Frequently Asked Questions

1.0 About Tetris Zone

What is Tetris Zone?

Tetris Zone is the official Tetris game for the Macintosh and Windows platform. It contains four game modes called Marathon, Challenge, Sprint and Master, and each mode has its own Leader Board viewable at http://www.tetriszone.com.

I just want to play standard Tetris. Can I do that?

Yes, Marathon mode would be analogous to "standard" Tetris with a level limit of 15.

What are the system requirements for Tetris Zone for Windows?

Tetris Zone for Windows requires Windows 2000/XP/Vista, 512MB of System RAM, 64MB VRAM and OpenGL 1.4 or Greater. 65MB of hard disk space is required for installation.

What are the system requirements for Tetris Zone for Mac?

Tetris Zone for Mac requires an Intel or PowerPC-based Macintosh computer running OSX 10.3 or greater and 256MB of System RAM. Your video card must also have 32MB of VRAM. Finally, 65MB of hard disk space is required for installation.

Is Tetris Zone for Mac a Universal Binary?

Yes.

How much does Tetris Zone cost?

Tetris Zone costs $9.95. It can be purchased and downloaded for your specific platform from the official Tetris Zone website at http://www.tetriszone.com.

Can I try before I buy?

Yes. Just click the DOWNLOAD NOW button at http://www.tetriszone.com to download the game. In Trial mode, the game limits your play and available feature set. Be sure to download the version appropriate for your platform.

How do I purchase Tetris Zone?

Visit http://www.tetriszone.com and click the BUY NOW button. You'll be taken to a Tetris Pass signup form where you'll create your Tetris Pass account and pay for the game.

Is the transaction secure?

Yes. The Tetris Zone website has a security certificate issued through Equifax. This security certificate is issued to the tetris.com domain and all its sub-domains including www.tetriszone.com. Mac users can view the certificate by clicking the padlock icon in the upper right corner of the Safari web browser. PCs using Internet Explorer should right click within the page, select Properties then click the Certificates button to view the certificate. Finally, Tetris Zone transactions and purchases occur over a secure HTTP connection as identified by the letters "https" in the URL of the Buy Now checkout page.

I purchased the game but never received my Welcome email.

It's possible that the email was captured by your mail server's spam filter or it may be in the spam folder of your email client. Some mail servers implement aggressive spam filters that can keep legitimate email from reaching its intended destination. Often times, the sender will receive a message like the following: "To control spam, I now allow incoming messages only from senders I have approved beforehand. If you would like to be added to my list of approved senders, please fill out the short request form (see link below). Once I approve you, I will receive your original message in my inbox. You do not need to resend your message. I apologize for this one-time inconvenience." We see this message quite a bit, particularly from Earthlink emails. Please disable this functionality or consult with your mail service provider for alternative means of controlling spam.

After I purchase Tetris Zone, how do I unlock the full game?

When you purchase Tetris Zone for Mac, you must sign up for a Tetris Pass account. Your purchase is tied to the Tetris Pass account so that any time you log into Tetris Zone, you will have the full game with no restrictions.

Which payment methods can I use?

You can use any valid credit card to pay for Tetris Zone. Bank debit cards with a VISA or MasterCard symbol are also accepted. Cash payment systems such as PayPal are not currently supported.

Do you accept international orders?

Yes. Again, a valid credit card is required.

2.0 Tetris Pass & Network Settings

What is a Tetris Pass?

A Tetris Pass is a special account that uniquely identifies you as a valid user of Tetris Zone.

Do I need an Internet connection to play?

An Internet connection is required when you initially log into the Tetris Zone game client. This is how we check for a Tetris Zone license. As long as you're "signed in" on the client (you should see your Tetris Pass username at the bottom of the Main Menu), you no longer need an Internet connection to play. However, without an Internet connection, you will be not able to upload your scores. If at any point you log out of the Tetris Zone client, the game will revert back to its trial mode and you will need to log in again to access the full game.

Do I need a Tetris Pass to play?

No, but you will be limited to the trial mode. Tetris Pass accounts that have purchased a license will need to log into the client in order to access the full game.

I get the error "Can't Login" and I'm stuck in the trial mode. I paid for this game but I can't play.

You are likely behind a private or company firewall that is blocking INCOMING port 443 traffic (this is a typical situation at schools). You will need to contact your system administrators regarding this problem. We cannot provide support for these types of situations, nor can we be liable for any violation of network policies.

