If Schneider, the witty repairman from the TV show One Day at a Time, decided to create a video game, he'd probably make something like Pop's Pipes. A subtle combination of Tetris and the classic game Pipe Dreams, this puzzler quietly wins you over with its clever design.
You control pipe pieces as they fall to the bottom of a well. Unlike in Tetris, all the pieces are the same size--but the actual angle of the piping inside is different. Instead of filling up a row, pieces are eliminated when four create a fully connected pipe.
The catch is that pipe pieces can't be turned, so creating pipe connections becomes a combination of guessing and planning. The piece parts are four elbows, two straight pipes, a metal square--which just blocks your potential moves--and a bomb that eliminates surrounding pipe.
The initial impression you'll get is that the game is too simple, that perhaps the minimum of four parts per pipe is too low. However, after the third or fourth game, you start to realize that complex pipe formations and combinations can be created with serious forethought. By then, the game's got you hooked.
Only a few things clog up Pop's Pipes. The graphics are somewhat bland, and the lack of sound support is disappointing, especially for a game with bombs. Secondly, a bit more variety with the pipe pieces (where's the T-square pipe now ubiquitous to plumbing games?) would have given it a higher score.
Quips aside, Pop's Pipes is a fun puzzle game that plays a lot deeper than it looks.
