Alexey Pajitnov programmed Tetris in the USSR, but it was only years later that he came to wealth after a long dispute – it has since been filmed, and you can stream the work for free if you own a PS4 or PS5.
What game is this about? Tetris, a classic commonly recognized, which achieved worldwide fame in 1989 on the Nintendo Gameboy. To this day, besides imitations, there are officially licensed sequels for almost every platform on the market.
For example, this modern adaptation of the timeless game concept:
Tetris: A True Gaming Thriller That Was Adapted into a Film
Who invented Tetris? Tetris is a creation of Alexey Pajitnov, born in 1955 in the former Soviet Union. He now lives in the USA, where he finally attained the wealth that had long eluded him. He worked at the Dorodnitsyn Computing Centre in the early 1980s. Today, it would belong to the Russian Academy of Sciences.
In 1984, he came up with the idea of turning the puzzle game Pentomino that he knew from his childhood (via Wikipedia) into a computer game. The finished product spread quickly in the Soviet Union, but Pajitnov did not benefit from it – and that would remain the case for a long time. Rumors about the game soon reached western companies as well. A real thriller was to follow, one that rivaled many espionage blockbusters.
To whom did the rights to exploit the game belong? This question is hard to answer because many, often secret discussions took place in Moscow before Tetris finally celebrated its triumph on the Gameboy. At times, several competing parties were negotiating only a few meters apart, without knowing about each other, with a Russian state company. Ultimately, a deal was reached, but Alexey Pajitnov ended up empty-handed; he emigrated to the USA.
And anyone interested in seeing the life story outlined here competently adapted according to critics should check out Apple TV+. There, you can watch the film – and it’s even free. However, you need a PS4 or PS5 for that. Until September 22, 2024, Sony, in partnership with the streaming service, is offering a multi-month free trial subscription. More about this in this article.
But how did Pajitnov come to wealth? In the USA, the Tetris inventor worked for Microsoft for several years and co-founded “The Tetris Company” with Henk Rogers. This is because the original contracts expired in 1996, and he was finally able to financially benefit from his work as the inventor and with his new U.S. citizenship. Even though he surely missed out on many millions during the brand’s early days, he has now easily accumulated great wealth.
Rogers also negotiated the deal with Nintendo back then – so he received help from the mastermind behind one of the most consequential deals in gaming history. They now jointly control the “Tetris” brand and everything associated with it.
If someone had to write down a list of the most successful Nintendo games of all time from memory, they would surely also mention names like Zelda, Mario, Metroid or even Pokémon. And the manual collection of cards remains a popular hobby to this day, but it may be on the brink of a new era. The reason for this is presented in the following article: ‘Collecting Pokémon cards will never be the same again’ – scans via medical technology reveal the contents of booster packs
