Before getting my hands on Piczle Cross: Rune Factory, I had never solved a nonogram before. I’d never been that interested in the Pokemon Picross games either, having no clue what they actually entailed. I’m in my thirties now, though, and I’ve started doing puzzles daily – NYT games, LinkedIn games, even a random sudoku generator I found online. So, I can now say with confidence that nonograms have entered that rotation and supplanted my favourites.
There’s something deeply relaxing about solving a nonogram. It’s painting by numbers, but with logic puzzles added into the mix, and it has the same satisfaction of having a complete picture to look at when you’re finished. It scratches a brain itch like no other. Developer Score Studios explains their appeal: “You still need to use your brain but there is also no pressure, so they’re a great way to wind down. Plus, it’s always fun to see the final solution image revealed slowly as you logic your way through the clues.”
From SEED Ranger To Puzzle Solver
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The Rune Factory trappings here are mostly set dressing, but they are truly wonderful set dressing that takes excellent advantage of the anime life sim’s aesthetic. Every puzzle in the game unlocks something, whether it be crops to add to your virtual farm plot, monsters to accompany your little player character, or NPCs to learn about in the compendium.
Puzzles themselves form icons or sprite work based on the last three Rune Factory games, and it makes for a charming trip down memory lane for a series veteran.
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This is largely propped up by the “wealth of assets” provided to the developer by Rune Factory publisher Marvelous. To be blunt, most of the time the experience manages to feel like an extensive minigame housed within Rune Factory 5. There are 300 puzzles in total, but each has two forms – one in the classic black and one incorporating colour, with slightly different puzzle rules for each.
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The end result is a gigantic collection of puzzles to be tackled with as much commitment or stress as you wish.
Quality of life is the watchword with Piczle Cross. While the default ‘Adventure’ Mode has you solving puzzles in sequence, unlocking them gradually and taking on tougher, ‘Challenge’ mode puzzles that punish any mistakes and have enforced time limits, there’s also a Puzzle Mode that does away with all restrictions, letting you take on the collection of puzzles in any way you want.
Challenge mode puzzles are an interesting diversion. In most puzzles, you’re free to try any arrangements and figure things out manually, but Challenge mode enforces a strict one-hour time limit. This might seem generous, but any mistakes will incur a time penalty that ramps up with multiple missteps. In my experience, losing a Challenge mode puzzle meant taking a screenshot and then restarting with all the correct squares filled in, as it didn’t make sense to start from scratch.
I feel like an alternative way to create a meaningful sense of difficulty, such as a penalty-less version of Challenge mode with a far stricter natural time limit, would have improved things, especially as Challenge mode is often used as a roadblock to unlock new puzzles.
There are other things that could have been improved, but they’re minor. The first is an error that leaves some UI elements stuck on the screen (which I believe is due to playing with an ultrawide resolution), which obscures some buttons. I also experienced a nasty bug that crops up whenever I check my current answers in a puzzle – the only way to exit the puzzle from the check onwards is to complete it or close the game.
The second is the music on offer – while the tracks are from the Rune Factory games and nice to hear for the most part, they can be rather grating after even just a few cycles. This is a game to play with the music turned down and your personal playlists blaring instead. Again, these are very minor quibbles that do little to interfere with enjoying the meat of the puzzles.
I’ve been playing Piczle Cross: Rune Factory for nine days at this point, and I’ve racked up 34 and a half hours already. I don’t feel like I’ve made a significant dent in the game’s massive roster of puzzles, and I’m already dreading the day I reach 100 percent completion and have to find something else to fill the void. This game is a wonderful obsession that I’ve cultivated entirely on a whim, and I’d recommend it to anyone.
Played on PC
- Released
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February 25, 2025
- Developer(s)
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Score Studios
- Publisher(s)
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Rainy Frog
- A massive collection of enjoyable puzzles
- Rune Factory details make for a wonderful theme
- Intermittent bugs
- Soundtrack quickly becomes grating