Tetris DX

There's one Tetris you take on the road, and by many accounts it's this one. Tetris DX took the immortal principle of stacking falling blocks, dressed it in color and added everything the previous portable versions lacked.

Everyone knows the basic magic: tetrominoes fall, you rotate them and slot them into each other, full rows vanish and the pace relentlessly quickens. Tetris DX by Nintendo leaves this perfect mechanism untouched — why change something that works — and focuses on the improvements around it. It adds color, which makes the individual blocks more readable and the whole game more pleasant to look at on the GBC's color screen.

The key novelty was saving high scores to the battery in the cartridge. At last your best performances stayed on record and you had motivation to beat them — a small thing that fundamentally changes the long-term playability. Add tuned pacing, several game modes and an overall polish of details that make the game a near-definitive portable version.

Tetris is itself one of the most influential and best-selling video games in history, and its power lies in perfect simplicity — you grasp the rules in a second but master them over a lifetime. The DX version takes this timeless essence and sets it in the most fitting form for playing anywhere and anytime.

It's a title you'll return to for years, because it doesn't age and you never finish it. A short tram ride or a long evening — Tetris DX suits both.

Why play: For Tetris's timeless gameplay in a tuned, colorful form with saved high scores — the ideal portable version of the classic.