A 13-year-old from the USA was supposed to “pass” Tetris. No one has managed to do this so far

The game Tetris, probably known to everyone, was first released in the USSR in 1984, but is still very popular today. It seems very simple, but over time the blocks fall faster and faster, making the player’s task more difficult.

A teenager from the USA was the first in the world to beat Tetris

As 13-year-old Willis Gibson from Oklahoma in the USA writes, he reached level 157 of the Tetris game, which resulted in its complete suspension. At this stage, no previously placed blocks were deleted, which made it impossible to place further blocks. After a while, more blocks stopped appearing in the game. It is believed that the 13-year-old was the first person in the world to reach the end of Tetris or – if you prefer – beat the game. No one has ever experienced (or documented) a situation where the game crashes and does not advance to the next level.

The teenager published his struggles on YouTube, and after beating Tetris, he said that he was “about to faint” and “I couldn’t feel my fingers.” The entire battle from level 1 to 157 took him 38 minutes. Willis Gibson has been playing Tetris since the age of 11 and has since taken part in several tournaments. In 2023, he also took third place in the Classic Tetris World Championship.

Interestingly, a dozen or so years ago, players believed that the limit you could reach in Tetris was level 29. Soon, however, new records began to appear. The BBC recalls that in 2010, professional Thor Aackerlund players managed to reach level 30 using a technique called hypertapping. In the following years, players using this technique overcame further barriers. The previous record was held by user PixelAndy, who reached level 148. A teenager from Oklahoma believes that he not only beat Tetris, but also broke three other world records in the process.

It is unclear whether level 157 is actually the last level you can reach by playing Tetris. Some people also believe that the teenager’s achievement can be beaten by gaining a higher number of points (up to level 157). Currently, players from all over the world are trying to check it by broadcasting their struggles on social media.