NAME
tetris —
the game of tetris
SYNOPSIS
tetris |
[-bps]
[-k keys]
[-l
level] |
DESCRIPTION
The
tetris command is a display-based game. The object is to
fit the shapes together forming complete rows, which then vanish. When the
shapes fill up to the top, the game ends. You can optionally select a level of
play, or custom-select control keys.
The default level of play is 2.
The default control keys are as follows:
- j
- move left
- k
- rotate 1/4 turn counterclockwise
- l
- move right
- ⟨space⟩
- drop
- p
- pause
- q
- quit
- n
- down
The options are as follows:
-
-
- -b
- By default, shapes are displayed colorfully if the user's
CRT supports color. The -b option can be used to restore
the traditional black-and-white behavior.
-
-
- -k
- The default control keys can be changed using the
-k option. The keys argument must
have the seven keys in order, and, remember to quote any space or tab
characters from the shell. For example:
tetris -l 2 -k 'jkl pqn'
will play the default games, i.e. level 2 and with the default control keys.
The current key settings are displayed at the bottom of the screen during
play.
-
-
- -l
- Select a level of play.
-
-
- -s
- Display the top scores.
-
-
- -p
- Switch on previewing of the shape that will appear
next.
PLAY
At the start of the game, a shape will appear at the top of the screen, falling
one square at a time. The speed at which it falls is determined directly by
the level: if you select level 2, the blocks will fall twice per second; at
level 9, they fall 9 times per second. (As the game goes on, things speed up,
no matter what your initial selection.) When this shape “touches
down” on the bottom of the field, another will appear at the top.
You can move shapes to the left or right, rotate them counterclockwise, or drop
them to the bottom by pressing the appropriate keys. As you fit them together,
completed horizontal rows vanish, and any blocks above fall down to fill in.
When the blocks stack up to the top of the screen, the game is over.
SCORING
You get one point for every block you fit into the stack, and one point for
every space a block falls when you hit the drop key. (Dropping the blocks is
therefore a good way to increase your score.) Your total score is the product
of the level of play and your accumulated points -- 200 points on level 3
gives you a score of 600. Each player gets at most one entry on any level, for
a total of nine scores in the high scores file. Players who no longer have
accounts are limited to one score. Also, scores over 5 years old are expired.
The exception to these conditions is that the highest score on a given level
is
always kept, so that following generations can pay homage
to those who have wasted serious amounts of time.
The score list is produced at the end of the game. The printout includes each
player's overall ranking, name, score, and how many points were scored on what
level. Scores which are the highest on a given level are marked with asterisks
“*”.
FILES
-
-
- /var/games/tetris.scores
- high score file
AUTHORS
Adapted from a 1989 International Obfuscated C Code Contest winner by
Chris Torek and
Darren F.
Provine.
Manual adapted from the original entry written by
Nancy L.
Tinkham and
Darren F. Provine.
Code for previewing next shape added by
Hubert Feyrer in
1999.
BUGS
The higher levels are unplayable without a fast terminal connection.