These famous games are played daily by many people around the world — and I’m hooked too. I like to start my mornings in first period with a round or two to get rid of the grog. Get ready because there is a new game to add. Meet Pips, your new favorite New York Times game.
This isn’t a word game — it’s a math puzzle. And before you roll your eyes and say, “Math? For fun?” Hear me out. Playing Wordle is basically just English homework. I’m convinced my English teachers never comment on the fact that I’m playing it in class because they secretly know it’s the only way I get grammar points.
Playing this game doesn’t require algebra level math. If I, a high school student who is proudly average at math, can do it in under seven seconds, then it shouldn’t be hard for you either. The feeling of being a math mastermind because I solved a medium level puzzle in under seven seconds? Well, let’s just say it was enough to overtake the “oh my god, my mother is going to kill me” dread after getting a 77 in math.
The format of the game is pretty simple. There are three different levels — easy, medium and hard. The game is played by placing certain dominos in different configurations to form a cohesive puzzle. There are different sections of the puzzle which are outlined in a certain color. Those sections have a diamond at the bottom which holds a requirement the player must complete with the dominos provided. For example, each number in the colored section must be the same, or they must add up to the number twelve. Despite there being three different levels, there probably isn't much of a difference between easy and medium. Easy, right?
Wrong.
The difference between medium and hard shocked me with the difference in requirements. The hard puzzles were taking me multiple tries to get right; I have trauma from that little red circle in the condition diamond saying that I did not meet the requirement. If anybody is looking for quality rage bait, look no further — it’s right here. I was so stumped that I considered looking up the answers several times because it just became so frustrating.
One side of the domino might be needed in one section, but the other side might be needed five squares away. I cannot tell you the amount of times I wanted to scream because one domino had thrown off my entire puzzle just because of an annoying requirement.
However, it’s important to note that while I get frustrated, it’s because of the challenge posed which makes this game enjoyable. I like being intrigued more than bored. I mean, what good is a game if you win all the time? The difficulty gives you something to achieve, something to feel proud of. This is part of the reason why riddles and strategy games like chess are so appealing to me. Although, my rating of 800 says all you need to know about how good I am at chess.
Despite this, there are some flaws that need to be figured out. For one, the rotation of the dominoes is extremely annoying. You need to tap the pieces to rotate, but oftentimes, you have to tap multiple times to get the rotation right. Additionally, even if I am not finished rotating it on the board, it will claim that my piece is out of bounds through a sign and put it back to its original position, forcing me to start over. Everytime it did this, my hand was about to meet my chromebook screen. Hard.
My improvement suggestions include adding a turn button and not having the sign come up before you're completely finished turning it. A wait time of two seconds before the crashout-inducing reminder that my piece is outside of the boundary is requested, please.
Although there are many shortcomings to this game, it is incredibly well thought out and executed. This game takes an old one and puts a new twist on it, making it enjoyable for both old and young audiences. Additionally, the graphics are creative and the rules are very easy to pick up on. And knowing the New York Times, these problems will be a thing of the past soon, and I can’t wait for the new games they release in the future.
In order to fully get this experience of this game, one must play it. For more information, you can find it at nytimes.com/games/pips, or go to the New York Times website, click games and scroll down to more games.
