Tris, the free version of Tetris for the iPhone that we loved ('cause it was free!) is being pulled from the App Store. Apparently, The Tetris Company called up Apple and it no likey. Its creator, Noah Witherspoon, says that while he thinks The Tetris Company's copyright claim is thin--and would be thinner still if he called his game "Trys"--he doesn't really have the resources to fight it in court, so he's removing it from the store on Wednesday. Download it while you can, folks! Another depressing reminder why we need the iPhone app black market. [Two Finger Play - Sorry Noah!]

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Tetris isn't exactly the most ambitious project for a company like EA Games. That's probably why the company's iPhone port is just, well, overdone. The basic gameplay functions work well and the touch-focused controls are completely intuitive, though we'd be pretty disappointed to find any kind of learning curve for a Tetris game. A good Tetris implementation - one that would have been wildly successful on its own - wasn't enough for EA, who've loaded this port up with so much crap that it sometimes doesn't even run.

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Our obsession with Tetris is probably only matched by LEGO, Star Wars, and Futurama. However, this video of three synchronised bottle-blowers interpreting Korobeiniki—the famous Tetris theme song—shows that a) our fetishes are really not that bad, b) we are too lazy, c) we don't have as much free time as we would like to do silly things like these (and others), or d) all of the above. Seriously, these guys are so good that we want to take them out for drinks. And use the bottle to blow the Mario theme. [Snotr]

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Update: We have video of the action! Tetris geeks must rely on brute force as much as mental agility to win in Tresling, a new version of the classic game. Opponents are pitted against each other on an arm wrestling board, and the pieces shift based on whoever is in control. Wanna get that straight piece in position for a four line combo? You better hit the gym, sissy. Of course, you can't win on beefcakey-ness alone, a good deal of strategy is required to move the pieces where you want them to land. We really enjoy creator Tom Gerhardt's attempt to turn Tresling into a lifestyle, and not just a game, complete with a Communist-style logo and calls for back-alley matches. Check out the official site to "join the revolution". [Tresling - Thanks Tom!]

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The Tetris inspired home furnishings catalog continues to grow, and the latest addition may well be the best yet. The Tetris shelving unit from New York's Brave Space Design is the Tetris book shelf to rule them all. We're not too sure if you can take apart each separate compartment to your heart's desire, but if you can't, what would be the point? Unfortunately, you're going to have to fork out quite a bit for the privilege of bringing Tetris to your library. The exact amount will be $"Contact us for a quote," which pretty much means if you don't have enough cash to wipe your arse with $50 bills, the privilege of video game inspired shelving shan't be yours. Sucks. [Kotaku]

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Want to teach your kid to be really good at Tetris really fast? Let them play with this Tetris Mirror, which has the bottom part already formed for a convenient mirror surface, but has the top part all Tetris'ed out so you can rearrange them at will. Put a piece wrong and junior gets cut with the glass. What makes it even more tricky is that there are two "one-block" pieces which aren't regulation Tetris blocks as far as we know. Good luck kiddo. [SonerOzenc via Technabob]

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I'm not quite sure how you would actually play a game of Tetris with ice cubes, but if you put a little food coloring in there and pop them into a glass—you will have yourself a frosty drink that can only be compared to the lego ice cube tray in terms of sheer geekyness. Unfortunately, that wont happen anytime soon—these are only concepts at the moment. [Martin Zampach via NOTCOT]

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The Mekaniskt is a robotic Tetris, an arm that can suck pieces, moving and rotating them to make the perfectly fit in place using Nintendo NES-like controls. The only problem: the lines don't disappear.

This problem begs for some kind of ACME disintegration ray to be installed at the bottom (or like some readers say, a conveyor belt. We like deadly rays better, though.) In any case, it comes straight from Sweden, the Nordic lands of Europe where Earth is ruled by blue-eyed Valkyries and vodka and salmon is the breakfast of the champions, so even if it wasn't cool—which it is—that's enough reason to talk about it. Discuss. [YouTube - The video was heavily edited from the original one. Thanks Scott!]

Our Japanese is somewhere between nonexistent and "you're speaking Korean dumbass", so we can't tell what these labels on the block pieces say. However, there's not much explanation needed to know that these Tetris Plush pillows are awesome in a way that only a supernova in the background can illustrate. All our favorite pieces are there, from that T piece, the the L, to the Z thing, to good old straighty, to...wait...what the hell is that?! [ToysnJoys via Nerd Approved]

What do you get when you combine the largest student dorm in Finland, a mobile phone, and a love of Tetris? Something that's way cooler than the Russian monochrome equivalent. Bonus video and pictures after the jump.

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