My Two Gils

The Tetris Book of Design

Some of you might remember last Review A Great Game Day (2014). Well, most of you I hope, unless you have serious memory problems which would probably handicap your retrogaming interests… Anyway, you may also remember that I wrote a review of Tetris (while trying to make as many Russian puns as I could and failing horribly…). Needless to say, I absolutely adore Tetris and could come close to agreeing that its design stands inches away perfection. However, I’m not here to discuss game design. I’m here to help you achieve your perfect self. Become a staggering wall of knowledge that extends beyond the communist motherland!

See, the problem with retrogamers, and gamers in general, is that we tend to limit our knowledge to gaming and/or other spheres of the “nerdy”/”geeky” world. The truth is, we have limitless capabilities that could reach beyond the unknown territories of any field of interest. However, with no limits in sight and no reference axis to aim for, our capacities diverge, never obtaining the desired result. (Never thought you’d see calculus references on 1 More Castle, did you?) In short, without proper comparison to gaming, we fumble with our ideas.

 

 

 

 

 

That’s why I sought to discover a hobby most retrogamers already had knowledge of: Interior design. It all started when I was shopping for paint for my wonderful condominium. I came across this and had the feeling those colors were something I had seen before…

That’s right! Vibrant colors! Matched with huge contrasts to scream their beauty to your feeble eyes: The NES Tetris color palette! Those magnificent color schemes not only explain the basic concepts of design perfectly, they’re still considered modern in this era of fashion! You see, the basic coloration of most rooms, just like Tetris levels, is made up of 3 colors: A base color, a trim color and an accent color. Most of the room will be covered in the base color with only a handful of key spots will host the accent color. Translate that to Tetris and it’s 3 color blocks falling down each stage and you’ll know what colors to use for your future room. There’s usually a lighter color and a darker one. Since the accent color also surrounds the off-white pieces, you can identify which color plays which role. The dark accent color will perfectly compliment the lighter base tone and the white trim. As I said before, it just turns out these bright colors are as trendy as they could ever get! Let’s take look at the stages and see what we can do with your old, out of style castle.

Level 00

A soothing, calm, slow start to the world of decorating. With its sky blue base and indigo accent, level 00 reminds you of one thing and one thing only: The ocean. The sound of the waves gently crashing the white sand, just as the pieces fall down peacefully. A perfect color palette for young parents’ bedroom, an oasis away from the kids and chaos of normal life. Maybe a young adult room, since, like level 00 in Tetris, it’s only the beginning of the journey.

Level 01

As we progress in line count, we seem to reach the grassy fields inland with touches of dark forest green surrounded by a soft lime green. As many other video games have taught us, green is earth, trees, nature. Green is life and its vivid presence can be beneficial in all environments where a boost of energy is needed. A kitchen or an office might be a good choice. Or you may want to keep with the nature theme and use these colors on the patio. In any case, the productivity is at its peak. In Tetris, level 01 might be the level where you setup your Tetris to reach your maximum score. Too bad it only lasts 10 lines.

Level 02

Don’t be scared. A little purple and pink never hurt anyone. Especially when the pink borders colors of salmon and the purple reminds us of Kid Icarus’ eggplant wizard. You may think of this as a girly color and, with the preparation of the last level, try to breeze through it as quickly as possible. But, this color palette isn’t only for your little girls’ room. These colors also represent elegance and luxury. Perfect for a cozy dining room or a entrance hallway, something to sweep visitors off their feet. However, even this punch of sparkly colors stays somewhat tamed when compared to what’s coming next. From this moment on, it’s not tone on tone anymore. Fittingly enough, speed becomes a factor in level 03. Let’s crank it up a notch.

Level 03

Blue and green. Both bright, both usually complimentary. I would call this the Leonardo room, but I doubt it’ll be approved as an official name. Sure, it’s a little more contrasting than the previous colors, but nothing out of the ordinary. When I see these colors, I can’t help but think of a boyish teenager’s room.

Level 04

Now we’re talking. An aggressive hot pink mixed with an accent of turquoise! Level 04 goes full retro with this 50’s American Diner inspired colors to rock your world. Yet another proof that retro is in fashion, be it design or gaming. It can also prove that communist Russians were secretly in love with the movie Grease. Who knows? Just stick this in your kitchen, invite one of them and you’ll see!

Level 05

Now we’re falling into something interesting. A very pale mauve, that reminds me of steel and a pale shiny green turquoise. This is what we call the industrial look. Great in living rooms, kitchens and bathrooms, it’s sure to steel the spotlight! HA! See what I did there? Ok… I’ll stick to the subject. Notice how the industrial look compliments the robotic behavior of most players that reach this point.

Level 06

Level 06 shows one of my fetish looks. The gray mixed with almost omnipresent wood colors just looks fantastic. For the first time, the off-white trim really makes a difference in the look by complimenting the other colors perfectly. I love that level 06, even for the gameplay. The speed isn’t too fast, but it doesn’t waste your time. This is where my inspiration starts.

Level 07

Okay, this color might be too much for a lot of people. As I kid, I did try to rush through this one because of the burgundy on purple visuals. Nonetheless, if you want a feminine but refined master bedroom, this is your color palette. In my case, it kept the girlfriend happy, since this strangely resembles my bedroom. When you’re up to level 07, it’s better to keep calm and choose your battles carefully. So what if a couple of holes start appearing.

Level 08

I’m not going to talk about Red vs. Blue here. It’s a simple mistake that amateurs like you are likely to make. We’re not seeing red in level 08’s palette, but terracotta. Just like the classic basic color tennis courts, this palette reminds us of heat, the heated stress of knowing you don’t have much time before the crazy level. Perfect for a summer house bathroom, perfect to try and get things under control before Level 09.

Level 09

We reached level 09. Time to take out the “bling bling” with this golden and copper. Whatever happens here, we’ll be proud of our performance. The colors are just a reminder that, in our own book, we’re winners and we deserve a ton of money. I mean, we have the means to buy ourselves a AAA cast for an Orchestra!

So there you have it folks! Your first free course on interior design, only on 1 More Castle. Now I want you all to go buy a copy of the Sims and print out these Tetris color palettes and send me your design ideas and tips! Come back next time as we shop for Peach’s wedding dress and visit the family of adorable Toads who adopted 8 goombas.