Very few games in existence have not been conquered – Tetris was one of them, until Willis Gibson entered the stage. Something that was thought to be mythical and impossible just became possible, and all it took was a 13-year-old with a very particular set of skills (hunting you down and killing you luckily are not involved).
On December 21, Willis “Blue Scuti” Gibson, who hails from Oklahoma, was playing Tetris on his Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) while live-streaming his progress, but little did he know what he was about to accomplish.
On reaching level 157, a level so intense that it turns the game into a high-speed, block-blitzing frenzy, the screen froze! This was the famed “true kill screen,” a point where the game just can’t keep up with the player, prompting it to crash. Essentially, at this stage, the player has beaten the game.
Released in 1989, the goal of NES Tetris is to assemble falling blocks to clear lines. With every 10 lines cleared, the player moves up a level, and the speed increases. The maximum speed is reached at level 29, which was long considered the end of the game and dubbed the “kill screen.” Interestingly, this wasn’t a traditional kill screen caused by a glitch, but rather a limit due to the game’s speed.
A major breakthrough came in 2011 after Thor Aackerlund became the first person to reach level 30 using a new technique known as “hypertapping.” The real revolution in the game, however, was brought about by the “rolling” technique, which has been used by multiple world record holders, including “Blue Scuti.
In 2021, programmer Greg Cannon made an incredible find after creating a Tetris-playing AI dubbed ‘StackRabbit.’ Without human limitations, StackRabbit breezed past levels until it got to level 237, where it crashed, achieving a “true kill screen.” Now that Tetris fans knew this was possible, the real question became: could a human do it? Could someone actually beat Tetris?
After enough research and number crunching, an important discovery was made: the earliest kill screen could occur at level 155. Getting there, unfortunately, was no piece of cake. Between erratic levels, changing colors, and blocks that were nearly impossible to distinguish, hardcore Tetris players had to put in the hours and dedication required to level up without losing hope.
“Blue Scuti” revealed that accomplishing this remarkable feat was a result of blood, sweat, tears and three to four hours of daily training. If I played Tetris that long, I’d probably start seeing colored blocks in my dreams.
Now that Tetris has been finally conquered, enthusiasts have set their sights on level 255, which holds the “rebirth screen,” where the game resets and starts anew. Will “Blue Scuti” go for this challenge, and can he make Tetris history once again? I sure hope so!
