Mahjong Block (Tetris)

[Barticle]

Sonic had to play a Tetris game as a forfeit and someone recommended a vintage 8-bit game using mahjong tiles.

Majohn Block, also known as AV Dragon Mahjong, was released in Asia for the Family Computer (Famicom) back in 1991.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ha7IhvlVuHM

An American version called Poke Block was planned for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) but wasn't released and exists only as a prototype. The mahjong tile designs were replaced with simple Arabic numerals for the West. The game was renamed again and Stakk'm (stack 'em) was included in a 1992 NES game compendium called Maxi 15 (which also features a variant of mahjong solitaire with the grand title Tiles Of Fate).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQ56GhXzcAI

There's not much to it - you drop individual tiles, build sequence/triplet sets to clear them and flowers are wildcards - but there are guides to the various versions on GameFAQs:

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/nes/98956 ... faqs/59079

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/nes/93555 ... faqs/55489

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/nes/58744 ... faqs/35011

[Ozball]

Huh, looks interesting. Though I'm guessing the only way to really play it these days is via emulator? (or digging around for a copy online, though I'm guessing if it's niche it might not be cheap)

[Barticle]

Yeah, I expect physical games of this era would command high prices from collectors. I only really look at more recent platforms but even Nintendo DS game prices seem to have climbed a lot on eBay so I'm glad I grabbed mine when I did. Also for the mahjong version of this game you'd need the Asian console to match!

I'd guess there are many options for emulators. I found one that plays online (no install) which has the 15-game compendium, although it's a bit slow and stuttery.

https://www.retrogames.cz/play_1173-NES.php?language=EN

[lexfurther]

Looks great!

[legra]

I like mahjong but I haven't played Tetris. Looks interesting, thanks!
I usually play mahjong at home. We have a set and often spend evenings playing (I'm lucky to have a family who shares my hobbies). Also, I often play mahjong online, mostly at https://www.mahjongfree.org/ . I noticed that there are different types of this game, but I haven't checked all of them. I'll look for Tetris there. I hope it will be as exciting as other game versions.