Tetris
36 Achievements
300
Master
Complete the Radical variant
25
How to unlock the Master achievement in Tetris - Definitive Guide
Origin - Clear 40 lines with the default Tetris game rules.
This is plain old Tetris so it shouldn't pose as much difficulty as some of the others. You should clear single or double lines every chance you get. You do not want to be going for a Tetris and then not have a straight piece come into play and ruin what you have been working for. If you are having trouble with this one then you might not be able to complete some of the other variants.
Treadmill - Clear 40 lines in a matrix that shifts sideways.
In this variation when you drop a piece into play the board will shift to the right as you drop a piece. For example if you dropped a straight piece all the way on the right it would shift and end up on the left side of the board. Imagine it as a rotating circle. When you first start out it can seem a little confusing and overwhelming because it seems kind of chaotic. If you need to play on a lower difficulty so you get the feel of the board shifting. Once you get used to it you will see that it doesn't pose much difficulty and it shouldn't be too difficult to clear. Again going for any lines you can clear is very important.
Gravity - Clear 40 lines with the added gravity effect.
I actually think this one is the easiest because the gravity works in your favor. In normal Tetris blocks stay where they are even if blocks below them get cleared out. In gravity they will fall into a stopping place. This shouldn't be relied on too much because you should be clearing out single lines as often as you can. However if you start to get stuck and lines are building up just go for a line clear any where you can and blocks might fall in your favor and clear out other lines without you intending for them to. For experienced players this can be used very efficiently.
Flood - Clear 40 lines while the matrix fills up from the bottom
In this variation your problem is the "flood" that comes up from the bottom. The water is just a graphic effect that covers the extra lines that come with it. At the bottom of your screen you will see a counter. As you place a block the counter will fill up gradually. Once it is full it will reset but fill the screen with "flooded" blocks. You can however clear these by completing the line and lowering the flood. Gravity is also an effect in this mode so that works in your favor. The key here is to clear the flooded blocks and not just go for normal line clears. If you do not clear the lines that appear they will just keep piling up and ruin your game. Keep a minimum amount of blocks on top of the flooded blocks that appear and just clear the flood as it comes.
Ledges - Clear 40 lines by placing tetriminos on the ledges.
This variation will start out with a random amount of blocks suspended in the air creating "ledges". It will then be your job to use these to create line clears. The great thing about this mode is that time is not a factor and you do not have to rush. Any block that doesn't get caught on a ledge simply falls through to the bottom of the screen and disappears. With that being said if you wanted to wait for only straight blocks and go for line clears you very well could. It is actually important to wait for the perfect blocks because you are working with half a screen here. Gravity is also here in this mode so as you clear lines blocks will most likely fall through and disappear giving you a chance to relax and try for your next lines.
Laser - Clear 40 lines while staying under the laser
In this variation there will be a red laser at the top of your screen. It will slowly move towards the bottom and if one of your pieces crosses paths with it then its game over. However you can push the laser back up by dropping your blocks with the button. You must do this on every piece once you have it into place to keep the laser at a safe level. Clear out the lines like you would in any other mode just making sure that you are keeping the laser at a safe distance.
Magnetic - Clear 40 lines while blocks are attracted to each side of the matrix.
Red = LEFT
Blue = Right
This mode can be a bit tricky because it's easy to forget that the block might not stay where you are trying to put it. In this mode the red blocks are attracted to the left side and the blue to the right. So if I dropped a blue piece on a clear board on the left it would slide all the way to the right in that position. In this mode you need to work from the outside in. If you try to drop blocks in the middle they will just get pulled to their appropriate side. Also upon clearing lines the blocks will fall from gravity and get pulled to their appropriate side. This sometimes will work in your favor clearing other lines or make it difficult for you to clear the line. Work from the outside in clearing lines every chance you get to clear this mode.
Scanner - Complete as many lines as you can and have the scanner clear 40 of them.
In this mode completed lines will not disappear until the "scanner" has cleared them for you. Like the flood variant there will be a bar on the bottom of the screen that will fill up as you drop pieces. Once it has filled up the scanner will clear any completed lines that you have filled. The completed lines will remain grey until the scanner goes off in which they will disappear. Fill in lines as often as you can and don't worry so much as to when the scanner is going to go off. If you are clearing lines as you should then when it does go off you will have a relatively clear screen and you can rinse and repeat until the 40 lines are cleared.
