im having trouble getting over the 800k mark on NES tetris. any tips or strategies from those who have been past 800,.......??? thanks
Are you starting on level 9 or above? The only tip I can think of beyond that is to practice a bunch.
Yeah, David has been running Level 18. In fact, he just put up 889,998 in the A-Type thread. (What's up with this thread, man? It seems like you already know what's up, haha.) I wish I could come up with "don't die" and "keep your playfield clean and ready for tetrises," but sometimes those just seem like the most important things to keep in mind, haha. If I ever figure out something more substantial, I'll be sure to let everyone know.
certainly one of my most common strategies is to try to not die haha... Also, David had a pic of 3 perfects on 19-0... that actually may be more inmpressive than a 889, so he needs no advice from us perse, he is one of us at this point. So if i were to recommend anything it would be the same thing i would recommend to myself: watching good videos: these could be any well played strech of game, not nessesarily even a max, but really any max as well as any other well played performance on youtube. Also watch your woen good and bad and think about your own strategy. Make sure to play level 19 around 75% of the time, but also, dont neglect that 18 entirely . I've always been a beliver in side games, particularly those that actually excercise some relevant skill: try level 15 no next box (GREAT practice for learning to tap, not that im great at tapping lol, but that has helped me somewhat) 19-2/ 15-5 / and 18-4 are all hard, but less frantically hard than 19-3 or 18-5, so they seem a good workout for that all important need to fix shit whilst your almost dead Come to competitions. I always seem to do well right after competitions because i think they remind me that no matter how good i am, i can be better. Take time off when you want to. to be honest i havent played NES in over a month now (im on a cultris II kick, you should try that btw). Something i should do more methodically but dont: practice gettting good at specific spin set ups one at a time, over time. ya cant become jonas all at once but i think learning to spin maybe just the t, then just the L or something could benifit any of us.
Definitely. Though, B-Type encourages a certain degree of "forcing it" that A-Type will punish, so it's important not to get stuck in that mindset when switching back. But, again, that sort of ties back to "don't die" when all is said and done.
i posted this about a week or so ago, and my high score was 824.....i had at least a dozen or so game in the high 700's and low 800's...within the last week i put down an 889 followed by a 926, so i guess this thread is obsolete now ha ha.......but thanks for the advice....next thread........"how to max before level 26?......."
I'm going to go ahead and pick back up on this thread, if not just to exercise some frustration/belly-aching. Certainly I've been performing increasingly better over the past 3 months, but I can't help but feel impatient at times...too often, in fact. That aside, here's my quandary: Many of Ben's and Alex's pointers are on target with what seems good for me to practice and hone my style of play. Still, prolonged sequences of S and Z pieces tend to throw my game right off the rails. I build well, continue to look for creative and sensible ways to burn, and then get stuck with a barrage of S and Z pieces. It's not all of the time, of course, and there are plenty of areas for me to work to refine, but this is currently what I feel is my biggest hurdle as far as construction and management goes. Watching videos online helps, but I can't say I have found great examples of fighting off those pieces effectively when they come precipitously. I'll keep watching to see if something stands out, though. So...yeah. Ideas?
Well, it kind of depends on the circumstances. If you can diagram something or record a game where the issue crops up, we can work our way from there.
Yeah. You know, I was thinking how situational it is after I posted that. After spending an undisclosed number of hours playing this weekend (), I think I'm starting to iron some of this out. Some of it is still stack management, such as letting my stack get too high on 18 and then having little wiggle room if I start getting a bunch of S and Z pieces. I'm also looking to either create an avenue to stack them on the left, or briefly plug on the right, if needed. I'm doing more of this to keep from creating spires in the middle of the board. I tend to find that constricting, in a way. Part my goal is to also reduce the number of times I have to look to tuck after placement because I don't have any place to put them. I'm not trying to eliminate that entirely, just looking to increase my options to make placement more flexible. When I went back this weekend to look at or think about what I did in these situations when I wasn't pleased with my choices, it was generally pretty apparent what I should have done. Still, I'm just trying to get better. If I find myself really stuck, I'll get something posted. Thanks for the offer. Edit: Instead of posting some additional thoughts separately, I'm just rolling them into this post. It's funny to me that as I type these things out, I become more aware of them. Maybe I should keep a real journal/blog on analysis of my game. Anyway...I digress. It's become increasing apparent that I have not been identifying horizontal placement of these pieces. I'm trying to train myself to see those opportunities on the board. That's one of the bigger things I have noticed watching videos for how others handle these pieces, not just in bunches, but in general. Repetition and practice, obviously, help build skills, but even a rudimentary analysis of placement has been providing growth…even if I'm typing to myself at this point.
