Tetris: Splitting the Iron Curtain
Tetris is not only one of the most
universally
loved games ever created, it also has one of the most fascinating histories.
This episode covers everything from its invention by a Russian government
programmer to its phenomenal success in the world market.
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the video doesn't work...
it cuts off at 17 seconds
It's kinda funny....
will try and get this fixed asap.
is good video that i know before so, i want to upgrate it more .
Also, in this video you said that the Russians held a contract with Stein allowing him to sell the "computer" version of the game. If Stein was going to sell Tetris on Nintendos, calculators, watches, etc., then the Russians would receive a lot of money from Stein's profits. If that's the case, then why did the Russians block Stein from doing that? They would have gotten a lot of money from Stein. o.O
if russia had allowed him to do that then they would anger nintendo and not allow anyone to put tetris on there consoles
The problem is that Stein had NEVER paid the Russians for any of the sales he was making. That was the whole deal- Stein talked a good game, but he never actually paid up. The Russians was really mad, and were looking for a way to get him out of the picture and bring in someone who would actually keep their word and pay them their money. And that was Nintendo.
Hey guys you said in this video that Tetris was the best-selling video game of all time. I might be wrong, but isn't Super Mario Bros. the highest selling game of all time?
Super Mario Brothers is typically credited with holding the #1 spot with around 40 million sold. And Tetris is typically credited with the #2 spot with around 33 million sold. The problem is that Tetris' sales number of 33 million ONLY counts the Gameboy sales. Once you factor in the millions and millions of computer versions, cell phones versions, ipod versions, console versions, arcade versions, and everything else (like the episode said, Tetris has appeared everywhere with over 70 versions out there), Tetris is EASILY the best selling game of all time
yeah your right but then games that constantly get the same game on different consoles so if you think about it people must be specific when they say best selling game what do they mean
hmmm.....
Maxwell was absolutely livid about losing out on the rights, he fired his son who was hear od Mirrorsoft and started blackmailing the Russian government into giving him the rights OR ELSE!!!
I think he did gain some rights, possibly buying what little rights Stien had for pennies.
Nintendo also owns a video diary (a week of footage from the flight there to leaving for Japan) of the whole deal as they didn't 100% trust the Soviets, which I only know as clips have been shown ina BBC documentary about the whole case.
But the whole thing would make a great movie tho, people laugh if you pitched a Tetris movie, but it would be pretty good.
Guru Larry - ScrewAttack.com
& Presenter on the European video game channel XLEAGUE.TV
Oh yeah! Maxwell actually called Gorbachev and got him involved on Mirrorsoft's behalf. Belicov from ELORG was getting threatening telexes from the Kremlin. Belikov later said that if it had been 10 years earlier, and the Soviet Union wasn't preoccupied with being on the verge on collapse, he probably would've been killed or sent to the gulag for giving Nintendo the rights!
Maxwell was a real piece of shit though, he embezzeled millions of peoples retirements funds into his failing Mirror group and lost everything, also extremly interesting read on how he died, just found his body one day floating in the Atlantic Ocean.
Gotta feel sorry for Alexy Pajitnov, didn't make a penny from Tetris (until recently), went to the US to set up his own puzzle game company which went bust, and now makes "Casual Games" for Microsoft.
Yeah, my favorite part of the Tetris story is how all the bad guys lost in the end. Stein got left with nothing, and Maxwell ended up dead after looting all the pensions from his company. But, yeah, too bad for Pajitnov- but he's still doing ok. Of course, Nintendo, as always, made a jillion bucks.
working on it, working on it. Thanks, man!
I've watched every single one of these. VERY entertaining. Bravo and encore.
Seriously, make more. now
Very informative. I like the different narrators.
to GericVas: Yeah, after we shot this, I found that BBC documentary on Tetris. Except it was an hour, I think, not a half hour. To be honest, the story is so complex and has so many twists and turns that you really do need an hour. But, like you said, this episode pretty much sums it all up in 8 minutes, although there are a lot of really interesting side stories and detals that didn't make it in. As far as legal factors go, I've been making video game shows for years for internet and cable tv, and have never had any problems with game companies. Game companies are really nice and have a good respect for us in the gaming community. The only company that is fairly hard nosed about that sort of thing is Rockstar with the GTA games, but that's really more because of the copywritten, high profile music catalogue in the GTA games than the gameplay footage itself (which is understandable). So, if I use GTA footage, I simply sub in stock music and everybody's cool with it. All the game companies I've dealt with over the years have had no problem with shows like these because its (a) it's a historical documentary and (b) it's also good promotions for the games.
Jeremiah I must say you pretty much hit the nail on the head with this one...unfortunately i've seen this documentary done in 30 minutes on A&E 4 years ago. None the less i enjoyed it alot I totally forgot about the tengen thing, it really puts the whole atari getting screwed over in a broader view. I was wondering do you have to work in any legal factors when you make these videos? like could you possibly be sued by a company (say nintendo) for showing there games?
do i ever feel for the guy who invented tetris, he would be a gazillionaire here. good stuff!
another vote of badass from me.