| Picross | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Puzzle video game |
| Developers | |
| Publishers | |
| Platforms | |
| First release | Mario's Picross March 14, 1995 |
| Latest release | Picross: Juufuutei Raden's Guide for Pixel Museum June 4, 2025 |
Picross[a] is a series ofpuzzle video games developed byJupiter Corporation and owned byNintendo. It features a series ofnonogram puzzles solved by the player. The series started in 1995 withMario's Picross for theGame Boy. After many entries published by Nintendo for multiple platforms, Jupiter started self-publishingPicross games such as thePicross e andPicross S series on theNintendo 3DS andNintendo Switch under license from Nintendo.
HAL Laboratory developed thePicross 3D spinoff series, with games on theNintendo DS and Nintendo 3DS.
Due to the popularity of pen-and-paper nonogram puzzles at the time in Japan, Makoto Nakayama, founder of Jupiter Corporation, pitched a video game version of nonograms to Nintendo. Since Jupiter had little experience in game development,Ape Inc. (known now as Creatures Inc.) assisted with the game's development.Shigeru Miyamoto oversaw the process from Nintendo's side and proposed adding Mario to the game.Mario's Picross was released for the Game Boy in 1995.[1] While it did not take off in the West, it sold well in Japan and led to several Japan-only entries, includingPicross 2 for the Game Boy,Mario's Super Picross for the Super Famicom, thePicross NP series for theNintendo Power service, andTamori no Picross forSatellaview. APicross minigame was also planned to be included inPokémon Gold and Silver during its development, although that idea was scrapped.[2][3]
Picross DS was the firstPicross title in 12 years to be released internationally, launching on the Nintendo DS in 2007. Shortly thereafter, HAL Laboratory, known for theKirby series, developedPicross 3D for the Nintendo DS. The game used similar mechanics to traditionalPicross but adapted them to a three-dimensional environment. The sequel,Picross 3D: Round 2, was released for the Nintendo 3DS in 2015.
After unsuccessfully pitching aPicross DS sequel to Nintendo for the 3DS, Jupiter opted to self-publishPicross games under a licensing deal.[1] They released nine titles and many spin-offs in thePicross e series for the Nintendo 3DS. Jupiter continues to self-publishPicross games on the Nintendo Switch, releasing nine titles and various spin-offs in thePicross S series.
Over the years, Jupiter Corporation has also worked on a few nonogram video games that are not part of thePicross video game franchise, but were built on the same engine as titles in the series, includingNuPa: Numeric Paint Puzzle,Puzzlun,Pictlogica Final Fantasy,Smapic, andSumikko Gurashi the Movie: The Kingdom of the Sky and the Two Girls Let's Play Characross.Logiart Grimoire andJuufuutei Raden's Guide for Pixel Museum were also created as original nonogram video games forMicrosoft Windows (through theSteam digital store), along with the former receiving aPlayStation 4 port, but for their Nintendo Switch release, both games use thePicross name with permissions from Nintendo.
