Tetris 25th Anniversary

Although the first version of Tetris - built on an Elektronika 60 computer - is now 25 years old, it is still recognisable as the game millions play today. Photograph: PR

1989: Alexey Pajitnov, the inventor of Tetris, became a celebrity thanks to his creation - but he was unable to profit from his creation for many years because the Soviet state owned the concept Photograph: Sipa Press/Rex Features

Tetris started out on PCs in Russia, before spreading across the Soviet Union and into eastern Europe - then worldwide. Here somebody is playing the game on a Nintendo Entertainment System Photograph: Richard Drew/AP

1989: Tetris turned into an instant global success story overnight after it was bundled free with the Nintendo GameBoy - bringing the blocks to millions more people around the world Photograph: Graeme Robertson

2002: By the turn of the millennium, Pajitnov had moved to America to work for Microsoft as a games designer - creating a series of successors to Tetris, including Hexic, Welltris and others Photograph: Matthew McVay/Corbis

Tetris holds a Guinness World Record for being the most ported game in history - it is now available on games consoles, handheld devices, phones and many more Photograph: Yoshikatsu Tsuno/AFP

The game's popularity and style inspired countless artists and crafters to pay homage: Hastings College student Peter Carter developed a game where glass cubes are placed one at a time on a board to form Tetris shapes Photograph: Scott Kingsley/AP

In Japan, they even tried a form of human Tetris Photograph: Public Domain

Break dance? Looks painful. Photograph: Public Domain

The lights in this building were manipulated to switch on and off to create the illusion of Tetris blocks moving downwards Photograph: Public Domain

The game even went green, with these Tetris pots by French designer Stéphanie Choplin Photograph: www.fubiz.net

Part puzzle game, part Ikea nightmare, this Tetris furniture by Brazilian designer Diego Silvério was made to appeal to fans of the game Photograph: www.fubiz.net

Members of the Purdue basketball team are congratulated by students on the front row dressed as the video game Tetris. It's not quite clear why, but it looks like fun Photograph: Andrew Hancock/Corbis

Tetris Evolution for the Xbox 360: Tetris has continued to grow since its 1990s heyday - although the rules on what constitutes an appropriate version of the game are strictly controlled. Photograph: Public Domain

Tetris pop game: The guidelines on what makes a game officially Tetris include which controls are used to move blocks and drop them down the screen Photograph: Public Domain

Tetris world game: Official versions of Tetris must also stick with the specific set of colours and shapes originally designed by Pajitnov Photograph: Public Domain

25 years on: Tetris creator Alexey Pajitnov, right, and Dutch games publisher Henk Rogers Photograph: PR