Mario's Picross

"For What it Is, It's Perfect"

This review might be a little short, so bear with me.. but, how much can you say about a game like this?

The Game Boy has been proven as the platform for people on the go. Not so much kids as business people or busy travelling types. Yeah, we all know them. That's why games you can just sit down and play -- like Tetris or Dr. Mario -- have been so insanely successful on the different variants of the handheld system we all know and love. Well, Mario's Picross is no exception. Don't let the name Mario fool you -- this is a game best played to take up time, to keep an idle mind entertained, but not too deeply involved. And it executes its job perfectly.

For those of you unfamiliar with Picross, (I know I was until I played) the concept is simple but unusual. You get a grid with numbers at the top and sides. Those number clue you in how many points of the graph in a row or column you fill in. When you fill in all the correct squares in the graph, it makes a picture. If it sounds confusing, because it's hard to explain, then just pick up the game if you're interested and take the tutorial -- it'll step you through it nice and easy.

The Game offers a lot for its money.. which is good, since you can't really play it over again that much since the puzzles don't change. The puzzles start off easy -- 6 by 6 squares.. and end up pretty respectful, in 15 by 15 squares. The pictures they yield range from boring -- letters of the alphabet -- to pretty interesting -- Mario's Head. And in true mario style, there are "secret Puzzles" that are accssed only be completing the originals.

The music is bearable at first.. but quickly becomes less than that. You only get one song to do ALL these puzzles too, and as expected, it can get annoying. Luckily, every gameboy has a volume switch. :) No, there are no perks for the GameBoy Color, since this game was out before "that age," but if you play it on the Super GameBoy, you get the rather novel option of choosing which color GameBoy borders the gamescreen.. cute.

Well, if your one of those types who travels a lot and wants something to keep you entertained.. but find puzzle books with pens and pencils to be a bit messy.. then give Mario Picross a try. It's not my type of game, but I actually found it very entertaining. However, if you're looking for Mario, look elsewhere. Unless you can forever stare at a still picture of him that just blinks once and a while or offers you the trademark "Victory" sign, there's little in the way of the chubby plumber here.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/99, Updated 11/01/99