I want to discuss max-out strategy, as well as strategy for consistently scoring above 600k every single game. I was looking through the threads, and this seemed to fit. I would like to direct this toward scoring over 800k every single game, if I may So for starters, all I really want to share and get feed back on is the following concept: I can decide if a game has "legs" to max out usually within the first ten lines into 19. But the margin for such a forecast is really about 30 lines, starting from the last ten lines of Level 18 through the end of Level 20. Basically, to put it in easy to swallow terms, if you can't get Tetrises in those thirty lines, you're screwed. To dissect that a little more, is where I would like to get some discussion going. Because what I am really talking about here is "feel." It all starts with the last ten lines of Level 18 (or just plain Level 18 if you start on an earlier level). Anybody who's anybody will tell you that this stubborn ass game simply will not let you get a Tetris here. If you hold out for a longbar, you will die. The only option here is to burn lines.If you can keep yourself at 3 to 5 lines high, that is a good sign. If the game forces you higher or lower, you are in trouble. Regardless of how Level 18 plays out, Level 19 seems to be a very accurate forecaster for how the following nine levels will play out. To put it simply, if it lets you get a Tetris, you are in like Flynn. If it does not, your name is Bennett, 'cause you're not in it. Of course, twenty lines is a rather small sample size. I don't firmly make up my mind until I get through Level 20. If it has gone bad for you the last twenty lines, the game may offer redemption in Level 20. If it has gone good for twenty lines, the game may decide to crush your dreams in Level 20. If it has gone bad for twenty lines, and stays bad throughout Level 20, get triples and survive to the killscreen. If it has gone good for twenty lines, and you get two Tetrises on Level 20, there are only two paths left for you to follow: either max it out, or epic fail. And this doesn't just apply to max-outs. When I say max-out in the above scenarios, I am talking about a 500k or more transition. I can't transition that high very often. So what I guess I am really talking about is scoring 400k after transition. Once I adopted this forecast mentality, about two months ago or so, my Tetris rage melted away. I have gotten a lot of 800-900 killscreens and a lot of 700+ over Level 25. So instead of getting upset about letting a good game go bad, I just blame chance, and I can still find success on my next game. I should state for the record that when I hit Level 26, I usually go all out and let the game kill me if it decides to drought me. I haven't tried to fix that hiccup yet lol. (when I die on 26, it usually because I am "technically" in range for a max, but a max in is not practical.) And the 30 lines I am talking about is not necessarily about getting Tetrises. It's more about how the game feels. Sometimes I get scary Tetrises in these 30 lines, and I do not feel get about my chances. Sometimes I do not get Tetrises, but I feel good about the way the burns are going and the stack looks and how the pieces feel coming out of the box. I would like to hear what your thoughts and feelings are on these 30 lines.
@BenMullen brought up some amazing gems of advice... I met a few folks this weekend who could benefit from this thread.... @BETHRiS and Joey Parker to name a few. IMO, the key is repetitive QUALITY practice time. Not just messing about in front of the TV... focused sprints (30 minute sessions) where you're just zeroed in and in tune with the game - mostly LV 19 or 18 speeds. Your muscle memory and piece recognition/placement skills will absolutely improve over time. Also playing on different screen size CRT tv's will help prepare you for tournament play. In portland, the average tv sizes are close to 20" - 24". If you're used to a large CRT (32" +) it can be a slight curve ball to downsize during tournament play.
Thanks for the vote of confidence, @rocketman! This thread is packed with helpful information, all of which I'm anxious to start incorporating. I think your advice to invest in a smaller tube TV (or perhaps a few) is quite apt; I realize now that if I choose to get serious about playing competitively, I can't let myself get too comfortable with one specific setup. I also know it'll be a while before I can confidently start at 19, although your recommendation to indulge in obligatory "focused sprints" makes a lot of sense. Maybe if I force myself to incorporate those brutal sprints, it will slowly become easier for me to consistently knock out Tetrises on the higher levels (definitely one of my biggest weaknesses right now). And just to warn all of you Tetris dudes and ladies, I'll probably be posting an obscene amount of questions as I continue to poke around this site. That being said, here's my first question: What are number sequences such as "19-2/ 15-5/ and 18-4" referring to -- B Type? Or something else? I'm not yet savvy with some of the lingo you cool kids are using.
anytime you see 19-2 or 15-5 that's referring to B-type NES Tetris. You got it! I think you're going to be in the 900k's in the next 3-4 months. You have the passion and as they say, "Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work" ... Keep asking those questions and watching a lot of top tier NES Tetris player YouTube videos.
you can also learn a lot by watching the best players do their thing. should definitely check out bo steil's stream on twitch (www.twitch.tv/bosteil). he usually streams a couple of times a week. could also check out mine (www.twitch.tv/supasayajin) where i will be attempting to get 31 maxouts this month. good luck!
thanks @rocketman for the shout out and advice! I'll definitely focus on 30 minute sprints from here out! I'll finally be able to push through the 700k rut I've been stuck in since April!! @BETHRiS, it was nice to meet you this weekend as well! You've got the right stuff!
