It's amazing how the classic Japanese puzzle game, Sudoku, has become such a hit with Americans over the last few years. Every major newspaper seems to have a daily puzzle. I too enjoy doing Sudoku puzzles in my free time. It's an excellent blend of logic and simplicity that anyone can do. But many Americans have been missing out on another puzzle game from the far East: Picross. A mix between Sudoku and crosswords, Picross is another simple, yet engaging puzzle game. It plays much like Sudoku, but the solution to each puzzle is a picture of some sort. Players use numbers to decide whether a block should be filled in or not, if the player is good enough, he/she shouldn't have to guess at all throughout the solving of each puzzle.
I have become addicted to Picross. It's so much fun seeing what the final picture is going to be, which adds a certain childlike connect the dots feel to the game. So the question is: why hasn't this caught on in America as Sudoku has? A good question that's worth exploring. The big factor in finding the answer is newspapers. Sudoku owes a lot of its popularity to newspapers, and Picross would likely have to find a similar medium in order to take off. One problem with putting Picross puzzles in a newspaper is that, unlike Sudoku, one mistake in Picross can spell endless mistakes later on unless you have instant feedback. Picross would probably take up more space than a Sudoku puzzle would, and Picross's rules would have to be explained in much further detail in order for readers to understand.
Either way, Picross is still an awesome way to kill time. If you're interested, try googling it for some flash versions of the game. Also, Picross DS can offer those with the handheld a chance to play at an affordable price.
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