Picross developer Jupiter is reportedly porting all nine Picross E games to Nintendo Switch after the 3DS eShop shut down and rendered them unavailable.
As reported by Nintendo Life, Picross S+ will launch in 2024 on Nintendo Switch for $4.99 / £3.99 / €4.99, essentially as a remaster of the original Picross E game. This will be considered the base game, while the puzzles featured in the remaining Picross E games will be made available as paid add-on content.
This will be the only way to play the Picross E series after Nintendo closed the 3DS and Wii U eShops in March 2023. This made digital only games like the Picross E series essentially non-existent to those who hadn’t purchased them already.
Users who buy Picross S+ and its paid content packs (the price for which have not yet been revealed) will be able to own the entire series again on Switch, however, in what’s likely a more sustainable digital format as players’ Nintendo accounts will persist beyond the Switch.
When the Picross E9 content pack is released for Picross S+, this will also mark the first time this game’s puzzles will be available in the west, as the original 3DS game was a Japan exclusive.
The latest game in the series, Picross S9, was released in April 2023 and featured hundreds of the nonogram puzzles for players to overcome.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.