SCREENSHOTS

INSTRUCTIONS

The aim of the game is to stack blocks into the pit without gaps. Full layers disappear. The "active" block is displayed as a white wireframe. Rotate and move the active block so it fits into the pit without gaps. The game ends when the pit flows over.

Controls

Tap-and-drag the yellow controls to move the block.

Left control

Use the inner ball to rotate the block out of the screen plane (pitch and yaw). Use the outer wheel to rotate the block within the screen plane (roll)

Right control

Drag the ball to shift the block left-right and up-down

Double click anywhere on the screen

Drop the ball to the ground

Alternatively, you can move the block by directly touching the game field.

Single-finger swipe on the block

Rotate the block out of the screen plane

Single-finger swipe around the block, or two-finger twist

Rotate the block within the screen plane

Two-finger swipe or (on capable devices) force-touch-swipe

Shift the block left-right and up-down

Scoring

You earn a little score for each dropped cube. However, to reach a really high score you need to create full layers. As soon as a layer is full it will burst (disappear) and you'll get points.

• You'll get more points when you burst many layers at once (double-burst, triple-burst or quadruple-burst, also called a "qubotron"). To achieve a multi-burst, build up a stack of layers but leave one grid position empty. Then, wait for a 3x1x1 block (a "bar") and fit it into the empty position.
• After each minute of gameplay, the level is increased by one. The higher the level, the faster the active block will fall down, increasing time pressure. The good thing is that you will also get more points in higher levels. For the same action (e.g. a layer burst) you will get three times more points in level 3 than in level 1. Hint: You can select the start level in the game options according to your skill, so you can earn more points right from the start without having to go through the lower (easy) levels.
• You'll get additional points for special moves like the "eclipse" and "eclipse burst", known elsewhere as "T-Spin" moves. An "eclipse" is when you first create an overhang (i.e. a void space under another block), and then manouver the active block into this overhang from the side. After you drop a block (by a double-click) you still have a grace period of half a second or so to rotate/shift the block. Use this to shift the active block to the side into the overhang quickly after dropping it. An "eclipse burst" is when this results in the completing of one or more layers. This can be only done by rotating a block (preferrably a T-shaped block) after dropping it. A more detailed explanation is found here: T-Spin [external link].

EDUCATIONAL ASPECT

A scientific study with teenagers showed that games like this can improve the spatial sense. The study was conducted using a quite similar game, the DOS game Blockout from the 90s.

In this study with more than 100 kids, half of the kids got the opportunity to play Blockout during summer vacation, the other half did not. The spatial sense of all kids was tested before and after the vacation using a standard test procedure (Gittler 3DW Test). The kids having played the game improved significantly compared to the kids not having played the game.

Citation:
A. Noss: Improvement of spatial sense in 10 to 14 year-olds by the video game Blockout, diploma thesis, Vienna University, 1994
Original German title: "Förderung der Raumvorstellung bei 10- bis 14-Jährigen durch das Computerspiel Blockout".