Not that I needed a reason to dip back into Tetris Effect, but if I did, this would be it: a deviously hidden 1984 level that can be unlocked with a code and a keyboard.
The best bit: the secret 1984 variant has been hiding in plain sight. If you’re the type of person whose YouTube feed is filled with all things Tetris, you very well might’ve run across it before, but otherwise, it’s probably new to you too. In honor of World Tetris Day, two of Tetris Effect‘s secret stages got an official signal boost from The Tetris Company.
As a refresher, the secret 1989 level theme can be unlocked permanently if you rank up your Tetris Effect player profile to level 50. Yeah, yeah — you know. But what about 1984?
Unlocking 1984 in Tetris Effect with a controller and keyboard
To unlock this level, you’ll need to enter the following inputs on the Tetris Effect title screen: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, O, X (on a PlayStation controller) or Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A (on an Xbox or Oculus controller).
If you entered this iconic sequence correctly, you’ll see a strange new screen that looks like something out of an ARG.
Next, you’ll need to use a keyboard: type in the code “06061984” and hit enter. You should then see a notice that “1984” is unlocked — it’s a one-time process.
And if you happen to have an Xbox Chatpad, that’ll work too.
Here’s the payoff:
As you can see from this gameplay captured by YouTube user Sar, Tetris Effect‘s 1984 level is lo-fi as heck — and if you play our cards right, it’ll go nuts with colors and effects.
The secret stage is meant to be a “tribute to the original version of Tetris for the Electronika 60, the old Soviet PC Alexey Pajinov first created the game on.”
Really cool, right? I think I can actually be bothered to untangle my keyboard from my whole desk… situation to unlock 1984 on my PS4. Wish me luck.