Appmania!

Pipe Mania is a puzzle game where your goal is to build a pipe pathway from a given starting point to a given endpoint. You are presented with random bits of pipe, and it's up to you to make a complete pathway and avoid having green Flooze ooze all over the place.  The concept is definitely a classic basis for a puzzler. 

The iTunes game description states, "With immense pride, we bring the legendary game ?Pipe Mania? to the iPhone, a game that has made its way through many platforms like PC, DS, PSP, Wii before we decided to get it to your iPhone. It?s a game that brings back fond memories of the simpler times. Introduced in the year 1987, Pipe Mania has to its credit the title of being the most successful puzzle game ever created. And why wouldn?t it? After all, it has provided entertainment to puzzle lovers for years together!"

Once the game starts, you'll be at the Main Menu. There is a helpful series of "How to Play" slides accessible from the main menu that show you the basics of the game. Options lets you turn the sound effects and music on or off, turn off the in game Tutorial tips, and under Profile Select create or edit up to three Profiles. Extras allows you to view your game Statistics and Treasure Room.  The menu navigation just seemed a bit awkward to me as there can be a number of sublevels to each option and I felt "Extras" should have been "Achievements".

One thing I really liked was the Profiles. If you have someone who likes to borrow your device, never fear, they can have their own profile so they don't mess up your achievements or scores...or complete levels for you that you haven't even attempted.

There are four different game modes and each has its own levels and sublevels for a total of 354 individual levels of pipe puzzling fun. You will start in the campaign style World mode. It's here that you will earn Treasures and Trophies to unlock the other game modes which include Arcade, Bonus, and Classic

Gameplay

Gameplay is very simple. You're given a starting point and an end point. On the left you are shown the pipe pieces you have to work with and the order you will get them. To place a piece, simply click on a block on the play area to place it. If you can't immediately use the next piece, try to think ahead and place it where it can be integrated later. If you need to replace a piece of pipe with another, no problem. Just click on the old piece and it will be replaced with the new one; however, you will lose points for doing this.

Don't spend too long in zen-like contemplation of your pipe path to be, because the Flooze will soon start to flow and you don't want it spilling all over the screen. So keep building to stay ahead of the green Flooze and complete your path. You'll earn extra points for both using extra pieces to make a convoluted path and for using the "Fast Flooze" button at the lower left. Press and hold to keep the Flooze moving quickly and the points rolling in.

GOOD

BAD

As you progress, obstacles are presented to throw a wrench into things. Some may block you from building in certain squares. Others include special pipe pieces that will give you extra points if you incorporate them.

Along the way, you can earn Trophies based on points and find 35 Treasures. These definitely add to the fun and depth of the game.

Overall

Pros:

-easy to learn, a challenge to master if you want to earn maximum points

-LOTS of replayability - there are 354 total levels and 4 game modes...plus each time you play, the pipe pieces are randomly presented so you won't be building the same path each time

-Profiles - great if you have to share your device with someone else

-very nice video intro during the first level of the game

-"How to Play" section and Tutorial Tips are great for novice players

-Unlockable content, Treasures, and Trophies to earn

Cons:

-the Menus seem awkwardly layed out

-the Menu text is a little blurry, but is readable

-voices in intro movie are not totally synced with the subtitles

-would be nice if the "Fast Flooze" button just needed a click to activate/deactivate versus press and hold

-the buttons letting you advance or go back to previous screens in the "How to Play" section can be really unresponsive

-no global leaderboards - it would be neat to see a global leaderboard for total points earned overall and total points in each mode

Pipe Mania is a classic game that has been well implemented for the iPhone and iTouch. The controls for gameplay are intuitive and easy to work with and there is a lot of replayability. There are a few things that need some tweaking, especially the Menu layout, but certainly nothing that detracts from the actual gameplay which I think is pretty spot on.

A definite recommended game for fans of this classic, or for anyone looking for a good, solid, fun, and challenging puzzler with lots of replayability.

Price - $4.99

Link

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=321219952&mt=8