’m ashamed to admit that I’ve never played the original Mario’s Picross (released for the old-school monochromatic Game Boy “brick” way back in 1995). However, I always heard great things – Andy and former GI editor Justin Leeper always proselytized for the game to whoever would listen. Boy, were they right. This game is a stone classic of the puzzle genre; one I’d put it right up there with any and all comers, including Tetris.

The concept (as with all great puzzlers) is exceedingly simple in concept yet endlessly complex in practice. You have a large grid of squares. Each line and column is marked with numbers, which denote series of blocks that appear in each. For example, a row marked “3 2” has one group of three blocks and one group of two blocks. Each group must be separated by at least one blank square. Now, I realize this description might seem a little convoluted, but trust me – after five minutes in the tutorial the basic principles will be second nature.

Like Sudoku or crossword puzzles, this is one of those endlessly replayable games. The solution is always there, right in front of you. It’s just a matter of using logic and careful planning to place the block correctly. In addition the brilliant main modes, you can also design your own Picross boards to share with friends, play online against four other competitors, or download grids from the original Game Boy cartridge. That’s a lot of gameplay for a great bargain of $20, making this one of the best handheld games of the year, hands down.