”. Photo: TNS

Directed by Jon S. Baird (Stan & Ollie) from a script by Noah Pink (Genius), the film follows Rogers (portrayed by Taron Egerton) after he is so dazzled by Tetris, which he stumbles upon at a game expo, that he bets everything on its success.