| Blockout | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developers | P.Z.Karen Co. Development Group,Logical Design Works[2] |
| Publishers | California Dreams American Technos (arcade) Rainbow Arts Electronic Arts Sega Atari Corporation Jelly Beans (PC-98) |
| Designer | Aleksander Ustaszewski[2] |
| Programmer | Mirosław Zabłocki |
| Platforms | Amiga,[3]Apple IIGS,Arcade,Atari ST,Commodore 64,MS-DOS,Sega Genesis,Atari Lynx,[4]Mac OS,PC-98[5] |
| Release | Arcade
|
| Genre | Puzzle |
Blockout is apuzzle video game published in 1989 byCalifornia Dreams. It was developed inPoland by Aleksander Ustaszewski[6] and Mirosław Zabłocki.American Technos published an arcade version.Blockout is an unlicensed, 3D version ofTetris.
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The player's perspective is that of looking down into a three-dimensional rectangular pit.Polycube blocks of various shapes appear, one at a time, and fall slowly toward the bottom of the pit. The player can use three buttons to rotate the block around any of the threecoordinate axes, and can also maneuver the block horizontally and vertically with thejoystick. Once any part of a block comes to rest on the floor of the pit or in contact with an already-placedcube, the entire block freezes in place and can no longer be moved. The player can press a button on the joystick to quickly drop a block. Once a solid layer of cubes is formed with no gaps (a "face"), it disappears and all cubes above it drop toward the bottom of the pit to fill the space. Completing multiple faces with a single block awards higher scores, and the player earns a "Block Out" bonus for emptying the pit.[2] A set number of faces must be completed in order to end each round.
As the game progresses, the blocks begin to drop faster, the dimensions of the pit change from round to round, and differently-shaped blocks start to appear. A bonus stage is played after every fifth round, in which the player has 30 seconds to form as many faces as possible in a 2x2 pit. The game ends if the blocks stack up to the top of the pit, with the exception of the bonus stages; in the latter case, the stage ends immediately and the player advances to the next round.
The game allows head-to-head competition between two players, each of whom has their own pit and blocks. When one player completes a face, all the cubes in the opponent's pit are raised by one level. A player can win a round by either being the first to complete a set number of faces or by forcing their opponent's cubes to stack up to the top of the pit. The first player to win a set number of rounds may continue the game alone in single-player mode.
Apart from the other known consoleports ofBlockout, there were also two forNES: the first is an official unreleased prototype developed in 1990 byTechnos Japan Corp. under the name "Block Out", while the second is anunauthorizedclone programmed byHwang Shinwei and published by both himself and RCM Group in 1989/1990 (titled3D Block).
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Famitsu | 7/10, 7/10, 7/10, 6/10 (Mega Drive)[7] |
| IGN | 8/10 (Lynx)[8] |
| MegaTech | 91%[9] |
| Mega | 67%[10] |
| PC Leisure | 4/5[11] |
| Publication | Award |
|---|---|
| MegaTech | Hyper Game |
The New York Times reviewed the game in an article abouteducational software for mathematics, writing thatBlockout "doesn't pretend to be educational, but the skills required to master it are not unrelated to mathematics, particularlygeometry."[6] A 1993 study found evidence that playingBlockout improved thespatial visualization ability of 10- to 14-year-olds.[12]
In Japan,Game Machine listedBlock Out on their March 1, 1990 issue as being the tenth most-successful table arcade unit of the month.[13] It was released for theSega Mega Drive in Japan on November 1, 1991.[7]
Dragon gave the game's Atari Lynx version a perfect score.[14] Robert A. Jung reviewed the Atari Lynx version of the game, which was published onIGN. In his final verdict, he wrote: "This is a nice, addictive, no-nonsense strategy game. Without any patterns to memorize and several options to choose from,Blockout will keep its freshness for quite some time. If you thoughtTetris was too simple, give this title a try." He scored the game eight out of ten.[8]
Entertainment Weekly gave the game an A,[15] deeming it the #17 greatest game available in 1991.[16]
Around 2007,[17] a modernized, authorizedcontinuation/remake[18] namedBlockout II[19] was released with alicense from Kadon Enterprises, to use thetrademarkedBlockout name.[20] The game isopen-source and wasported to many platforms the original wasn't available before, likeMicrosoft Windows,[17]Ubuntu,[21] and theOpenPandorahandheld.[22]
On February 19, 2008, an officially licensed crossover withTetris titledTetris Blockout was released byEA Mobile for mobile phones with authorization of bothBlue Planet Software and Kadon Enterprises.[23]
In 2021, a web browser-based version[24] written in JavaScript and HTML5 was released. It is officially licensed to use the nameBlockout.[25]
Tetris is a registered trademark of Tetris Holding, LLC and sub-licensed to Electronic Arts Inc. Blockout™ is a trademark of Kadon Enterprises, Inc. and used with permission.