Tetris

Tetris is a puzzle game designed by Alexey Pajitnov, released by Nintendo for the Game Boy in 1989. Based on Pajitnov's original 1984 concept, this handheld version tasks the player with rotating and arranging falling tetromino shapes to form complete horizontal lines, which then clear, as the pace steadily accelerates. Nintendo famously bundled it with the Game Boy in North America and Europe, a decision widely credited with driving the handheld's mass-market success far beyond a typical games audience. With no story, no save file, and rules anyone could grasp in seconds, it became the definitive pick-up-and-play travel game, equally at home with children, parents, and grandparents, and its adaptation of the Russian folk tune Korobeiniki became one of the most recognizable pieces of music in the medium. It also introduced two-player competitive play over the Game Boy Link Cable. Endlessly replayable and instantly legible on the small monochrome screen, it is the archetypal handheld game and, for millions, the reason they owned a Game Boy at all. As the cartridge that got passed around the backseat until the batteries died on a long summer drive, it is the definitive portable summer game, and a natural number one on any Game Boy list.