Tetris World Finals recap: More than just live esports with 120-metre drone screens

I’ve been playing Tetris for 30 years, ever since I was given the game (along with a Nintendo Game Boy) for Christmas in 1995. Created by Alexey Pajitnov and released in 1985, the infamous puzzle game has inspired numerous variations on the concept, including Tetris Effect and Tetris 99. But on December 13, I saw Tetris being played in a completely different way.

The Red Bull Tetris World Finals in Dubai whittled hundreds of players down to two, where they battled against each other on a 48-storey frame, with 2,800 drones displaying the game. It was something completely new and impressed everyone. With this in mind, here are my thoughts on the event, as well as a quick chat with Kris Vloemans, Lead Technical Specialist of the thousands of drones at the event.

The Escapist recaps 

• Tetris was first released in 1985 on the Russian-made Elektronika 60 computer, created by Alexey Pajitnov.
• The Tetris World Finals were held in Dubai on December 13, where two players competed in the game via 2,800 drones that displayed the matches on a massive screen.
• The Dubai Frame is 48-storey high, with the ability for visitors to reach the top of the structure.
• The winner was Fehmi Atalar of Turkey, who won a three-day all-inclusive trip to Dubai.

A Live Mini-Boss Stage

Throughout my time in Dubai, I was surprised at how much everything looked like a boss stage, down to the music I would hear throughout the trip. For example, I was checking out the semi-final setups on Friday at Terra Solis. It’s a resort that has a room especially set up for rows of PCs, ready for anyone to try out the customized Tetris game.

At first glance, it looked like an old-school flash game that you may try out in between school breaks in the specialized computer rooms. However, once I played it, I found myself clicking on the ‘rematch’ button for the next half hour. Not only was that a testament to Tetris itself, but also how well this customized version for the Red Bull Tetris World Finals worked.

It was also slightly eerie, too, as Terra Solis felt like being in a level from Sonic the Hedgehog in a way. From the name to the sandy setting, complete with huts and walks to other sections that felt like something was about to happen. But it worked for Tetris; it was a perfect setting for the lead-up to the Finals the following day.

During Terra Solis, I spoke to some of the contestants, and whilst they were slightly nervous about the semi-finals later that day, they were also in awe that this event was happening at all, as well as in Dubai. I couldn’t help but agree, especially after my chats with Alexey Pajitnov, Henk Rogers, and Maya Rogers.

This is clearly the first step for Tetris to become something even bigger in the esports world. My chats with Pajitnov and both Rogers consistently broached the topic of the game being an Olympic sport. I wasn’t sure at first, but once the Finals began on December 13, I was convinced.

Drone Zone Act 2

As we arrived at the Dubai Frame, the feeling of being in the throes of a final level in a Sonic game really hit me. Consisting of 2,000 tons of steel, plus 48 floors where visitors can visit the top, the structure almost looks alien at first glance – as if it’s just landed and we’re the first to see it.

Soon after, I spoke to Kris Vloemans about the drones and how he was feeling before the opening ceremony. We started off by chatting about the size of the frame for the drones.

“You can play Tetris via the frame as you normally would, even though it’s basic. What is different is its immersion, mainly due to the size. Even though the 100ft frame might be slower in frame rate, if you go by its technicalities, that would be a negative compared to a high-spec PC Monitor. But due to its big size, it’s going to outweigh all of the negatives.

For this Frame, you have 30 frames per second, but it’s such a massive screen that, to comprehend and understand the size, especially because the finalists only have five minutes and can only play it once, it becomes something unique.”

With the number of drones about to be used for the ceremony and the final matches, I asked Vloemans about when everything came together. 

“We did a test in November where everything was validated. The seven colours of the tetrominoes were there, the high score was there, and the timer was working too.

But in reality, we continued to work until just a few days ago. I think it was Thursday morning (December 11) or Friday morning, and now it’s Saturday (December 13). That was the first time that everything came together within the frame as well. The main tests before were not done in the frame.”

Once the Finals began, we were treated to the opening ceremony, where an orchestra played parts of the iconic Tetris theme, interspersed with MIDI instruments that gave me plenty of nostalgia for the Game Boy version.

Soon after, we were treated to 10 minutes of the drones forming into different Tetromino objects, as well as the Red Bull and Tetris logos. They also managed to give a 3D effect, which looks very impressive. Vloemans was quick to mention to me how these drones worked.

“The drones are custom-made, and it’s something that hasn’t been done before. So there are a few things here that are new. One of them is flying the grid in a vertical position. Normally, everyone plays it safe and flies at an angle, so if a drone falls, it doesn’t drop onto the rest of the screen.

On top of that, during the opening ceremony, you’ll see that the drones fly through the building, which is something that isn’t generally done. And they really fly through the building.

The most important thing is when the finalists are playing on the high platform – the signal from the controller is translated to the other side of the frame, where the drones are. That signal is sent frame by frame, 30 frames per second, to each of the drones individually, in terms of their colour and positioning.

The positioning is done using light. We don’t play with it to have it as fast as possible, but every drone receives 30 updates per second telling it which colour it has to be, where it has to be, etc.”

Drone Zone Act 3

Once the match began, we were surprised not only to see the drones reflect the Tetrominos, but also the Tetris logo and a live score to the left of the Frame. It was a nice touch that allowed all of us to keep track of how the players were doing throughout. Eventually, Fehmi Atalar of Turkey won the match and the whole tournament, with the prize being a three-day all-inclusive trip to Dubai.

Overall, it was an impressive couple of days. I couldn’t spot anything that disrupted the final matches – every drone seemed to do what was required, as well as the low latency that kept up with the fast mechanics that both finalists were doing.

I put it to Vloemans as to what could be next for this concept: 

“This was a world first, so there were a lot of challenges to overcome. It’s custom drones, and all of this is new. You’re also limited to being within the frame. If you were to double or triple the number of drones, you would end up with a much higher-resolution screen. That’s definitely possible.

In the future, it would be great to do a battle with two frames next to each other. That’s definitely possible.”

It looks like we’re only seeing the start of what’s possible with thousands of drones and puzzle games like Tetris. If the title does reach the Olympics, the concept of potentially watching multiple frames with drones displaying the matches doesn’t seem like a question of if, but more of a question of when.

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References

1. Dubai Frame | About Us (Government of Dubai)