- JP release: 20th November 1998
- NA release: 14th January 1999
- PAL release: September 1999
- Developer: Capcom
- Publisher: Capcom (JP/NA), Activision (PAL)
- N64 Magazine Score: 51%
One week after the previous Tetris game comes another officially licensed Tetris game – this one starring Mickey Mouse, even though the title surprisingly lacks any mention of either Mikey or Disney.
This isn’t just a regular Tetris game (although standard Tetris is an option), but takes on more of a Puyo Puyo format a you battle an opponent.
As you clear lines, you’ll send “bad blocks” to opponent, which can be countered by them quickly clearing a line, going back and forth until left alone for long enough. These will then cause non-standard Tetris pieces to appear, consisting of more than 4 blocks. These are awkward to place, with some being large squares, to mess you up.
However, it’s not all bad. Filling up your power bar will erase everything above a certain line, while doing well will reward you with a straight 5 block piece, which can be used to score a “Pentris” by clearing 5 lines at once.
It’s a hectic back and forth, but one I quite enjoy. You get to play the story from the view of Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy, with Tetris used to resolve disputes. These are done on “Tetris machines” which fit into the classic Mikey aesthetic surprisingly well, with nice animation on the top and characters operating the controls.
On top of regular Tetris, you can also play “Upside Tetris” (which is one of the letter “Types” in other Tetris games) where blocks will appear at the bottom as you play.
I can definitely see why some people wouldn’t be keen on this version of Tetris, due to all the awkward blocks, but I personally like it a lot.
Great
But interesting shapes there are – and they’re almost entirely rubbish. Especially the whopping five-by-five blocks, which comprehensively screw things up every time one appears. The reasoning behind them is apparently tactical – rather than having your opponent’s lines deposited beneath your opponent, the kerr-aazy new shapes are shuttled back and forth between you as a way of nobbling everyone’s best effort to win.
Jes Bickham, N64 Magazine #34
Remake or remaster?
The Magical Tetris mode would be nice to see in a newer version of Tetris.
Official ways to get the game.
There is no official way to get Magical Tetris Challenge
Europe
Japan
North America
N64 Games by Date
1997: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
1998: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
1999: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2000: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
I have that! My sister and I used to play it all the time!
This is the other Aleck 64 game that got a home release, one of only two (the other one being Star Solider: Vanishing Earth).
What’s also interesting about this one is that Capcom actually went out of their way to license the Temporary Landing System mechanic from Arika’s Tetris: The Grandmaster series for inclusion in this game. Arika was made up of former Capcom staff, so there’s another odd connection there too.
Finally, this is one of only a handful of games that were designed for the N64 first as the primary target platform but then later ported to the PS1 (usually it’s the other way around). Speaking of which… Glover just so happens to be another one of those handful!