Ask any game maker what the greatest game of all time is and there's a decent chance they'll say Tetris.
Ask anyone how you organize an exciting, authentic competitive event around Tetris and you'll probably get some blank stares -- unless you're at the 2019 Game Developers Conference, where you'll probably get a lot of strong opinions and some suggestions to go see the Classic Tetris World Championship talk.
Specifically, you'll want to check out "'Tetris' World Championship: Building Explosive Esports on 8-bit Nintendo" a GDC 2019 Business & Marketing track talk all about the genesis and inner workings of the Classic Tetris World Championship, which has grown since its 2010 debut to become one of the biggest modern Tetris events.
Presented by veteran consultant and eSports commentator Chris Tang (currently a senior game designer at Hitsparks Games), this session explores how the CTWC format makes the most of odd things like NES Tetris' quirky killscreens, OCR technology, a passionate community low in toxicity and high in intellect, attachment to growing gaming events, explosive memes, and having an amazing role model for a champion.
This is a great opportunity to learn how the positive esports culture around the CTWC was cultivated, and how it reflects back to strengthen the value of both the event and the modern community of Tetris fans. It's a feel-good story with useful takeaways for any esports dev, so don't miss it!
Further details on this talk and many more are available now on the GDC 2019 Session Scheduler. There you can begin to lay out your GDC 2019, which takes place March 18th through the 22nd at the (newly renovated!) Moscone Center in San Francisco.
Bring your team to GDC! Register a group of 10 or more and save 10 percent on conference passes. Learn more here.
For more details on GDC 2019 visit the show's official website, or subscribe to regular updates via Facebook, Twitter, or RSS.