I receive the message "Login failed, invalid name or password" when logging into Tetris Zone. My username and password are correct, so what gives?

We are having a problem with symbols in the password. If you signed up with a Tetris Pass and used symbols for your password, please go to http://www.tetriszone.com and log into your Tetris Pass account. Click SETTINGS at the top right and change your password so that it does not have any symbols. You should be able to log into Tetris Zone.

I am unable to log into my Tetris Pass web account. Help!

Please send an email to support@zone.tetris.com.

3.0 Installation

How do I install Tetris Zone?

On a PC, double click the installation file and follow the onscreen insructions. For Mac, open the image file then drag and drop the application to any directory on your computer.

How much hard drive space does Tetris Zone take?

Tetris Zone requires about 50MB of disk space.

How do I uninstall Tetris Zone?

For PC, go to the Tetris Zone folder and click Uninstall. For Mac, drag the application icon to the trash can.

I get an "Error reading setup initialization file" message during installation.

This error is usually the result of an unsuccessful download. Sometimes an installer package will have appeared to have downloaded successfully, because no error message was given about the download; however, you will not always receive an error message when the entire file was not downloaded successfully. When you run the exe file, it has enough information available to start running, but it will only get far enough to provide the error message you're receiving. Since it does not have the complete file content, it will not be able to read the setup initializaton file. If you receive this error message, you will need to try downloading the file again.

I receive an "Error 1723" message during installation.

Please go to http://www.softwarepatch.com/security/winstallxpdownload.html to download an installer update. Install it then install Tetris Zone again.

4.0 OpenGL

Why do I need OpenGL for the Windows version of Tetris Zone?

Tetris Zone for Windows requires an OpenGL compliant video card, as well as an installation of the OpenGL driver. Many video card manufacturers provide support for OpenGL, especially owners of newer generation video cards from ATI and nVidia. Some pre-configured systems are also pre-installed with the OpenGL driver. See the bottom of this FAQ for links to video card companies.

How do I know if my card supports OpenGL?

One quick test is to go to http://homepage.mac.com/qubedstudios/zeldacubedlive.htm and observe the demo. If you have the Shockwave plug-in installed for your browser, a rotating 3D map should appear. On the bottom right beneath the 3D map you should see the words 3d Renderer with either the words openGL or software. If you see the word openGL then your system should be able to run Tetris Zone. If you see software or direct3d then your system is not running hardware OpenGL. Please update your drivers. If you are absolutely sure that your system has all the latest updates, then in all likelihood your system does not support Hardware OpenGL.

I have opengl32.dll installed on my system. Will this work?

The file opengl32.dll does not indicate whether your system is capable of running OpenGL. It only detects the presence of an OpenGL driver for your specific hardware.

I have garbled graphics when trying to play Tetris Zone.

It is likely you may need to install an updated OpenGL driver on your computer. Please refer to your video card/chipset manufacturer's website for information on an updated driver that contains the OpenGL library. Important: You must ensure that your video card supports the OpenGL standard! If you are not sure, please get in touch with the manufacturer for your system or video card to find out.

Tetris Zone seems to work, except that I see a white block where the Level and Goal indicators should be. There is also a white block at the top, and other random white blocks on the screen.

You have less than the 64MB of Video RAM necessary to run Tetris Zone. As a result, not all the graphical assets are appearing.

I have an nVidia-based video card/chipset. Where can I go to get the latest drivers?

Go to www.nvidia.com. Click the "Download Drivers" link in the upper left. This will produce a pull-down menu. Select "Download Drivers". A new page will load with four selection boxes. In the first box called "Product Type" please select the family of video card. In the next box, choose the correct series. In the final boxes, you'll want to choose the correct operating system and language. Finally, click the SEARCH button and you'll be taken to the correct download page. Download the drivers and carefully read the instructions on how to install it.

I have an ATI-based video card/chipset. Where can I go to get the latest drivers?

You can update your ATI video card with the latest drivers from ATI/AMD by visiting http://ati.amd.com/support/driver.html. Please select your operating system, product family and product carefully, then click the GO button to download the correct driver. Install the driver then run Tetris Zone.

I have updated my drivers but the game still does not work.

It is likely that your video card does not support OpenGL.

How do I get in touch with my video card manufacturer about OpenGL?