| Game title | Developer | Publisher | System | Release | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mario's Picross | Jupiter Corporation, Ape Inc. | Nintendo | Game Boy | 1995 | First game in thePicross franchise, and first game in theMario's Picross series. |
| Tamori no Picross[4] | Super Famicom (Satellaview) | Broadcast from April 23rd to September 2nd, 1995. Only released in Japan. | |||
| Mario's Super Picross | Super Famicom | Second game in theMario's Picross series. Originally only released in Japan, later received a European release on Wii, and a worldwide release on Nintendo Switch. | |||
| Picross 2 | Jupiter Corporation, Creatures Inc. | Game Boy | 1996 | Last game in theMario's Picross series. Only released in Japan. | |
| Satella de Picross[4] | Jupiter Corporation | Nintendo,St.GIGA | Super Famicom (Satellaview) | 1997 | Was broadcast on November 30th of 1997, and ran for 27 days. Only released in Japan. |
| Picross NP series | Jupiter Corporation, Nintendo | Nintendo | Super Famicom (Nintendo Power) | 1999-2000 | Series of 8 volumes that released for the Nintendo Power service. Only released in Japan. |
| Picross DS | Jupiter Corporation | Nintendo DS | 2007 | FirstPicross game in 12 years to release outside of Japan. | |
| Picross 3D | HAL Laboratory | 2009 | First game not developed by Jupiter Corporation, and first game in thePicross 3D series. | ||
| Picross e series | Jupiter Corporation | Jupiter Corporation | Nintendo 3DS | 2011-2018 | Received nine numbered entries. The first game is the firstPicross game to not be published by Nintendo. Picross e9 only released in Japan. |
| Club Nintendo Picross | Nintendo | 2012 | Given away as reward for theClub Nintendo loyalty program. Only released in Japan and South Korea. | ||
| Club Nintendo Picross+ | 2014 | Given away as reward for the Club Nintendo loyalty program. Only released in Japan. | |||
| Picross 3D: Round 2 | HAL Laboratory | 2015 | Second game in thePicross 3D series. | ||
| Pokémon Picross | Jupiter Corporation | The Pokémon Company | The first and, so far, onlyfreemiumPicross game in the franchise. | ||
| My Nintendo Picross: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess | Nintendo | 2016 | Given away as a reward for theMy Nintendo loyalty program. | ||
| Picross S series | Jupiter Corporation | Nintendo Switch | 2017-2025 | Received nine numbered entries, plus a few spin-offs: •Picross S: Genesis & Master System Edition (2021) - Crossover with properties owned bySega, such asSonic the Hedgehog,Bonanza Bros.,Puyo Puyo, andGolden Axe; •Picross S+ (2024) - A compilation of all 9Picross e games' puzzles; •Picross S: Namco Legendary Edition (2024) - Crossover with properties owned byNamco, such asPac-Man,Galaga,Dig Dug, andMappy; •Picross S: Doraemon & F Characters Edition (2025) - Crossover with theDoraemon manga series, along with other works by the Japanese manga artistHiroshi Fujimoto; •Picross S: Capcom Classics Edition (2025) - Crossover with properties owned byCapcom, such asStreet Fighter,Mega Man, andFinal Fight; •Picross S: SNK Classics & NEOGEO Edition (2025) - Crossover with properties owned bySNK, such asThe King of Fighters,Fatal Fury, andMetal Slug. | |
| Sanrio characters Picross | Nintendo 3DS | 2018 | Crossover with characters and properties owned bySanrio such asHello Kitty,Bad Badtz-Maru,My Melody, andKirimichan. | ||
| Kemono Friends Picross | Nintendo Switch | Crossover with theKemono Friends media franchise. | |||
| Picross: Lord of the Nazarick | 2019 | Crossover with theOverlord light novel series. | |||
| Picross X: Picbits vs Uzboross | 2022 | Spin-off focusing entirely on solving short 5x5 puzzle grids in quick succession. | |||
| Picross -LogiartGrimoire-[b] | 2024 | Is only considered to be part of thePicross franchise on Nintendo Switch. Originally released onSteam asEarly Access on September 12 of 2023, and received aPlayStation 4 release on April 24 of 2025. | |||
| Picross: Records of The Shield Hero | Crossover withThe Rising of the Shield Hero multimedia franchise. | ||||
| Picross: Juufuutei Raden's Guide for Pixel Museum[c] | 2025 | Crossover withHololive Production-affiliatedVTuber Juufuutei Raden. Is only considered to be part of thePicross franchise on Nintendo Switch.[5] The game also received aSteam release on the same day as the Nintendo Switch release. |
| Game title | Developer | Publisher | System | Revealed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pokémon Picross[6] | Jupiter Corporation | The Pokémon Company | Game Boy Color | 1999 | Originally shown in various Japanese magazines around spring of 1999, the game was cancelled for unknown reasons. The game was later found in aNintendo data leak in 2020.[7] The game is not directly tied to the game of the same name released for Nintendo 3DS in 2015. |
