Scrapyard Pipes: the Steel Flames hatchling's pipe puzzle

About Scrapyard Pipes

The Warden has locked the scrapyard gate, and the only thing that opens that gate is the crane's old engine. The engine starts with fire — and the only fire in the yard belongs to Lume, the Steel Flames dragon hatchling. The trouble is the plumbing: every pipe is turned the wrong way. In this portrait game built for one hand, you tap a pipe to turn it 90° and link the path from Lume, on the left, to the engine, on the right. Straights, elbows, tees and crosses mix with rusted pipes, which won't turn, and scrap heaps, which won't carry fire. Meanwhile Lume's flame keeps dropping: at 40% The Warden walks into the yard and heads your way; if the flame goes out, he strikes and you lose a life — but the game lights up the right path so you can see where you went wrong, and lets you try the same pipes again. Starting the engine is worth 300 points plus 100 per stage, on top of 5 for every point of flame left and 250 if you finished on par — the fewest taps the plumbing needs, shown on the HUD bar. It starts gentle — a 3×3 grid, straights and elbows only, time to spare — and tightens slowly: the grid grows to 7×9 (stage 19), there's less time per turn, and tees, crosses, scrap heaps, branches and locked pipes show up in the middle of the path. Extra life every 5,000 points, up to 10; when the lives are gone, your score goes to the site's Top 5.

In Selminha's words

“After two reflex games with Lume, I wanted one for thinking: pipes, a stubborn engine and a flame slowly running low. The kind of game where you say "one more stage" and keep going.”

How to play Scrapyard Pipes, and tips for a higher score

1. Tap a pipe (or click it) to turn it 90° clockwise; a right-click turns it the other way. On a keyboard, WASD or the arrows pick the pipe, while J, K, Space or Enter turns it and L turns it the other way; on a gamepad, the d-pad picks, A or X turns and B turns back.
2. The fire comes in from Lume, on the left, and has to reach the engine, on the right, through pipes whose ends meet. Rusted pipes (with a padlock) won't turn; scrap heaps won't carry fire.
3. Lume's flame is your clock: it burns down over time. Below 40%, the Warden walks into the yard; if the flame goes out, he strikes and you lose 1 life; the game then lights up the right path and lets you try the same pipes again.
4. Starting the engine is worth 300 + 100 × the stage, plus 5 points for every point of flame left and +250 if you finished on par (the TURNS bar shows how many you made and how many the plumbing needs).
5. Extra life every 5,000 points, up to 10 lives. When you lose your last life, the run ends and your score is posted to the Top 5 leaderboard.
6. P or Esc pauses; M toggles sound; F toggles full screen on a computer. The full instructions live in the pause menu. When the run ends, put your name on the game's Top 5, saved on the server.

The pipes in the yard

Straight, elbow, tee and cross

Each tap turns the pipe 90° clockwise. Fire only passes between two pipes when their ends meet.

Rusted pipe

Has a padlock and won't turn. Sometimes it's already in the right position — a hint about the path.

Scrap heap

Fills the cell and won't carry fire. Shows up from stage 5.

Branches

Tees and crosses along the path spill fire into dead ends. They don't break the solution, but they muddy it.

The grid starts at 3×3 and grows slowly to 7×9 (stage 19 onward). The flame timer follows the plumbing: 20 s plus 6 s per turn of par in stage 1, dropping to 1.6 s per turn from stage 25 on.

Controls on phone and computer

Computer

Tap or click a pipe to turn it 90° clockwise · right-click turns it the other way · WASD or arrows pick the pipe · J, K, Space or Enter turns it · L turns it the other way · P or Esc pauses · M toggles sound · F full screen · gamepad supported: d-pad or stick picks, A or X turns, B turns back, Start pauses, Back toggles sound

Touch

Portrait and full screen on phones. Tap the pipes directly to turn them; there is no pad and no buttons. Pause and sound sit in the top-right corner.

Flame, turns and the Warden

Flame

It's the stage clock: it burns down over time, from full to zero. If it goes out you lose 1 life, see the right path lit up and try the same pipes again.

Par

The fewest taps the plumbing needs. Finishing on par is worth +250.

The Warden

Walks into the yard once the flame drops below 40% and heads your way. If the flame goes out, he strikes; if the engine starts first, it blasts him away.

Engine running

300 + 100 × the stage, plus 5 for every point of flame left.

Extra life

Every 5,000 points, up to 10 lives.

Stages are generated on the spot and always have a solution: the game draws the path before scrambling the pipes.