Please visit the appropriate support area for possible driver updates. This list in no way guarantees that an OpenGL driver is available. It is only a list of card manufacturers:
3Dlabs - http://www.3dlabs.com
Asus - http://www.asus.com
ATI - http://www.ati.com
Aztech Labs - http://www.aztechlabs.com
Canopus - http://www.canopuscorp.com
Creative Labs - http://www.creativelabs.com
Diamond Multimedia - http://www.diamondmm.com
Elsa Technology - http://www.elsa.com
Guillemot - http://www.guillemot.com
Hercules (see Guillemot) - http://www.guillemot.com
I/O Magic - http://www.iomagic.com
Jaton - http://www.jaton.com
Leadtek - http://www.leadtek.com
Matrox - http://www.matrox.com
NVIDIA - http://www.nvidia.com
Orchid - http://www.diamondmm.com
SiS - http://www.sis.com
VIA Technologies - http://www.via.com.tw

5.0 How to Play

Is there a game manual that I can read online?

You can view the current version of the game manual under the Help menu of Tetris Zone. Run the game and select the Help pulldown menu, then click Tetris Zone Help.

How do I do a T-Spin?

A video demonstration of the T-Spin can be found by running Tetris Zone and selecting the Help pulldown menu, then Tetris Zone Help. When the Help screen appears, select Tutorials. Note that a T-Spin can only be performed with a T piece.

Can I perform a T-Spin with any other piece besides the T-piece?

No, a T-Spin can only be accomplished with a T-piece, hence the name T-Spin.

Why does Marathon end abruptly?

You met the game ending condition of Marathon mode, which ends at Level 15 when 75 lines are cleared. You can find out about the different game modes in Section 2.0 of the game manual. You can view the manual from within the game itself under the Help menu.

6.0 Common Questions and Issues

I updated the game to the latest version but I am back to the demo mode. Help!

From time to time, a new version of the game is released which will require that you log back into the game after the upgrade. Rest assured, you do NOT have to pay for the game again. First, make sure you download the new version at http://www.tetriszone.com. Be sure to install it over your existing version. When you successfully install the game, just double click the Tetris Zone game icon. When the game loads you should be presented with the Main Menu. There is an area at the upper right of the screen that allows you to input your Username and Password. Enter your Tetris Pass username and password in those fields and press the LOG IN button. That should unlock the full game and remove the demo timer.

My user name and/or password no longer work. What can I do?

If you forget your user name and/or password, you can request a re-send of your Welcome Email. Just visit http://www.tetriszone.com and click the LOGIN link at the upper right. On the login screen there is a "Forgot your password?" link. Enter the email address you used to register your Tetris Pass account and you will receive your Welcome Email. Your password will also be reset. To change your password back to your preference, log into your account at http://www.tetriszone.com and click the SETTINGS link to change it.

When I try to log in, I get a "server unavailable" message.

Popular software firewalls such as Window's built in Fire Wall, as well as programs such as ZoneAlarm, Norton Firewall and Verizon Internet security have been known to cause problems with Tetris Zone. If you're running a software firewall, you will want to make sure that your exceptions list includes Tetris Zone.

For Windows XP users with Service Pack 2, go to the Start button and select Control Panel. Double click the Windows Firewall icon. On the Windows Firewall window, click the Exceptions tab. Click the Add Program button. If Tetris Zone does not appear in the list, click Browse and find the Tetris Zone directory (default C:\Program Files\Blue Planet Software\TetrisZone) then select the TetrisZone application icon and click Open. This should add Tetris Zone to the Exceptions list. Click OK and make sure that Tetris Zone appears in the list with a check mark next to it. If it's not checked, check it. Click OK.

I get the error message "Maximum Licenses Exceeded."

We allow you to play on two different computers. If you receive a message at any time that states "Maximum Licenses Exceeded" then you are attempting to play on a third machine. You can de-authorize the existing two machines by visiting http://www.tetriszone.com and logging into your Tetris Pass account and visiting the SETTINGS page. There you will find a link to "de-authorize" your computers. This is a harmless procedure that does not affect your Tetris Pass account or any of your computers. It simply resets the licenses so that you can play the game on any two computers once again.

Why does it say "Maximum Licenses Exceeded" when I have only played Tetris Zone on one computer?

There are two possibilities. The first is common among laptop owners who have used both their wireless adapter and their ethernet port to play Tetris Zone. Tetris Zone looks at the MAC address to determine the identity of a computer and uses that MAC address to "remember" the number of computers that are permitted. However, since the MAC address is tied to the network hardware, and since many laptops offer both wireless and wired internet connectivity (each having their own MAC address), two MAC addresses can be associated to a single computer. The other possibility is that your login credentials may have been used by someone else. Although in most cases it involves someone the user may know (e.g. a family member on another computer), you should change your password immediately if you suspect anything. To change your password, please visit http://zone.tetris.com to sign into the website where you can make necessary changes to the account.

