Choose the Flooze: Pipe Mania Reviewed


                           Hulk Smash puny game. Game make Hulk's head hurt. Hulk like green liquid, though.

Over the past three years, it’s been evident that particular game genres are especially well-suited for the Playstation Portable. With a second analog stick, first person shooters are quite difficult to adapt to the handheld, while especially large games are stifled by the PSP’s relatively slow transfer rate from UMD. Puzzle games are remarkably well suited for the portable system, with their bite-sized play chunks, and typically simple controls.

If the name, Pipe Mania sounds familiar to gamers, that may be recalling the 1989 Amiga title created by developers The Assembly Line. Based on the success of the title, Lucasarts bought the rights to the property, renamed it Pipe Dreams and ported the game to a myriad of computer and consoles. In 1990, the game was included in the MS Windows Entertainment Pack, as part of a push to market Microsoft’s Windows as a viable gaming platform. Eighteen years later, this oft-forgotten game has been revived and given a graphical overhaul for the DS, PS2, and PSP.


                                                     This is why Joe the Plumber makes over $250,000 a year.

The goal of Pipe Mania is quite simple: players build a continuous pipeline from a starting point, to a designated ending point. Some levels impose a minimal length requirement, which requires players to be a bit creative with their pipeline structure. The left side of the screen shows a preview of the next five pieces available, which may be straight, curved, or of the crossover variety. Once the game starts, players move the cursor to one of the spaces on the game’s playfield, and then press a face button to drop the piece at the bottom of the cue.

Pipe Mania’s twist on the puzzle genre is that players (with one exception later in the game) are not allowed to rotate pieces. This requires the player to build their pipeline with a large amount of foresight, and yet, not be too rigid in their structure. A skilled player will create a visual blueprint in their minds, and place the correct pieces, when they become available to complete the envisioned structure. In the event that a piece is not needed, it can be dropped on any empty spot on the field, and later built upon for a small score penalty.


                                                 Welcome to Santa's toy shop also known as the hell's factory.

After half a minute of building, the ‘flooze’ comes out the start faucet, following the flow of your pipeline. Players can speed up the speed of flooze release by depressing the top left bumper; although this is really only useful in earlier, easier, levels.  If the liquid reaches a gap in route to the sink, it will spill out into the playfield. If too much flooze litters the ground, you game is over.

While the first few levels are the game are manageable, the game quickly ramps up in difficulty. By the twelveth level, we would often fail three or four times before succeeding; Pipe Mania is not for the easily frustrated. While early levels are relatively straight-forward, later levels add one-way pipelines, physical obstacles, and even two simultaneous pipelines for players to contend with.  The last level of every world contains a boss, which along with the typical demanding gameplay, randomly breaks pieces of your pipeline. Expect to play those levels a few times.
 

                          An alligator wearing an apron and latex gloves?  A perfect boss to fight Cooking Mama.

Differences across the platforms are significant- the DS’s stylus control allows for quicker piece placement, and allows for the occasional wildcard piece. When these are placed on the board, the player draws the direction they would like to pipe to flow. While the PSP’s control scheme is slightly less intuitive, the platform also holds an additional fifty levels for players to confront. Still at 250 levels, the DS version is no slouch, and will offer players hours of frantic enjoyment.

For twenty dollars, Pipe Mania offers plenty of content for the gamer seeking a challenge. Players that are easily frustrated or those that prefer a relaxed puzzler may not find Pipe Mania to their tastes. All others, should defiantly consider picking this inexpensive, competent title up.



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Posted by DesertEagle at 10/27/2008 12:47 PM
Categories: PSP,DS,Reviews
 

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