Remote console allowed players to move, rotate, and drop blocks.
MIT hackers have, for some time now, considered playing “Tetris on the Green Building” to be the mother of all hacks. Just last week, they FINALLY accomplished this long sought after hack.
MIT students hacked the Institute’s Green Building and played a game of Tetris on the front of it.
According to the IHTFP Hack Gallery, MIT’s resource for hacks done over the years, “MIT hackers have long considered ‘Tetris on the Green Building’ to be the Holy Grail of hacks, as the side of the building is a wonderful grid for the game.”
A bit odd that MIT supports hacking, right? Well, according to the IHTFP site, the word “hack” at MIT “refers to a clever, benign, and ‘ethical’ prank or practical joke, which is both challenging for the perpetrators and amusing to the MIT community (and sometimes even the rest of the world!).” Their use of the word has nothing to do with phone or computer hacking, which the community collectively calls “cracking.”
MIT’s Green Building is home to the Institute’s Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences department. At 21 stories, it is also the site’s tallest structure.
Hackers used 153 wirelessly controlled, color-changing LED lights for their enormous game. Players could control the puzzle a good distance away from the building, using a joystick attached to a podium to rotate, drop, and move blocks just like in the real game.
MIT students at the joystick-podium.
The game began with the scrolling of the word “Tetris” on the building. As players moved further in the game, the levels became harder, with the second level featuring paler colors than the first level, while the third level used colors shifting on-screen.
When a user lost the game, all of the blocks would fall to the bottom of the building.
Level 2 of the game: even with pastel colors, the game could be seen from a good distance away.
Amazing stuff! Enjoy video of the game being played:
■
Story and images via: IHTFP Hack Gallery
Video via: Mshochat723
Advertisement
Learn more about Electronic Products Magazine
