I have been waiting to play this game since its debut in PlayStation 4 in 2018. During those three years, I have been watching all those streamers playing this game on YouTube until my appetite for this game become so much I do not want to wait any longer to play it. Now that Tetris Effect: Connected is finally released on Steam, the wait for me is over.

Whether you have played modern Tetris (with concepts of hold queue, hard drop, etc.), classic Tetris (that one on NES), or you have never played Tetris before, Tetris Effect: Connected is the game that can give you pure joy of playing Tetris. The showcase of this game, Journey Mode, walks you through a universe of beautiful, whimsical, almost dream-like worlds along with visuals and sounds that work perfectly with each other. In this mode, you will be playing Tetris at different speed levels as the scene evolves, and throughout the game, speed levels complement perfectly with the visuals and sounds. You can adjust the difficulty for this mode, so you can enjoy this mode without worrying too much about your Tetris skill.

Another feature worth mentioning for this iteration of Tetris is the Zone mechanic. With this mechanic, you can save up your Zone meter by clearing lines, and use them to stop pieces from falling, clear multiple lines at a time, and rack up huge amounts of points with the perfect satisfactory feeling of clearing 18 lines with that Perfectris. This Zone mechanic can also help you when you need to untangle your situation without gravity, so this can be your helpline if you are not that skilled.

Effect Modes are like the Arcade mode of this game. This mode contains traditional game modes, like Marathon, Sprint, and Ultra. The list doesn't end there, though, because there are also a lot of new challenges, like All Clear, Combo, Target, Countdown, Purify, and Mystery. If you want to chill and not worry about topping your playing field, there are also relax modes like Chill Marathon, Quick Play, and Playlists that will not punish you when you failed. There is also the ultimate challenge, Master Mode, which will test your skills to the extreme. Almost every mode in this game has, again, the perfect harmony of visuals and music. Some modes, like Marathon, do not have their style, but you can play with your favourite visual from Journey Mode as well.

Perhaps the most interesting addition to Tetris Effect: Connected from the original version released in 2018 are the Multiplayer Modes. If you feel like you want to duel with someone else, Zone Battles are the new addition you must try. It is a standard Tetris duel where you can duel with anyone from any system around the world (yes, cross-platform is available). What's interesting is you can use the Zone mechanic to send garbage to your opponent or fight back when your opponent sends a huge amount of garbage to you. As with many modes of this game, the graphics and sounds go together perfectly, almost heavenly, especially when both players enter the Zone.

If you are not interested in modern battling, there are also Score Attack and Classic Score Attack. Score Attack is simply a battle where you do not send lines, but rack up points. The player with the higher score before getting toppled out wins. Classic Score Attack is the same, except it is classic Tetris, the one you see on Classic Tetris World Championship. The look and feel of Classic Score Attack is a perfect blend of NES Tetris and that signature look of Tetris Effect, but you can still go old school with this mode, which is perfect.

Another multiplayer mode that is not just "another multiplayer mode" is Connected mode. In this mode, you team up with two other players to fight against one CPU boss that can throw tantrum at you, making your life harder as you try to clear lines in your playfield. However, with the power of friendship, when your Zone meter is full, your playfields will merge and you can help each other fill up lines and fight back. With the power of friendship from strangers around the world, this is an absolutely beautiful game mode.

If you look at the trailer of this game and see a lot of things going on the screen besides tetrominoes falling, and you worry about the performance of your machine, don't worry. The game is very smooth on my four-year-old hardware, which is crucial for the overall experience of any Tetris game. You need high frame rates to do split-second decisions, and those split-second decisions can make a difference between winning and losing the Zone Battle. I am very surprised about this game's graphics performance since I played Rez Infinite Area X and that game did not give me the same smooth experience as this game.

With stunning visuals, compelling music, various game modes, perfect multiplayer experience (once you managed to get into a multiplayer game, though), and great game engine performance, this is THE perfect Tetris game you have to play. I enjoy every second of it, not to mention the fact that I have been waiting for THREE YEARS to finally lay my hands on this perfect game. So please, if you are still reading this, buy this game. Don't wait for the sale, or else you will be missing the best experience you can get out of this perfect game.