Virtual Console Roundup

Mario's Super Picross

• Platform: SNES
• Wii Points: 900
• In Real Money: GBP 6.30 / EUR 9 (approx)

Here's another cheeky price hike, and it's even less clear why this one has bumped up by 100 points from the usual SNES price. Perhaps we're paying extra because it was never released outside Japan. That'll teach us to live in the wrong hemisphere.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the game is presented in its original Japanese text format, thus immediately increasing its appeal to those who gain sick carnal satisfaction from working their way through foreign language puzzle games (i.e. Tom).

Thankfully, the gameplay is simple and English instructions can be called up via the usual Home button Operations Guide should you panic. Basically, chip away at a grid of stone tiles to make a picture, with time penalties for mistakes. Numbers above and to the side tell you how many tiles need to be chipped away in each column and row, so careful thought is required to work out where the gaps must be placed. It's easy enough to grasp, but the fact that many of the early puzzles are of Japanese characters (as in "letters", not "Godzilla") can be yet another potential hurdle for nervous PAL players.

Once you've mastered it, though, you can try some of the Wario levels which mix things up by not penalising you for mistakes, but you won't actually be told you've made a mistake either. It's a small change that makes a big difference to the difficulty.

It's a tricky one really. Picross is a justifiably beloved puzzle game, and one that's lots of fun once you figure out what's required. Sort of like Sudoku for people who hate numbers. The in-game text isn't really a problem, but some familiarity with the Japanese language can definitely be a benefit. It's also impressive to see Nintendo branching out into cult waters and sharing some 60Hz Nippon obscurities - an act which will hopefully put an end to some of the nonsensical chatter about how the Wii isn't for "hardcore" gamers. But...there's no denying that there's little here to justify a 100 point increase over the usual SNES pricing, especially as a good chunk of these levels can already be downloaded into Picross DS for free. A great puzzle game, then, that may be of only limited interest and/or value in this form.

8/10

Neutopia II

• Platform: TurboGrafx 16
• Wii Points: 600
• In Real Money: GBP 4.20 / EUR 6 (approx)

And here, unrelated to all this Hanabi Festival excitement, is another quietly decent TurboGrafx role-playing game, the sequel to a game that only arrived on the VC a few weeks ago. So if you've finished the old Neutopia, here's some new Neutopia to keep you busy.

Beyond the usual general refinements and tidying up that usually accompany a Part 2, things haven't changed drastically - it's still a blatant riff on the Zelda template - but, as with the first game, if you're going to crib from another series you might as well look to the top of the pile for inspiration.

The game is solid, the price is more than reasonable for the amount of gameplay within, so retro role-players should tuck right in.

7/10