Piece

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Revision as of 03:24, 6 August 2006 by *>Tepples (→‎Polyominoes: consistent punctuation)
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A piece in Tetris and similar games is a geometric shape consisting of a set of blocks that is moved as a unit. A block is part of a piece. In some games, all blocks that make up a piece are colored the same; in others, especially falling piece games other than Tetris and its clones, they are colored differently.

Polyominoes

A polyomino is a piece made of two or more square blocks, where all blocks are connected through full coincident edges (as if squares on graph paper).

  • A free polyomino is one that may be translated (moved about), rotated, or reflected.
  • A one-sided polyomino is one that may be translated or rotated.
  • A fixed polyomino can only be translated.

Polyominoes come in several sizes:

Polyominoes are often named by a Latin letter that resembles the shape of the polyomino. For instance, an "I" has all its blocks in a straight line, and a "T" consists of an "I" tromino with one or more blocks in a straight line connected to one side of the center of the "I".

Hinged polyominoes

A hinged polyomino is similar to a polyomino but also allows connections at a point. In games that use hinged polyominoes, the pieces may break apart when they land, and they may or may not be controllable after they break.

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