A strange little side quest
Even a quick game like Budge Up sits on top of decades — and sometimes centuries — of ideas. The name Tetris combines a reference to four-square pieces with Pajitnov's interest in tennis. The same trail leads to another fact: The word 'checkmate' is linked to the Persian expression 'shah mat', used when the king was trapped. That long chain of experiments is part of why puzzles still feels fresh when a game finds the right twist.