By Elias Dounis on January 27th, 2006

The puzzle game that put the original Game Boy into the hands of millions of games so many years ago is being reinvented for Nintendo’s dual-screened handheld. Tetris DS is being developed internally at Nintendo and is scheduled to hit retail shelves in North America on March 20th. The good news is that Tetris for the DS isn’t just your typical rehash. The game will utilize the DS’ touch-screen controls and will even offer online multiplayer for up to four players using the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

This unique take on Tetris DS is the use of the touch-screen capability of the Nintendo DS. Players use a stylus to drag and move Tetriminos in a giant stack to make them fall into horizontal lines. In early levels, they can tap Tetriminos to spin them just the way they need them. Players have as much time as they need to carefully plan their moves, so it plays very differently from the other frantic modes.

That’s not all that’s new, however. Each mode in the game will be based on a popular Nintendo franchise character and the gameplay will change slightly based on these modes. For instance, the Mario-themed mode features the same addictive game play that made the original Tetris so wildly popular, but as players guide falling Tetriminos (falling blocks) and form horizontal lines to clear them away, Mario runs around Super Mario Bros. levels in the background. Six gameplay modes are planned in total but Nintendo has yet to officially reveal what they will be.

In addition, up to 10 players can play the game simultaneously using the DS’ Download Play feature. So, if you’re friends don’t own a copy of the game, they can still get in on the fun. However, the game’s online multiplayer modes will require each player to own his or her own copy of the game.

There’s no denying the popularity of Tetris and its appeal. Tetris DS is sure to be a hit amongst gamers on the Nintendo DS when it sees a release in late March.