Picross DS Preview

Carol Voderman is rubbish. Yes, she can do all those sums on Countdown and she's doubtless a dab hand at the odd spot of sudoku. But when was the last time her mathematical skills recreated a little picture of a koala? When did the middle-aged math-magician ever stun the crowd on Countdown by using numbers to decode an image of a dolphin? Never, that's when.

But thanks to Picross DS, that's exactly what we've been doing at every possible opportunity recently. We've been filling each boring minute of train rides, bus journeys, long queues and other wayward moments with sheer Picross puzzling joy. In Japan, where Picross originates, it's just one of a growing number of logical puzzlers making their way to DS, such as the excellent Slitherlink, Hitori, Kakuro, Nankuro and Honeycomb Beat. While here in Europe, where we're apparently trapped in sudoku hell, Picross is a wonderul breath of fresh air because it feels so different. Plus, you make little pictures of animals, which is much better than simply shoving numbers in a grid.

Like many of its Japanese puzzle brethren, Picross is a game of brain power and logic. On each level, you're presented with a grid of squares. In earlier stages, you're only challenged by a 5x5 grid but as you progress things are scaled up to massive proportions with 40+ square grids putting in an appearance. Your aim, no matter how large the grid, is to fill certain squares to form a rudimentary picture - of a pen, some kind of animal or, in later stages, Nintendo-related images.

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