Which Arika arcade series began with a 1998 Tetris game released in Japan?

The Arika arcade series that began with a 1998 Japanese release is Tetris: The Grand Master.

Developed by Japanese studio Arika and published by Capcom, the first game appeared in Japanese arcades in August 1998. It was designed as a highly competitive, speed-focused version of Tetris rather than a conventional home-console adaptation.

The game introduced a ranking system inspired by Japanese dan grades, with players progressing toward the Grand Master rank as the falling speed increased. Its demanding mechanics and rapid gameplay established the identity of the TGM series.

A common mix-up is confusing the series with Tetris: The Grand Master 2 – The Absolute, released in 2000, or Tetris: The Grand Master 3 – Terror-Instinct, released in 2005. Those are later entries, not the 1998 starting point.