Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the New York Times catalogue.

Released in August 2025, Pips puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.

Currently, if you’re stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move on to the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.

How to play Pips

If you’ve ever played dominoes, you’ll have a passing familiarity with how Pips is played. As we’ve shared in our previous hints stories for Pips, the tiles, like dominoes, are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don’t necessarily have to match.

The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible — and common — for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.

Here are common examples you’ll run into across the difficulty levels:

• Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.

• Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.

• Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.

• Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.

• Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.

If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.

Easy difficulty hints, answers for July 4 Pips

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 1-2, placed vertically.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 1-2, placed vertically; 1-1, placed horizontally.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 2-3, placed vertically.

Equal (2): Everything in this space must be equal to 2. The answer is 2-3, placed vertically; 2-4, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 2-4, placed horizontally; 0-3, placed vertically.

Medium difficulty hints, answers for July 4 Pips

Equal (2): Everything in this space must be equal to 2. The answer is 2-3, placed vertically; 2-4, placed horizontally.

Less Than (2): Everything in this space must be less than 2. The answer is 0-4, placed horizontally.

Equal (3): Everything in this space must be equal to 3. The answer is 4-5, placed horizontally; 4-4, placed vertically.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 4-3, placed vertically.

Equal (5): Everything in this space must be equal to 5. The answer is 0-4, placed horizontally; 4-2, placed vertically.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 4-5, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (4): Everything in this space must be greater than 4. The answer is 6-2, placed vertically.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 4-3, placed vertically.

Equal (1): Everything in this space must be equal to 1. The answer is 1-1, placed vertically.

Less Than (1): Everything in this space must be less than 1. The answer is 0-4, placed horizontally.

Hard difficulty hints, answers for July 4 Pips

Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 5-0, placed vertically.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 5-0, placed vertically.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 1-2, placed vertically.

Greater Than (0): Everything in this space must be greater than 0. The answer is 1-2, placed vertically.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 1-6, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 4-6, placed horizontally.

Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 0-0, placed vertically.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 2-5, placed vertically.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 2-5, placed vertically.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 4-6, placed horizontally; 1-4, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 1-4, placed horizontally.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 5-3, placed vertically; 2-4, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 2-4, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (4): Everything in this space must be greater than 4. The answer is 6-5, placed vertically.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 3-1, placed horizontally; 6-0, placed vertically.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 6-5, placed vertically; 2-6, placed vertically.

Greater Than (4): Everything in this space must be greater than 4. The answer is 2-6, placed vertically.

Equal (3): Everything in this space must be equal to 3. The answer is 5-3, placed vertically; 3-1, placed horizontally; 3-3, placed vertically.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 4-4, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 4-4, placed horizontally.

If you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

By Chris Snellgrove
| Updated 19 seconds ago

Part of why James Gunn’s Superman was such a good movie is that it was a relatively self-contained adventure that still planted interesting seeds for future projects. One of those seeds was the surprise appearance of a party-loving Supergirl, which set her up for her own solo spinoff film. Lex Luthor’s arrest, meanwhile, set up his fun cameo in Peacemaker and his future appearance in Superman: The Man of Tomorrow. We also saw Superman’s evil clone disappear into a black hole, which some fans saw as the end of his story. However, many others are convinced that this is setting him up to be the Big Bad of a future DCU film. 

For example, it’s possible that the clone ended up in a different universe. That universe may be the DCU’s version of Earth 2, a world ruled by an evil Justice League. If so, the clone may reappear as Ultraman, who is the leader of that evil league in the comics. However, there is a different theory: based on his outfit in Superman, the clone may eventually resurface as Doomsday, the villain capable of outright killing Superman. It’s a cool theory, but if James Gunn chooses to go this route, audiences will be unimpressed. Why is that? Simple: this exact plot already appeared in the TV show Superman & Lois!

Attack Of The Clone

Early on in Superman, we discover that our titular hero has, shockingly, gotten his butt kicked by a guy named the “Hammer of Boravia.” Who could actually go toe to toe with the Man of Steel? Eventually, we learn the surprising truth: the Hammer of Boravia is actually Lex Luthor’s pet clone of Superman, one who can be given remote commands during battle. It looks like the clone might actually beat Superman near the end, but he gets tossed into a black hole. But fans have long suspected he might have ended up somewhere in the multiverse, especially after Peacemaker confirmed the existence of other realities.

One theory is that he ended up on Earth 2, from which he will eventually lead an evil Justice League. However, other fans have theorized that he could come back as Doomsday. While the clone doesn’t have Doomsday’s rocky face, he did wear a suit and mask very similar to what Doomsday wore in the comics, right down to the goggles. While this would be cool onscreen, it would also be more than a bit derivative. In Superman & Lois, Bizarro was an evil Superman clone that Lex Luthor transformed into Doomsday. Should this happen in the DCU, it may cause some fans to worry that James Gunn is officially out of ideas.

