Culture & Community

The Tetris Rights Wars

Gaming's most complex licensing saga

Tetris emerged from the Soviet Union into a thicket of competing claims, fraudulent contracts, and corporate espionage that reads like a Cold War thriller.

C64SpectrumNES historylegallicensing 1984–1996

Overview

Alexey Pajitnov created Tetris in 1984. He wouldn’t profit from it for over a decade. The game’s journey from Soviet research institute to global phenomenon involved forged contracts, competing claims, KGB meetings, and corporate manoeuvring that would make a spy novelist blush.

Fast facts

  • Creator: Alexey Pajitnov, at Soviet Academy of Sciences.
  • Original platform: Electronika 60 (1984).
  • Rights holder: Soviet government (via ELORG) until 1996.
  • Key players: Henk Rogers, Robert Stein, various publishers.
  • Resolution: Pajitnov gained rights 1996, formed Tetris Company.

The Soviet problem

Under Soviet law, Pajitnov owned nothing:

  • Intellectual property belonged to the state.
  • ELORG (state software agency) controlled foreign licensing.
  • Multiple parties claimed rights with varying legitimacy.
  • Nobody in the West understood Soviet bureaucracy.

The chaos begins

Tetris escaped the USSR through unofficial channels:

  • Hungarian programmers created PC version.
  • Robert Stein (Andromeda) claimed rights without proper contracts.
  • Stein licensed to Mirrorsoft (UK) and Spectrum HoloByte (US).
  • Nobody had actually secured Soviet approval.

Nintendo enters

Nintendo wanted Tetris for Game Boy:

  • Henk Rogers flew to Moscow to negotiate.
  • Discovered existing “rights” were legally dubious.
  • Met directly with ELORG, secured legitimate contracts.
  • Nintendo obtained console rights; handheld became the prize.

The showdown

Multiple companies claimed Game Boy rights:

  • Atari (via Tengen) thought they had home console rights.
  • Nintendo had legitimate ELORG contract.
  • Lawsuits determined Nintendo’s claim was valid.
  • Atari’s Tengen version was pulled from shelves.

Game Boy phenomenon

The legitimate version became essential:

  • Bundled with Game Boy in US.
  • Sold 35+ million copies.
  • Defined portable gaming.
  • Made Tetris synonymous with Nintendo handhelds.

Pajitnov’s wait

The creator watched others profit:

  • Soviet license lasted until 1996.
  • Pajitnov moved to United States in 1991.
  • Worked at Microsoft on other games.
  • Finally formed Tetris Company when rights reverted.

Legacy

The Tetris rights saga demonstrated gaming’s growing commercial stakes. What began as a programmer’s hobby became worth fighting over in courts and conference rooms. The complexity showed an industry maturing into big business.

See also