NYT Pips hints, answers for November 16, 2025
**Discover the Exciting World of Pips: The Newest Game from The New York Times**
Launched in August 2025, Pips is the latest offering from The New York Times, bringing a refreshing twist to the classic game of dominoes. Designed as a single-player experience, Pips is poised to become your next daily gaming ritual. Unlike traditional dominoes, where players match tiles based on numbers, Pips introduces a colorful layer of complexity with its unique color-coded conditions. This innovative gameplay mechanic requires players to meet specific numerical criteria based on the color of the spaces where the dominoes are placed. For example, a space marked with a single number requires that all touching tiles add up to that number, while other spaces may dictate that all tiles must be equal, not equal, or fall within a certain range.
As players navigate through various difficulty levels, they will encounter a range of challenges that test their strategic thinking and problem-solving skills. For instance, easy-level hints might require players to place a 2-0 tile horizontally in a purple space designated to sum to 2, while medium-level challenges demand more complex combinations, such as a 6-4 tile arrangement to meet a sum of 8. Advanced players will face even tougher puzzles, including conditions where multiple tiles must equal or sum to specific numbers across various color-coded spaces. This dynamic gameplay not only keeps players engaged but also encourages them to think critically about tile placement and number combinations.
For those who may find themselves stuck, Pips can be unforgiving, as it only offers the option to reveal the entire puzzle, prompting players to start anew at a higher difficulty. However, our comprehensive guide provides piecemeal hints to help you progress through the game without feeling overwhelmed. Whether you’re a seasoned gamer or new to the world of puzzle games, Pips offers an engaging and challenging experience that is sure to captivate players of all ages. Dive into this exciting new game and discover the joy of solving colorful domino puzzles today!
Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the
New York Times
catalogue.
Released in August 2025, the
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 onto 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 for 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.
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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.
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Easy difficulty hints, answers for Nov. 16 Pips
Number (2):
Everything in this purple space must add to 2. The answer is 2-0, placed horizontally.
Equal (0):
Everything in this red space must be equal to 0. The answer is 2-0, placed horizontally; 4-0, placed horizontally.
Equal (1):
Everything in this light blue space must be equal to 1. The answer is 1-1, placed horizontally; 1-3, placed vertically.
Number (2):
Everything in this orange space must add to 2. The answer is 5-2, placed vertically.
Medium difficulty hints, answers for Nov. 16 Pips
Number (7):
Everything in this space must add to 7. The answer is 6-1, placed vertically; 6-4, placed horizontally.
Number (4):
Everything in this red space must add to 4. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally.
Number (8):
Everything in this space must add to 8. The answer is 4-4, placed horizontally.
Number (6):
Everything in this space must add to 6. The answer is 0-6, placed vertically; 0-2, placed vertically.
Number (2):
Everything in this orangespace must add to 2. The answer is 0-2, placed vertically.
Number (5):
Everything in this space must add to 5. The answer is 5-4, placed vertically.
Number (3):
Everything in this space must add to 3. The answer is 0-3, placed horizontally.
Hard difficulty hints, answers for Nov. 16 Pips
Number (12):
Everything in this space must add to 12. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally; 6-1, placed vertically.
Number (8):
Everything in this space must add to 8. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally; 4-5, placed horizontally.
Equal (1):
Everything in this space must be equal to 1. The answer is 1-1, placed horizontally.
Number (10):
Everything in this red space must add to 10. The answer is 4-5, placed horizontally; 5-1, placed vertically.
Number (1):
Everything in this space must add to 1. The answer is 5-1, placed vertically.
Equal (1):
Everything in this dark blue space must be equal to 1. The answer is 6-1, placed vertically; 1-4, placed vertically.
Number (3):
Everything in this space must add to 3. The answer is 3-5, placed horizontally.
Number (8):
Everything in this red space must add to 8. The answer is 3-5, placed horizontally; 3-2, placed vertically.
Number (8):
Everything in this orange space must add to 8. The answer is 3-2, placed vertically; 6-0, placed vertically.
Equal (4):
Everything in this red space must be equal to 4. The answer is 1-4, placed vertically; 4-4, placed vertically; 4-0, placed horizontally.
Equal (0):
Everything in this red space must be equal to 0. The answer is 5-0, placed horizontally; 4-0, placed horizontally; 6-0, placed vertically.
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