Many people probably experienced something that might be deceptively simple to do but at the same time is irresistible and potentially addicting. “Picross 3D” is both these things and more.

The “Picross” game series, originally released for the Game Boy in 1995, is a puzzle game that anyone can easily play and get hooked on.

The basic premise of the game is that the player is presented with a grid composed of rows and columns. At the top of each column and beginning of each row, there are a series of numbers. These numbers represent how many individual squares you fill in. And if there is a space between the numbers, that means there is at least one blank space in between the filled spaces.

For example, if a row is five squares long and there was a 2 2 in front of it, you would have to fill in the first two squares, leave the middle square blank, then fill in the remaining two squares. The ultimate goal of the game is to use the clues from each column and row to make a picture of an ordinary object (a car, for example).
While the beginning puzzles are easy, later levels can take hours to solve (much like a five star Sudoku puzzle).

Now that the series is in 3D, instead of a single grid, the squares are a part of a cube. As before, players have to use the numbers given to decide which squares will end up being a part of the final image and which ones can be eliminated.

While uncertain how the game would fare in 3D, after playing through the first several levels, I can say that the transition is perfectly natural and it feels as though the new game picks up right where the 2D one left off. The puzzles feel instantly familiar yet completely different at the same time.

The shift to the third dimension brings with it new challenges, most noticeably the issue of depth. This means there are squares (or cubes, rather) that players won’t be able to see as they are in between other cubes. This adds an extra level of difficulty that is still quite enjoyable to the overall experience.

There are other slight changes to the number formula, but they were necessary to bring the puzzles to 3D and they do not feel out of place. The game developers have made it so that everything about this game feels like a logical next step up from the previous puzzles.

Another aspect this game kept is the simple and intuitive controls. With this type of game, tight, polished controls are essential, and I am relieved to say that the controls are so perfect that you won’t even have to think about doing them. This allows the player to fully concentrate on the puzzle which is a welcome relief from games in which the interface can be distracting.

In the previous games, the incentive for doing well was to shoot for the lowest time possible. In “Picross 3D,” there is a more materialistic reward for succeeding. Depending on several factors, such as amount of times the wrong cube is eliminated or how much the time limit is exceeded, players can earn stars and unlock bonus puzzles.

The music in this game is good. While the melody isn’t complex, it suits the style of gameplay perfectly and it is very catchy. It definitely is effective at putting the brain in the right mindset to solve brainteasers.

My main piece of advice is that when using the games tools to view the inner cubes that are blocked by the outside ones, don’t forget to frequently look at the bigger picture. Otherwise it becomes easy to think that the narrowed view initially presented represents the whole puzzle, when it reality it is only a part of it.

I would definitely recommend this game to anyone who owns a DS as the game is only $20. While the experience gained from playing the previous entries is certainly applicable and helpful with the newest addition, it is completely possible to start fresh with “Picross 3d” and fully enjoy the experience. Trust me; you will become enraptured by this game’s whimsical charm, catchy tunes and addictive gameplay.