Tetris Splash
Encyclopedia
Tetris
Tetris is a puzzle video game originally designed and programmed by Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union. It was released on June 6, 1984, while he was working for the Dorodnicyn Computing Centre of the Academy of Science of the USSR in Moscow, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic...
games, was published by Microsoft Game Studios
Microsoft Game Studios
Microsoft Studios is the video game production wing for Microsoft, responsible for the development and publishing of games for the Xbox, Xbox 360, Games for Windows and Windows Phone platforms. They were established in 2002 as Microsoft Game Studios to coincide with the release of the Xbox, before...
for the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
via Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
. It is the first game produced by Tetris Online, Inc..
The game gets its name from the aquarium background and water-themed music. The game opens with the title Tetris Online (the company that developed Tetris Splash), and it is followed by the title "Tetris Splash." Tetris Splash was released on the Xbox Live Arcade on October 3, 2007 for 800 Microsoft Points
Microsoft Points
Microsoft Points are the currency of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Games for Windows - Live Marketplace, Windows Live Gallery, and Zune online stores. The points allow users to purchase content without a credit card and to reduce the number of small credit card transaction fees, which Microsoft would...
($10 USD).
Gameplay
The game is typical Tetris gameplay, with support for up to six players in online multiplayer, and up to four players in same-machine multiplayer. Multiplayer includes team play as well (i.e. 3 teams of 2, designated "Red", "Green" and "Blue" teams.) Gameplay follows the trend of rewarding T-Spins, but also adds a new element of combos, where multiple consecutive pieces each clear lines with no "non-line clearing" pieces in between.http://www.tetrisconcept.net/wiki/Glossary#CSingle player
- Marathon: Similar to Classic Tetris gameplay. However, unlike some others this marathon mode is infinite.
- 40 Lines: Clear 40 lines as fast as possible.
Multiplayer
- Same machine: Up to four players. Last survivor wins.
- Online ranked: Six player free-for-all, playing for TrueSkillTrueSkillTrueSkill is a Bayesian ranking algorithm developed by Microsoft Research and used in the Xbox matchmaking system built to address some perceived flaws in the Elo rating system...
ranking. - Online unranked: Allows customization, including Team Mode, in which teams play against each other, instead of free-for-all.
Screensaver
The game also includes an aquariumAquarium
An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...
screensaver
Screensaver
A screensaver is a type of computer program initially designed to prevent phosphor burn-in on CRT and plasma computer monitors by blanking the screen or filling it with moving images or patterns when the computer is not in use...
, which the user can personalize. Initially, the game comes with the option to make the tank a fresh water
Fresh Water
Fresh Water is the debut album by Australian rock and blues singer Alison McCallum, released in 1972. Rare for an Australian artist at the time, it came in a gatefold sleeve...
or salt water
Seawater
Seawater is water from a sea or ocean. On average, seawater in the world's oceans has a salinity of about 3.5% . This means that every kilogram of seawater has approximately of dissolved salts . The average density of seawater at the ocean surface is 1.025 g/ml...
tank. Only two types of fish come with the main game: goldfish
Goldfish
The goldfish is a freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae of order Cypriniformes. It was one of the earliest fish to be domesticated, and is one of the most commonly kept aquarium fish....
(for the fresh water tank) and clownfish
Clownfish
Clownfish or anemonefish are fishes from the subfamily Amphiprioninae in the family Pomacentridae. Twenty-eight species are recognized, one in the genus Premnas, while the remaining are in the genus Amphiprion. In the wild they all form symbiotic mutualisms with sea anemones...
(for the salt water tank).
On first day of release, nine downloadable fish bundles were offered for 50 Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
Points each ($0.62 USD), which included Marine Angelfish
Marine angelfish
Marine angelfish are perciform fish of the family Pomacanthidae. They are found on shallow reefs in the tropical Atlantic, Indian, and mostly western Pacific oceans. The family contains seven genera and approximately 86 species...
, Guppy
Guppy
The guppy , also known as the millionfish, is one of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish species in the world. It is a small member of the Poeciliidae family [females long, males long] and like all other members of the family, is live-bearing....
, Triggerfish
Triggerfish
Triggerfishes are about 40 species of often brightly colored fishes of the family Balistidae. Often marked by lines and spots, they inhabit tropical and subtropical oceans throughout the world, with the greatest species richness in the Indo-Pacific...
, Tetra
Tetra
thumb|right|250px|Pristella tetra — [[Pristella maxillaris]].thumb|right|250px|Golden Pristella tetra, a [[morph |morph]] of [[Pristella maxillaris]].thumb|right|250px|[[Silvertip tetra]] — Hasemania nana....
, Tang, Discus
Discus (fish)
Discus are a genus of three species of cichlid freshwater fishes native to the Amazon River basin. Discus are popular as aquarium fish and their aquaculture in several countries in Asia is a major industry.-Taxonomy:...
, Butterflyfish
Butterflyfish
The butterflyfish are a group of conspicuous tropical marine fish of the family Chaetodontidae; the bannerfish and coralfish are also included in this group. Found mostly on the reefs of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans, there are approximately 120 species in 10 genera...
, Arowana
Arowana
Arowanas are freshwater bony fish of the family Osteoglossidae, also known as bonytongues. In this family of fishes, the head is bony and the elongate body is covered by large, heavy scales, with a mosaic pattern of canals. The dorsal and the anal fins have soft rays and are long based, while the...
, and Angelfish
Pterophyllum
Pterophyllum is a small genus of freshwater fish from the family Cichlidae known to most aquarists as "Angelfish". All Pterophyllum species originate from the Amazon River, Orinoco River and Essequibo River basins in tropical South America...
to add to the tank. Four decor packs were also offered for 150 Microsoft Points each ($1.87 USD), which included a Scuba theme, a Pirate theme, a Graveyard theme, and an Atlantis theme, to add objects to the tank.