Picross DS

Picross 3D - Hal Laboratory, Nintendo DS

Picross 3D is a sequel of sorts to the Picross game that came out for the DS in 2007. It's a puzzle game and if you have obsessive tendencies like me then you'll absolutely love this game. The original Picross was a lot of fun, but it didn't connect with me in the same way that this game has kept me occupied for untold hours on end. Seriously, like RPG hours.

You have to really see it to understand, but basically you're given a large 3D block that is divided into smaller blocks, some of which have numbers on them. Those numbers tell you how many of those blocks are in that section of the final puzzle. So if you have the number 0 on one side you know all of those blocks can be chipped away. If there’s a 4 on one side, you know that row of the puzzle has 4 blocks in it, and any extra ones have to be chipped away. Blocks you know are part of the final puzzle you can paint, protecting them from being eliminated. 

When you finish your puzzle, the blocks color in and you see the final product. The game starts off with very simple with things like a musical note or a crude camel. Later puzzles are more intricate things like a Chinese dragon or a whale with water spewing from its blowhole. The finished puzzles animate and you can use the stylus to rotate around it. These finished puzzles are sorted into collections based on certain themes like sports or animals. When you hit certain milestones, little animated scenes are unlocked which can be viewed in the game’s gallery.

There are some additional rules that the game very slowly teaches. A number in a circle means the blocks in that row are in groups of two, and numbers in squares are in groups of three or more. The game is very good about slowly ramping up the difficulty level so the learning curve is very good.

There are four difficulty levels: beginner, easy, normal and hard for a total of over 350 puzzles. These puzzles can be completed in anywhere from 5-50 minutes. Each difficulty is separated into 10 levels. When you finish puzzles you’re rewarded with a maximum of 3 stars based on whether you completed the puzzle in the allotted time and the number of mistakes you made. These stars are used to unlock the two additional puzzles per level. The difficulty within each separate level goes from easy to hardest. This means that all the easiest puzzles aren’t at the beginning and you spend all of the latter part of the game doing the most difficult. This is nice because after spending a long time on a really tough puzzle, the next level gives you a bit of a break as it ramps back up again.

There are a few additional modes like "one-chance challenges" where once you make a mistake you have to start all over again. The other one is a time challenge where you're given more time as you chip away more blocks. If you're really obsessive like me you'll want to try to get maximum stars which will give you a little gold diamond symbol on each level/difficulty.

If you want to come back to a puzzle or save your progress the game features a quick-save feature or if you're worried you might screw up. The quick-save is implemented in a way intended to be used when you leave the game because once you save you’re immediately brought back to the main menu. I wish it was implemented a bit more like a quick-save in first person shooters where you save as you go along.

There's an option to play a random puzzle which you can customize based on: difficulty level, how many mistakes you allow yourself and a time limit. Even if you know what the end result is, the game still manages to present a challenge. My only wish is that they made more asymmetrical puzzles because oftentimes you can tell if something is going to be symmetrical which lets you cheat a little bit instead of using logic alone to finish it.

Finally there's a "My Picross" section where you can design your own puzzles (the game can store up to 240 of them!) and also download puzzle packs or participate in contests where you have to make a puzzle based on some sort of theme. With this function you can design your own puzzles and share them with friends. If you like making stuff on your own this can really extend the amount of time you spend on this game.

The game can hold four profiles if you're sharing your copy of the game with someone else.

Overall, Picross 3D is a fantastic game with a wealth of features that can keep you occupied for a very long time. Even though I’ve already received maximum stars on all the puzzles I’m still going back to complete all puzzles with zero mistakes. Then after that I’ll probably play around with making my own puzzles.

Picross 3D is a perfect portable game that can be played in short intervals, but if you’re anything like me you’ll find hours passing without knowing it. I often fall victim to the “just one more” mentality, and end up playing in bed with the lights off until my arms get tired. If you own a DS and like puzzle games then this is the game for you.