Ok. So I've been trying to start games on level 19 and it's killing my soul. After a several year Tetris hiatus, I already feel like my skills have descended from "pretty decent" to "severely OK", but playing level 19 just makes me feel like a total amateur piece of shit! I know you guys will encourage me to keep trying -- and I will -- but I just need to vent. It completely sucks! I will say, however, that the level 19 games have helped me improve my split-second decision-making skills, and I'm now starting all of my games at level 18. Yay! I keep referencing this thread for tips and advice (a LOT of which has been spot on, by the way -- you guys are more helpful than you probably realize) but I keep fudging my games by making the same stupid mistakes, so it's hard to really feel like I'm making progress. As promised, here are s'more questions: I'm an enthusiastic stacker, and a lot of my games end with a vertical long piece sticking to the mino JUST next to my Tetris well. So how high is too high? Is there a strategy for stacking as the game's speed increases, or do you guys generally just trust your instincts? Sometimes I don't want to sacrifice my Tetris setups by burning lines, so I wait... and I wait... and I wait... and then I'm dead. I know, shame on me. If anyone is yelling "DAS" at his/her computer screen while reading that first question, what the eff is DAS? I watched some YouTube videos but I don't think I fully understand the concept. Here's how I'm interpreting it (and PLEASE correct me if I'm wrong): DAS legitimately explains what I had previously understood to be the art of piece placement (when to tap, when to glide, and when to prematurely press the L or R arrow in preparation for tricky side placement), but gives credit to the actual game instead of a person's hands (or controller). Or is the player in complete control of DAS? Maybe I'm just really confused because I'm thinking about it too hard (my brain is mushy from level 19-ing all day). Last question, for now: Should my controller (specifically the arrows) feel kinda tight, or more loosey-goosey? I just want to make sure I'm getting comfortable with the right kind of controller. Thanks in advance for all of your guys' help! And BIG thanks to @SuPa for the video links. Love what I've seen so far! I can't seem to catch either of your broadcasts in real time, but I'll keep trying.
you're wise to watch harry (supa) since he has the most intelligible and consistent style that i think people can learn from. hell, i learned a lot from him! as far as controllers go, i changed my often since i play a lot. the dpads start hard, and i eventually wear them out and have to replace the rubber parts inside. it also helps if you clean them periodically as they are very old and grime can build up in them. my preference is loose, but if it gets too loose it is a sign that the internal rubber parts may be broken or ripped and it can lead to misdrops and "rogue spins" as i call them. one rogue spin even cost me a level 19 max one time! clean those things out! DAS is an enigma i dont think anyone can adequately describe over the internet. but i will try: you seem to understand the basic concept that if you are pushing left or right against another block as the piece lands the next one will come out with more momentum than normal. that is DAS in a nutshell. when playing on 19 you almost always MUST maintain DAS to get the pieces left or right to the corners, and if you accidentally tap a block as you place it you will lose whatever momentum the next block would have had. as for stacking too high, i may not be the guy to listen to since i consistently stack too high and hope to get bailed out of situations, but i do know that when i play conservatively i tend to have many high games every night, rather than the one or two high scores i get if i am taking too may risks. when i am being safe i try to keep a stack that looks like a staircase descending from left to right so that i can easily burn almost any piece that comes along. i try not to get to much higher than 6-7 blocks high since you cant get many pieces to the left over a 7 block high stack, and i also try to anticipate burning. what i mean is that if i see a situation that doesnt look good i would rather burn low on 19 than burn high. wasting a line or two at the bottom that may save a game is worth it to me. you must also get used to which pieces can most easily be placed in the corners. O and L pieces are the best for sticking on the far left if you have made a whole, and i know when i realized that my game improved a lot. 19 is a frustrating business, but dont give up.
DAS means Delayed Auto Shift. when you press and hold, the piece moves one step, pauses, then starts moving the rest of the way. This is to make tapping one square easy to do, but also to let you move the piece reasonably quickly without tapping a bunch. NES tetris also includes something called wall charge. what this means is if you hold sideways when the piece is against the wall, as soon as it's able to move it will do so. the delay before auto shifting starts is skipped if you move against a wall. This lets you slide pieces under a small overhang even though they are falling fast. you can also cleverly use it to skip the delay for normal auto shifting when you really need to move the next piece fast, provided it needs to move the direction you are moving the current piece against the wall.
