Pipin Hot!

I first encountered interest in pipe related games about 13 years ago playing Pipe Dream on my parent’s computer. At the time however, I was more interested in playing Chip’s Challenge, but the memory of Pipe gameplay had been stored into my memories. Jump forward to high school where the only thing to keep me from jumping through a window in boredom was another pipe game on my cell phone. It was fun and passed the time but it had no pizzaz.

Finally, Empire Interactive has made the best of the best when it comes to laying pipes. Pipe Mania for the DS is the most fun I’ve ever had trying prevent slime from leaking onto the floor. Empire went all out (as far out as you can go for a pipe game at least), to make a challenging, yet entertaining (it has a story mode believe it or not) game of plumbing. The game breaks free of strictly connecting pipes,  and challenges you to connect factory assembly lines, internet cords, electricity cabling, and train tracks. While they all follow the same basic rules of laying and connecting pieces, each category has special requirements needed to fully connect start piece to end piece. The factory requires splitting assemblies into multiple lines, the electricity can be temporarily stored in special glass pieces etc. If this isn’t your thing, the game comes with a Classic Mode where you can lay pipe till your head explodes with frustration. I say this as a good thing however because the other pipe games I’ve played have been incredibly easy to beat. Pipe Mania starts off easy enough, but once you beat the first few levels, it really challenges you; not to the point of throwing your DS across the room (I’m lookin at you SMB 3!) but enough that you sometimes have to play one level a few times to really plan out what you need to do to get things done.

That being said, I also want to add that the DS is probably the best kind of platform for this kind of game. No more messing up pipelines by pushing the wrong button or having a crappy mouse that clicks the wrong place. With the touchscreen you just touch right where the piece goes and you’re good to move on. This is a good play before bed type games, or just to play to pass the time. Its worth the buy if you’re into games like these, and has tons of replay value and a surpising number of levels and mini games.

Rating:  3 Pipes Out of 2.2 Lighthouses

Sounding more and more like fact than fiction each season, Spooks has returned with this it’s 6th season DVD release. The show, known as MI5 to our American cousins is a television drama set around a group of people working for the British Security Services. Before season 6 each episode was of the standalone variety where only limited aspects carried on to the next episode. This time mimicking 24, Spooks uses the entire season to run just one storyline about a train bomb in Iran, then going to Iran’s attempts to gain nuclear weapons to challenge the west.

There are some nice character moments with a greater overall production quality to each episode than prior seasons. The story is gripping in places and just within in the realms of believability. There are a couple of slow episodes but that can be said of any show. Overall, Spooks season 6 on DVD is a really interesting piece of television, it will take repeat viewings and with an open ending that will be continued in the seventh season showing on the BBC this month it really is an essential watch for anyone planning on seeing the newest episodes on television. Season 5 made Spooks appear as though it was running out of story ideas, some stories were recycled from prior seasons and season 6 could have easily gone the same way. Happily the single story for a season idea has made it truly amazing once more. Spooks season 6 is out now on DVD in the UK.

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It has been reported that the second trailer for J.J. Abrams Star Trek feature film will be tagged onto US prints of the new James Bond movie on its cinema release. This could be seen as a bonus for US audiences as it is yet to be seen if it will be included in other markets since the US will only be getting Bond after the UK and China.

Previously a teaser trailer was released showing only the building of a Starfleet ship which appeared to be very much against Star Trek cannon and caused a general outcry by trekkies the world over in comment pages. The remarks made this week by Trek helmer Abrams stating he is a Star Wars, and not Star Trek fan will only inflame opinions. Adding to the general pessimism surrounding the new film made primarily for audiences who have not watched any Star Trek before. While not confirmed it should be expected that within a week of Bond’s US release date the Star Trek trailer will be online in the usual places like Apple’s Quicktime trailer site.

In a surprise from Disney the second major cast signing for Pirates 4 has been announced. The sidekick to Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow in the fourth film will be Zac Efron. Who you may ask, well, after a quick bit of googling he’s listed as “the hunk from High School Musical” which are their words, not ours. Apparently the actor told Disney he didn’t want to do another of the movies aimed at the tweenage market so to keep him under contract Disney has signed him to Pirates 4. While signed to play a sidekick it is planned that assuming the fourth movie makes enough cash he will replace Depp as the lead in a fifth.

While this is an obvious attempt to cash in on the High School Musical audience it may be unfair to criticize early the casting since we don’t know what role he will be taking or have any real measure of his acting talent. At least he is an actor where some movie franchises have taken rappers instead to play major roles just for the buzz, like Steven Seagal’s later movies for example. All we can say is good luck to the bloke.

By now everyone and their dog should have heard of last year’s big award winning movie No Country for Old Men. If you did hear about it and still haven’t see it due to the whole western theme which is assumed by the title and the advertising you couldn’t be more wrong. I know someone who thought before seeing it that The Usual Suspects was a comedy, and this suffered from the same false advertising. Without giving away the entire plot No Country is a film about an average guy in America who while hunting comes across a lot of dead people and a bag full of money. He takes it and those who want the money back send a hitman after him to retrieve it. So instead of all the false symbolism surrounding the initial advertising stint this film is essentially like The Fugitive (even with Tommy Lee Jones) as one man runs while being hunted by another. Only this time there is a lot slower pace and the hitman is incredibly inventive. Apart from Jones there are no real names in this film but it shouldn’t put you off, indeed it helps where characters are concerned as they are more believable then seeing say, Brad Pitt playing a binman.

As a rule anyone who is into action films normally should avoid anything that wins an Oscar for Best Picture or Best Director (Lord of the Rings was a fluke change of pace). It’s not an official thing but normally if you take Cold Mountain it doesn’t end well for those who want a thriller or something without the feeling that Pride and Prejudice watchers will love it. This on the other hand, even fans of action movies will love. There is plenty of shooting, self-performed surgery and inventive killings to keep anyone happy with a slight hint of Die Hard to it. A quick warning though, the ending does feel like a ‘to be continued’ and the viewer has to remember a lot of what has transpired before it. Other than that it is an essential film like Chow Yun-Fat’s The Killer.

The DVD is a rather standard affair. We have a couple of featurettes with a rather self-serving feel to them except for the making-of No Country which does provide some insight and is worth watching. The DVD is out now and can be found in all the usual places.