Tetris DS (Nintendo DS)

Herald rating: * * * *

Tetris was developed over 20 years ago by Russian computer programmer Alexey Pazhitnov. Out of the boredom and lack of resources only a Cold War Soviet regime could provide, grew one of the most popular video games.

Tetris works because it's so simple yet addictive. The aim is to shuffle falling "tetriminos" - clusters of four blocks - so they fit squarely with other blocks to form a complete line. The blocks then disappear and you complete the process again and again. The game has appeared on everything from the original Nintendo Gameboy to mobile phones and now on the Nintendo DS.

Tetris is perhaps one of the games best suited to a mobile gaming platform. It's easy to have a quick game over lunch or on the bus.

The world of Tetris has been graphically spruced up and adapted for the DS's dual screens. There's a range of player modes and some new features to help you, such as spinning the blocks to keep them in the air while you decide where to place them. Up to 10 players can participate in a game over a wireless network using DS devices but just one copy of the game. There's also an extensive online gaming component.

Such is the competitive nature of Tetris fans, you'll have to be careful not to be sucked into this colourful world of blocks.

(Rating: G)
$80