ModRetro's Chromatic FPGA handheld is coming later this year and will offer a new way to enjoy Game Boy and Game Boy Color games – but it's also getting its own titles (which, in turn, will be compatible with existing Game Boy hardware).
One of the most notable Chromatic games is going to be bundled with the device: Chromatic Tetris. Just as the original Game Boy included Tetris, ModRetro is hoping that this pack-in game will propel the Chromatic to bumper sales – as well as become a new standard in the competitive Tetris scene.
Speaking to Time Extension this week, ModRetro CEO Torin Herndon spoke a little about Chromatic Tetris, which has been developed in-house at ModRetro in close collaboration with The Tetris Company "to ensure strict adherence to the Tetris brand and guidelines."
Herndon has high hopes for the game. "Chromatic Tetris was developed from the outset with the goal of being a new competitive handheld Tetris, and we committed to appearing at the Classic Tetris World Championships before we even had a prototype Chromatic," he tells us. "This Tetris was being play-tested by the best Tetris players in the world during development, and therefore has special gameplay options that blend classic competition modes together with modern gameplay."
The ModRetro CEO – who is also employed as an engineer at the company – believes that this release will stand out from the many others that have come since the Game Boy game made such a splash back in 1989. "I believe Chromatic Tetris will be quite notable looking back on the history of Tetris several decades from now, and at every level, we tried to give Tetris the respect it deserves as the most recognizable game in human history."