Pokémon Picross (Gotta Etch 'Em All)

This Thursday, apparently! It's Pokémon, it's Picross... the only way it could be more exciting to me is if it were also somehow a 2D platformer.

Free to play, though - urk. The third FTP Pokégame this year, so it is. Anyway, thoughts?

It's the first Free to Play title I've been tempted to try in a long time. I'll probably get pissed off with the business model and drop it though.

Got it! It's an odd set-up, which is designed to keep the 'buy things' aspect in play: you have an energy bar which is expended playing the puzzles and can be kept up by buying extensions (using Picrites, which can be earned by completing puzzles or bought with real money) or waiting. The puzzles are grouped into worlds of about four or five at a time; the next world can only be accessed by spending Picrites. It will get to the stage where I'm spending cash on it to get on because the number of Picrites it gives out in-game is remarkably stingy.

And the tutorial is interminable... much like the real thing!

Oh God. Have they actually ruined Picross?

From what I've heard if you upgrade the energy bar fully you can play it properly. I don't know if I can be bothered with it knowing it'll be a grind though.

I don't get the Picross altogether even the Pokemon version

Balladeer wrote:

Oh God.  Have they actually ruined Picross?

That's a bit strong but you will definitely have to either spend money (I have) or replay puzzles many, many times to get the Picrites needed to make proper progress. I don't begrudge spending money on Picross games but there is no simple 'unlock the whole game' option - buying together the 'right' amount of Picrites needs to be done in three separate transactions that will cost around £26.

It did seem like a lot was being thrown at me at once but I think I've got my head around it, I like the inclusion of challenges too even if there isn't much scope for variety in them.

So Pokémon Picross pulled a mean trick on me earlier. Occasionally a rare 'mon, usually a Legendary, appears and you have to catch it/solve its puzzle within the hour. I got an alert when I started playing this morning... and the monster was in an area I hadn't unlocked yet.

Having said that, as someone on SONM rightly pointed out, the game is free-to-start rather than free-to-play. The last time I worked it out, you'd need to spend £26 to be able to unlock everything.

Being the stubborn bastard I am I'm refusing to pay due to how shit the business model is, so slowly but surely I'm building up my picrites from the daily challenge... I will beat this game...

I look forward to your review in the Last game I finished thread in 2019, then.

That seems to be the way I'm going with this now I've hit the pay wall, much much earlier than I expected to, that being said I'd sooner delete it than pay, I still have a Picross e game I haven't played so if I was gonna pay I'd rather get that.

I just spent another £2-odd on this last night. However, it has meant that I now have a 'mon who can do Slash Reveal! Finally.

I can't quite decide between buying a third 'mon slot to mop up a few more challenges or buy the next area. It'll probably be the area for now. Guess it depends how expensive they get.

I'm still stuck on the second or third level on world 1 so I gave up and haven't touched it since

I wasn't too interested in this, having bounced off Picross a couple of times in the past, but Amelia at work is addicted to it so I thought I'd give it a go. I'm having more luck than I ever have before, and playing in small bursts means the bar running out hasn't been a huge issue yet. That said, 20x15 monsters still terrify me.

Presenting Pokémon Picross passwords, playas! Pokémon Picross passwords

Oooh, thank you!

There's one zone that is still locked on my game at the moment! How are all o' y'all getting on?

Long given up, there's always something better to be playing on my 3DS, so without playing it daily I can't get anywhere.

I didn't get very far. I'm not good at picross

I got two Pokemon in past the tutorial and gave up completely

Just me? Just me. I've got the Alt-World opened and all I can say is - again - "Ruddy Mega Picross".