Tetris: US teen claims game's first ever 'rebirth'

Liv McMahonTechnology reporter

Michael Artiaga, also known by followers as "Dog", has been competing to break Tetris records, along with his brother Andy, for several years.

Twitch A screenshot taken from Michael Artiaga's Twitch livestream on Twitch, displaying a falling shape on Tetris, with "Level 00" displayed besides it, on the left hand side of the screen. On the right, Michael is reacting with his hands on his head and an expression of disbelief. — Michael Artiaga, also known by followers as "Dog", has been competing to break Tetris records, along with his brother Andy, for several years.

A US teenager is the first known person to get classic video game Tetris to reset to level 0 after beating it.

Michael Artiaga, 16, claimed the historic moment of so-called "rebirth" while livestreaming himself playing Nintendo's version of the game on Twitch on Sunday.

It took him 82 minutes to successfully clear level 255 on Tetris - the game's highest. Artiaga, who streams as "dogplayingtetris", celebrated and watched in shock as it started again from scratch.

"Am I dreaming, bro?" he asked viewers, saying he was in "disbelief".

The teen carried on playing and eventually finished with 29.4 million points.

"I'm so glad that game is over," he added, as he prepared to wrap up his stream.

"I never want to play this game again".

He was reportedly playing an edition of the game made for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) console that prevents crashes after level 155.

The game's crashes and kill screens have marked the efforts of other young streamers hoping to set new records.

Tetris was first created in 1984 by Soviet engineer Alexey Pajitnov, and has spawned into hundreds of versions for arcades, consoles and PCs.

The classic video game has remained popular ever since for its simplicity, yet frustrating difficulty.

Players have to arrange falling different shapes, each composed of four blocks, to make them fit together like a jigsaw into horizontal lines that vanish when completed.

If you fail to clear lines of blocks, which fall more quickly as players progress through levels, before they pile up to the top of the window - it's game over.

Getty Images An NES console with a Tetris cartridge inserted sits on a table next to an old Symphonic TV showing Tetris being played on screen.

Artiaga is one of several teenage gamers who have livestreamed their attempts to break previous, and each others', records for the number of levels reached or lines cleared without the game crashing.

He became the world's youngest Tetris world champion at the age of 13 when he beat his older brother in the Classic Tetris World Championship final in 2020.

"I'm so happy about finally getting this after all of the attempts. Thanks to everyone for the support over the years.

"It's finally over," he added.