I am certain that I'm typing the user name and password correctly. What's going on?

Tetris Zone recognizes a United States QWERTY keyboard layout, which conflicts with other keyboard layouts from countries such as Germany (QWERTZ configuration) or France (AWERTZ configuration) where certain letters are switched (W and Z on a French keyboard, for example). This is easy to notice when entering your Tetris Pass username, but isn't so obvious when typing your password because the letters are hidden as you type them. Although you can't change your Tetris Pass user name, you can change the password to avoid such letters. Just visit http://www.tetriszone.com and click the LOGIN link in the upper right then click SETTINGS to change the password.

I don't like the default key assignments. How do I change these?

From the Tetris Zone Main Menu, press Options then the Keys tab to re-assign key mappings.

Does Tetris Zone support USB controllers?

We have not tested Tetris Zone with external controllers, which unfortunately means we can't make a recommendation on which one to use. In theory, controllers that allow keyboard input to be mapped to the controller should work fine but you will need to get in touch with the manufacturer to verify that their software drivers allow this type of functionality.

Tetris Zone seems laggy and/or the framerate suffers. What's up?

Power users who leave their system on 24 hours a day sometimes experience a loss in performance due to applications and the operating system itself taking system resources over time. A fresh reboot can often times free up those resources so that Tetris Zone can run at its optimum speed. Another thing you can do is to update your video card/chipset drivers. Some of the more mainstream GPU manufacturers such as nVidia, ATI and Intel often have frequent driver updates that improve performance. Just visit the manufacturer's website and locate their support section or drivers section.

How often is the Leader Board updated?

The world-wide Leader Board is updated every 10 minutes for each of the game modes, and spans the last 7 days of games played (literally, the past 168 hours). We call this a 7 day floating window. These rankings refresh every 10 minutes.

How often are scores updated for Today's Best Games?

These are updated in real-time, spanning the past 24 hours in a floating window fashion.

How quickly will my score post on the Leader Board?

If it's the high score of the past 24 hours, it will post immediately for everyone to see. If it's a score worthy of the world-wide Leader Board, it will post for everyone to see within 10 minutes.

Please explain the ranking system

Next to your personal stats (Your Stats on the website) is a numerical and star ranking. The star ranking represents your standing as a percentage compared to all other players. Five filled stars represents being in the top 10%, while 4.5 stars represents the top 20% and so on. The numerical ranking represents your position against the Top 500 players. Any position beyond the top 500 is represented with a 500+.

What happens if more than one person has the same time for Sprint?

An unlikely situation, but if two or more people have the same time, then the player with the higher score takes the better position.

The country flag for Espana does not show up on the Leader Board correctly.

Set your country to Spain instead of Espana.

The country flag for Great Britain does not show up on the Leader Board correctly.

Set your country to United Kingdom instead of Great Britain.

The game does not run. I need help.

Please ensure that you meet the system requirements for running the game (see the beginning of this FAQ for system requirements). If you have a PC and are experiencing problems, please read the OpenGL FAQ. If you are a Mac user trying to run Tetris Zone, one thing that is often overlooked is the amount of Video RAM (VRAM) that is needed to run the game. If you are unsure how much VRAM your system has, you can check by going to the Apple Menu>About This Mac>More Info. Under the section Hardware>Graphics/Displays (or PCI/AGP Cards) it will indicate how much VRAM your system supports. Tetris Zone *REQUIRES* 32MB of VRAM in order to run on a Mac.

I have a Creative Labs X-Fi sound card and Windows Vista. I get music but no sound FX in Tetris Zone.

Visit the Creative Labs support website at http://support.creative.com/ to download the latest Vista drivers for the X-Fi family of sound products.

7.0 Feedback and Support

How do I get in touch with Customer Support?

There is a Support Inquiry form at http://www.tetriszone.com under the Support tab. To access this form, you must be logged in with a Tetris Pass account. If you are unable to log in for any reason, you can also reach us at support@zone.tetris.com. Sorry, we do not offer phone support.

What are the hours for Customer Support?

Customer Support is available Monday through Friday from 9AM to 6PM Hawaii Standard Time. We will usually respond to inquiries within two business days, not counting major holidays or weekends.