Tetris has a sand-based remix that's devastatingly good for procrastinating, out now for free

Tetris gobbled up so much of my time during the early years of university, partly because it functioned as a quick break between writing essays. Those quick breaks soon became trances though, as my eyes stayed unblinking and my fingers snapped across the keyboard with a mind of their own. The best game of all time, some might argue. Professional procrastinators can now rejoice as there’s a new way to play the blocky puzzler: Setris, or Tetris with sand.

Tetris’ basic premise remains unchanged - different-coloured blocks fall from the sky and you need to line those colours up to make them disappear, adding to your overall high score. Setris’ twist is that the blocks now dissolve into sand when they touch the ground - forming peaks, rolling down hills, and filling in crevices. The sand-based remix adds new tactics to the old classic since it’s now easier to make vertical plays and you can manipulate the terrain in lots of creative ways.

Plus, there’s the added treat of watching a box fill up with pixelated sand. Sure, it’s a childlike pleasure but surely everyone enjoys sand. From kids with their kickable sandcastles to adults who just enjoy grabbing a handful of granules, it’s plainly satisfying. Oh, and the screen slightly shakes when a block hits the ground, adding an extra bit of oomph every few seconds.

I’ve been sucked back into the block-filling world at an alarming rate thanks to Setris - I even squeezed in a few rounds while writing this very post. Although, the game hasn’t put me into a trance yet, mainly because some situations are impossible to escape from. There’s only so much you can do against a V-shaped crevice here, you know?

Regardless, it's a really fun and silly new way to play Tetris. You can download Setris for free on Itchi.io.