Thank you Lightwood Games for sending us a review code!

Now that the Vita is discontinued, I doubt we’ll have the opportunity to review any more games for it. I’ve really enjoyed the Vita and the portable gaming entertainment it has provided. The puzzle offerings from Lightwood Games have kept me entertained in doctor office waiting rooms and in rollercoaster lines at theme parks. My kids enjoy these games, and they’re fun for people of all ages.

Pic-a-Pix Classic offers one hundred and fifty puzzles ranging from 5x5 simple puzzles to more challenging 30x20 grids. Each puzzle is only one color that’s randomly chosen every time you begin. If you’re familiar with Picross, Nonogram, Griddlers, or Hanjie puzzles then you’ll know how to play this game. If you’re new to this style of puzzle game you’ll quickly learn that the concept is simple but mastering it takes some time. The goal is to fill in the correct pixels using the vertical and horizontal clues provided.

If you’re new to Picross games, I highly recommend starting off with the 5x5 puzzles to get the hang of it. There are only five puzzles of that size so be prepared for bigger and better challenges. Your record time is recorded for each of these puzzles and the 5x5 puzzles took me between thirty and forty-five seconds to solve apiece. The 10x10 puzzles took me between one and nearly three minutes. Most of them were solved in less than two minutes though. The 15x15 puzzles took me close to three-and-a-half minutes to complete. A 20x15 puzzle took a little over eight minutes to solve. The next size, 20x20, kept me occupied for a few seconds under ten minutes. The biggest size, 30x20, will really test your eye sight. One of these puzzles took me well over fifteen minutes to complete.

Once the puzzles are completed, you’ll see the finished pixel art in black and white. Most of the time the images made sense, but a few of them were head scratchers and a bit farfetched in my opinion. I was reminded of when my kids would draw something and I would see what it was after they told me, but not beforehand. On the audio front, the peppy chiptune music is fitting but a bit repetitive.

The hint system is both a blessing and a curse. It’s helpful to know when there are errors in your puzzle. However, the default action is to fix it automatically and by doing so, you won’t get a medal next to the completed puzzle. On multiple occasions, I have accidentally fixed it when I could have done so manually.

If you enjoy puzzles and have a Vita or PS4, Pic-a-Pix Classic is worth considering for $7.99. As an added bonus, this title is cross-buy so you can play it on both systems by just purchasing it on one platform. If you’re looking for other portable puzzle titles, Lightwood Games has several offerings on 3DS and Switch.