If you’ve somehow never heard of either Konami or the Picross series at this point in your life, you’ve made some terrible decisions along the way. However, if seeing images from classic games like Contra, Castlevania, and others mixed with rock-solid puzzling play excites you, there’s absolutely some fun in store for you here. Much like multiple developer collaborations before it, the folks at Jupiter have put together a celebration of great puzzles, mixed with sights and sounds from multiple Konami titles from over the years, some of which are pretty legendary in classic gaming circles.

On the Picross side of things, not a single feature has been left out. You’ll be able to play Classic, Mega, Color, and Clip Picross either solo or co-op with a few of your friends as well if you’d like. In addition, there are a few massive puzzles in the Extras section that will be sure to test your skills, and possibly your patience, as you try to manage clues at a scale of 30 x 30. Throw in the challenging Time Attack mode, where you’ll have to scramble to work out puzzles while on the clock, and there’s plenty of variety. In terms of the presentation though, everything is geared towards Konami classics, which include the likes of Gradius, Castlevania, Contra, and many more. 

In terms of concerns, while there are some great titles represented here, whether or not you’ll always be familiar with every one of the games being referenced would be a fair question, since not all of them were hits. Also, while I’m a fan of watching classic arcade and console footage of many of these classic games, them being in motion behind the puzzles you’re trying to solve could prove to be distracting for some, and less appreciated overall. None of these are game breakers, but they are details that may point to another one of the collections being a better choice.

In the end, given that there’s a plentitude of great Picross titles already on the system, which one you pick will likely revolve around what you’re looking for. If you just love nonogram puzzles, and don’t have a thirst for nostalgic arcade titles from yesteryear, the traditional S series may be your best bet. There are also some offshoots with their own flavor, like the pretty recent Records of The Shield Hero, that may be good for something a little different. But if you’re a vintage gamer like myself, it’s hard not to see appeal in these callback versions that celebrate different classic developers. I just hope to continue to see more of them.