A Classic Comic Villain Returns

Obviously, all new comic book media borrows from what came before, so the DCU was always destined to have some similarities to previous DC media. Nonetheless, a major part of this cinematic universe’s success has been surprising us with beloved characters who are very different from previous onscreen appearances. Superman & Lois was a great show, one that all DC fans owe it to themselves to watch. But if Gunn ends up stealing the show’s idea of turning an evil Superman clone into Doomsday, future DCU movies may bomb like Supergirl did. After all, why head to the theater for a “new” story when you can just watch the reruns they stole from?

Obviously, we don’t know what the future holds (if anything) for the evil Superman clone. Should he return as Doomsday, Ultraman, or even just as himself, it won’t be until the third Superman film at the absolute earliest. Of course, we’ll be lucky to have a DCU by then; with Supergirl being a critical and commercial flop, Warner Bros. may completely reevaluate its approach to future superhero movies. That may mean getting a new leader to bring this cinematic universe to life. Who will it be? One thing’s for sure: it’s not going to be a clone (evil or otherwise) of James Gunn!  

By Chris Snellgrove
| Updated 10 seconds ago

Who do you think Marvel’s most underrated villain is? The answer is Baron Zemo, the Big Bad of Captain America: Civil War. He didn’t have superpowers or high-tech gear; instead, he just had a big brain and a burning hatred for the heroes who had ruined his life by getting his family killed. In this way, he’s the most relatable villain in the entire MCU. After all, who wouldn’t want to burn the entire world down if it meant getting revenge on those who took everything from you? Later, the villain returned in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, where he helped create a hilarious meme (“he’s out of line, but he’s right”).

Sadly, Zemo has not returned to the MCU since then. While he could make a surprise appearance, he’s not one of the many characters confirmed to appear in either Avengers: Doomsday or Avengers: Secret Wars. Now, however, the villain has returned (sort of) in the last place you’d expect to find him. Zemo actor Daniel Brühl recently appeared in a German trailer for Marvel’s collaboration with Magic: The Gathering. As an added bonus, he actually looks more comic book accurate than he ever looked in the MCU!

The Legend Of Zemo

The entire trailer is in German, but don’t worry: the video above has English subtitles, so you can follow along. The first thing you see in the trailer is Daniel Brühl dressed as Baron Zemo. This includes wearing a very striking purple trench coat. While this might make MCU fans think about other villains (most notably, the Purple Man from Jessica Jones), the garment is meant to be an homage to how Zemo dresses in the comics, where he always wears a purple mask and (mostly) purple clothes. Brühl doesn’t mask up in the commercial, but for longtime comics nerds, it’s fun to see him rocking his signature color.

The trailer begins with Brühl surveying his Marvel-themed Magic: The Gathering Cards. Unsurprisingly, he is putting together a villain deck. We then cut to the bespectacled leader of a group of Magic players. He is alarmed that someone (in this case, Zemo) has already pulled a Thanos card, and he calls his buddies to help assemble a powerful hero deck. The drama (including a brief supervillain speech from Brühl) is very tongue-in-cheek and mostly serves as an excuse to show off various cards (many of which do, to Hasbro’s credit, look very beautiful).

A More Comic Accurate Fit

The plot culminates with Zemo calling the leader of the heroic players, demanding to meet. alone, at sundown. Initially, it looks like they are about to engage in a Wild West-style duel, only using cards instead of guns. The other man brags about all of the hero cards he brought with him while Brühl looks down, quite confidently, at his Baron Zemo card. The last thing we see is a comedic shot of the two actually sitting down and playing Magic, where Brühl is surprised that the other player managed to destroy his Loki card.  

So, is this a canonical MCU appearance from Baron Zemo? Nope. The commercial intentionally avoids giving the character a name; instead, it simply hints at who he is through the character’s outfit and his preference for the Zemo card. The biggest hint, of course, is bringing back Daniel Brühl, who is having the time of his life here. Maybe he’s actually a fan of Magic: The Gathering, or maybe he just gives every project his all. Either way, his performance in this silly commercial is just as great (and just as weirdly intense) as his performance in Captain America: Civil War.

Whether or not you’re likely to buy Marvel’s Magic: The Gathering cards (personally, I tapped out of this game when half of the releases switched to licensed IPs), this commercial is fairly charming. It captures the emotional highs and the goofy lows of getting with your buddies (and maybe even your frenemy) for a fun bit of tabletop gaming. Mostly, though, this commercial is fun because of Daniel Brühl. His performance is charming and charismatic, leaving Marvel fans to ask Kevin Feige just one question: when are you going to bring back Baron Zemo for real?