For the first time ever, Red Bull Gaming took Tetris to new heights by transforming the Dubai night sky into a live, playable game using RGB drones. The thrilling grand final unfolded at the iconic Dubai Frame, standing 492 feet tall, where 4,000 drones illuminated the desert sky, accompanied by live music and surprise celebrity appearances, making it a spectacle to remember.
The Red Bull Tetris tournament included participants from 60 nations who competed in over 7 million qualifying matches. These were succeeded by National Finals in each of the 60 countries and a full day of World Final knock-out rounds. Unlike the traditional Tetris game, where blocks descend gradually, this tournament had three-minute rounds with gravity changes, speed increases, and unique power-ups.
In an exhilarating pre-final match, Femi Atalar from Turkey and Leo Solorzano from Peru battled it out for three minutes, with the winner earning the choice to either set the target score or chase it. Both players were given five minutes of gameplay to reach the target, with their Tetriminos being created in real-time by a fleet of 2,800 drones, 1,400 for each player.
The breathtaking game was brought to life on a 150-meter-high structure, where synchronized drones carefully mirrored every fall, rotation, and drop of the Tetriminos in real-time. Solorzano went first, setting a target score of 57,164, but Atalar quickly surpassed it, finishing with an impressive score of 168,566.
Femi Atalar (Turkey) and Leo Solorzano (Peru) faced off in a 3-minute pre-final.
The winner chose whether to set or chase the target score.
The game was played in real-time with 2,800 drones—1,400 for each player.
A 150-meter-high structure was used to display the live Tetris game.
Solorzano set a target score of 57,164, but Atalar smashed it with a final score of 168,566.
Tetris is a classic puzzle video game that was originally designed and programmed by Russian computer scientist Alexey Pajitnov in 1984. It's one of the most famous and influential video games of all time.
A Tetris tournament is a competitive event where players compete to score the highest or last the longest. The most famous example is the Classic Tetris World Championship (CTWC), where players use the 1989 NES version of the game on vintage consoles to achieve impressive scores. In addition to these classic competitions, modern tournaments like Red Bull Tetris add extra challenges, such as time limits and power-ups, to keep the gameplay exciting.