Strategy: how to score higher

Foundations

1. Keep the stack flat. A flat surface accepts every piece. Deep holes and tall towers only accept one or two shapes.
2. Avoid covered holes. A gap with a block above it cannot be filled until you clear the rows over it. One hole costs more than any bad placement.
3. Use the ghost. Look at the ghost outline before you drop — it is the fastest way to stop misplacements.
4. Hard drop when you are sure. It saves time and earns 2 points per cell.

Planning

1. Read the preview. Place the current piece where the next one will fit too.
2. Hold the I-piece. Keeping a long bar in hold means a quad is always one swipe away.
3. Leave a well. Keep one column — usually at the edge — empty and stack the rest. When it is four rows deep, drop an I-piece for a quad.
4. Trust the bag. Every seven pieces contain one of each shape, so you can count when the next I is due.

Advanced

1. Set up T-spins. Build a T-shaped slot with an overhang and rotate a T-piece into it. A T-spin double pays 1,200 × level — more than a quad.
2. Chain back-to-back. Alternate quads and T-spins without easy clears between them for the ×1.5 bonus.
3. Build combos at speed. At high levels, clearing a line with every piece keeps the stack low and stacks 50 × combo × level on top.
4. Slow down to speed up. At level 15+ use the lock delay: slide the piece along the stack instead of rotating in the air.

In Assist mode

• Save the bomb for a covered hole — it punches a 3×3 area where the piece would land.
• Use the rocket when the stack is high: it clears the two rows under the piece.
• The line clear removes the bottom row — perfect when garbage builds up at the floor.