Split - Clear 40 lines on both sides of a split matrix
For me this one was a tad bit annoying. The matrix is split directly down the middle. A block will appear on the either side and go back and forth. The block that appears on the right cannot go past the line in the middle and be used on the left and vice versa. However you can hold a block and use it on either side that you like, this is key. It can become a little difficult because you feel restricted and you can't build the screen the way you normally would. Just fill in as much as you can on either side and use the held block on whichever side will be the most beneficial. Like treadmill you may want to try this on a lower difficulty first so that you can get the feel of working on this type of screen.
Chill - Clear 40 lines quickly to prevent the matrix from freezing.
This variation your blocks become frozen over time. Like the other variations there is the counter bar at the bottom. Once that becomes full a "chill" comes and freezes your blocks. Your blocks start off dark blue then become light blue when they are frozen the first time then white on the final freeze. Dark and light blue blocks can be cleared normally. When the blocks become frozen white then clearing those blocks will only nock the frost off them and then you will have to clear that line again before they will disappear. This can become pretty hectic really quick if you don't clear lines as often as you can. If you start getting filled up with white blocks then you might be better off just restarting.
Flashlight - Clear 40 lines in a pitch-black matrix.
In this variant the screen is black and your piece is the "flashlight". As you move it left and right you will be able to see below you on that part of the screen. This mode is similar to laser in that you will want to push to drop the block into place. The reason that this is important is that this will light up the whole screen for a short amount of time. This mode is really going to test your memory because you kind of have to have a mental image of what the board is and how you are going to place your next piece. Holding blocks and looking towards your next one will help greatly in this mode.
Radical - Clear 40 lines in the hardest and fastest version of the Tetris game yet!
This is just like origin however its faster in that the blocks appear at the bottom of the screen opposed to falling really fast. The only way you can succeed in this is to look at what block is next and already be pushing in the direction you want it to go to get it there. This is difficult however it is doable. If you have saved this for last and cleared all of the other variants it shouldn't be too difficult. Gravity is not a factor so that means you need to build a clean matrix to ensure that you can clear lines easily. Upon finishing this one you will get the Master trophy!
For this you’ll need to complete Marathon and every variant on level 15 (apart from Radical). Marathon, the first variant (which is a short marathon) and gravity are the easiest and don’t require anything in particular. Be sure to use your hold function as it’s extremely useful.
Treadmill is like normal except that with every Tetrominos you place the bottom moves, it’s a bit confusing at first but then you get the hang of it and it even makes the game easier.
Gravity means that if ever you would have had a floating single piece, it now falls. This is essential for Cascades. If you play smart you won’t ever need the Gravity function.
Flood is when the matrix fills from the bottom. This is the first tricky one. Quickly dispatch every line as fast as you can as it can get out of hand very fast. As far as I can tell the holes in the flood lines are random.
Ledges is pretty straightforward and there isn’t much to say.
Laser is where it starts to get tricky, really the only tip is the same as for the other variants, be as quick as you can and don’t try to get novelty moves.
Magnetic is pretty straightforward, although you’ll find yourself cursing yourself over how dumb you are.
Scanner is pretty straightforward and not too complicated although things can get out of hand fast if you’re not quick. You can try to get the Dodecadent achievement here although it’s pretty tricky; to do so hold an I-shaped object and stack as many lines as you can, leaving either on the far right or on the far left enough room (and just enough room) to fit three Is one on top of the other and when the scan goes you should have cleared 12 lines. This is the method to finish games with only Tetrises, it’s sort of tricky at first but once you’re used to it it’s a breeze.
Split isn’t that bad, the matrix is separated in two and you have to keep clearing lines. It’s absolutely essential that you use the hold function here.
Chill is where it starts to get really hard. You have three placements before the objects start to freeze into place. There are three stages to freezing: blue (which isn’t frozen), light blue and gray. You can clear a line with blue and light blue objects but gray will stay in place until their line is cleared which makes them turn light blue. You basically have to take them down twice. This gets kind of annoying as they’ll get stuck in weird places sometimes. It’s from this point on where you probably won’t get complete the variants on your first try on level 15.
Flashlight is sort of hard. It helps to have a photographic memory. When you clear a line the matrix will light up which helps immensely.
Best for last, Radical variant. By far the hardest one although to be honest, they could have done it a lot harder (by mixing in some elements from other variants for instance). Be quick and sneak your way around by turning the Tetrominos. I got this on my third try I think; it’s hard but not impossible.
That should net you the 100%.