Tetris 99 celebrates its 50th online Maximus Cup event this weekend with a new Kirby theme
Players who take part in the event will be able to unlock the theme for their collection
Tetris 99 hits a major milestone this weekend as it reaches its 50th Maximus Cup event.
The Maximus Cup is a time-limited event which takes place in the game from time to time, usually over the course of a weekend.
While the Maximus Cup is active, players earn points each time they take part in the Online Battle mode, with their position determining how many points they earn.
By eventually earning a total of 100 points, the player will earn the specific reward being offered by that Maximus Cup.
Coming in first in an Online Battle earns the players 100 points, so experienced players can potentially earn the reward with a single match. Points are still earned for placing lower, however – even finishing in last earns a single point – meaning even less skilled players will be able to get the reward through some grinding.
This weekend, to celebrate the recent release of Kirby Air Riders, the 50th Maximus Cup will have a Kirby Air Riders theme, with music and background art from the game and Tetrominoes containing logos of its different vehicles.
The start and end times for the event are as follows:
- US (PT) – December 4 at 11pm until December 8 at 11pm
- US (ET) – December 5 at 2am until December 9 at 2am
- UK (GMT) – Dcember 5 at 7am until December 9 at 7am
The reward for earning a total of 100 points during the Maximums Cup will be a permanent unlock for the Kirby Air Riders theme, meaning players will be able to continue using it in all modes after the event ends.
This is only the sixth Maximus Cup to take place this year, and the fourth to include a brand new theme to unlock. Previous Maximus Cup themes from this year have added themes from Donkey Kong Country Returns HD, Donkey Kong Bananza and Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition.
Because some of the Maximus Cup events offer players the chance to claim themes they may have missed from previous events, this weekend’s Kirby Air Riders theme will be the 40th theme to appear via the Maximus Cup. Almost every major Nintendo release since Splatoon 2 has received a Tetris 99 theme through the event at some point.
Tetris 99 continues to enjoy an online audience as it approaches its seventh anniversary. The game was originally released on Switch in February 2019 as a ‘free’ digital download for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers.
As the name suggests, it’s a massively multiplayer version of Tetris in which 99 players compete against each other in a Battle Royale style format until one player remains.
Nintendo has released similar retro-themed Battle Royale games over the years, but while F-Zero 99 continues to remain active two years after its release, Pac-Man 99 and the time-limited Super Mario Bros 35 can no longer be played.
