Appendix F — Glossary
One word for each idea, used the same way everywhere in the game and in this book.
- ****All clear****
- a clear that leaves the well empty
- ****Back-to-back****
- a cascade or twist clear after another one, with no plain clear between
- ****Bag****
- a shuffled set of all seven kinds, added to the queue
- ****Best****
- a personal best kept on the device (shown “PERSONAL BEST”)
- ****Cascade****
- clearing four lines at once
- ****Cell****
- one square of the well (a column and a row)
- ****Choice****
- one button of a menu or the results (MARATHON … QUIT, PLAY AGAIN); the chosen one is lit
- ****Combo****
- clears in a row, lock after lock
- ****Crystal****
- one square-shaped part of a piece or of the stack: what fills a cell
- ****Drop streak****
- the light trail a hard drop leaves behind each crystal (Drop Streak); not a combo
- ****Falling piece****
- the piece the player is moving now
- ****Fresh start****
- Zen’s answer to a full well: the well empties and play goes on
- ****Game record****
- what the results show about the game played: TIME, CASCADES, TWISTS, BEST COMBO (Show Game Record); not a best
- ****Ghost****
- where the falling piece would land
- ****Goal****
- what ends a mode well (150 lines, 40 lines, 2 minutes)
- ****Gravity****
- the falling piece moving down one row by itself, every fall interval
- ****Hold****
- keep the falling piece aside and use it later, once per piece
- ****Kick****
- a nearby position tried when a rotation does not fit
- ****Level****
- the speed step; rises every 10 lines in Marathon and Ultra
- ****Line****
- a full row of the well; a clear removes lines
- ****Lock delay****
- the time a resting piece waits before it locks
- ****Lock****
- the falling piece becomes part of the stack
- ****Mode****
- Marathon, Sprint 40, Ultra or Zen
- ****Move****
- one column left or right; auto-repeat: moving again and again while held
- ****Piece****
- the four crystals that fall together; seven kinds: I, O, T, S, Z, J, L
- ****Player****
- the person playing; there is no player character
- ****Preview****
- the small picture of a piece in the Next or Hold panel (Preview Crystal); not the ghost
- ****Queue****
- the pieces still to come; the Next panel shows the first five
- ****Results****
- the panel after a game ends
- ****Rotate****
- turn the piece clockwise, counterclockwise or 180 degrees (the player’s word: “ROTATE”)
- ****Soft drop / Hard drop****
- fall faster while held / fall straight to the ghost and lock
- ****Stack****
- the crystals already locked in the well
- ****Top out****
- a new piece cannot appear, or a piece locks wholly above the well: the game ends
- ****Twist / Mini twist****
- a T piece locked right after a rotation into a tight spot (3-corner rule); the player reads TWIST
- ****Well****
- the 10-column playing field and what is stacked in it (the player sees “the well”)