On June 6, 1984, the puzzle game “Tetris” was released. Developed by Alexei Pajitnov. At that time, I was a computer engineer working at the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union (now Russia).
Pajitnov was inspired by the classic puzzle game “Pentomino,” and first created a computer puzzle game called “Genetic Engineering,” the predecessor of Tetris. .
However, Pajitnov thought that the “addictiveness” that would make you want to play repeatedly as it was was not enough. system is also added. As a result, in addition to the fun of solving puzzles, the “pleasure and sense of accomplishment when the puzzle disappears as you aimed” will occur over and over again. These two ideas made Tetris a highly addictive game.
Tetris is a game so addictive that the developer himself can not stop playing, and the word “Tetris effect” where you can see the blocks even if you are not playing the game was born. In 2000 Harvard Medical School published a research report on the Tetris effect. According to it, 63% of the subjects who played Tetris for a total of 7 hours over 3 days saw images and images of Tetris in real life and dreams for a while after playing.
On the other hand, there are reports that Tetris, which is highly addictive and enthusiastic, can be expected to reduce the desire of addicted patients such as alcohol and prevent PTSD, and research has been ongoing for many years.