By Arthur Greene
A 13-year-old teen called Willis Gibson has become the first in history to win at Tetris, a computer game that was invented over 20 years before Willis was born.
In its 34-year history, millions have attempted to conquer the shape-based game — and all have failed.
That is until earlier this week, when Willis — an average kid from Oklahoma, USA — logged in on his computer to play.
The rules of the iconic early computer game are simple. At increasingly fast speed, shapes fall from the top of the screen. The aim of the game is to rotate them and slot them into place at the bottom. When you fill up a row of shapes across the screen, it disappears. Let your tower of shapes reach the top, however, and it’s game over.
Willis uploaded the video to his YouTube channel, and when he started, he just couldn’t stop.
For decades, Tetris players have tried to play the game until it crashes — an achievement most consider akin to completing it. Until now, only computers and AI bots have achieved it.
After 38 minutes, Willis brought the game to its knees when he reached level 157.
Falling back into his chair, he declared, “I’m going to pass out, I can’t feel my fingers.”
“When I started playing this game I never expected to ever crash the game, or beat it,” he later wrote on his YouTube channel, Blue Scuti.
Image source: X
Pictured above: Willis Gibson.
