So I gave this another shot, still haven't paid a dime...progress is slow, but I'm unlocking a new area every few days. I get 7 picrites per day. As an F2P, I can deal with it.
You can bump that up over time too. The Daily training reward gives you bonus picrites depending on your level, and depending on how many areas you've unlocked the base rate increases too.
...And you've probably already seen that if you're on 7 a day (4 base training +2 for training level bonus + 1 for areas unlocked.)
Get to level 8 in training and you'll get +3 for your training bonus. You'll get 1 extra picrite per training for something like every 5 areas unlocked. I'm currently on 8 a day, but I believe it's possible to get as high as 13. *That's* generally when you start saving for other unlocks.
I'm still marveling at the elaborate labyrinth of unlocking. Somebody should make a guide about how to maximize progress while minimizing cash outlay.
You know, one thing I WILL say is that, regardless of however I personally feel about the carrot and stick thing, the grind is keeping me engaged with the game. If it were a traditional Picross title, there's a chance that I would've drifted away by now.
@Shadowlink That'll be the ultimate casual game pay scheme. They'll pay you an infinitesimal amount each time you play, in exchange for nothing but your time, comprehensive marketing/behavioral data which they can sell to the NSA, and a tiny portion of your soul (which they can sell to the devil, or also possibly the NSA).
To be honest, I don't mind shelling out a bit of money for Picross. (Specifically, the one-time only bargains.) The actual moment-to-moment gameplay doesn't feel like it was expressly designed to waste my time.
Managed to beat the 2 min target on Lv 10 daily training. (1 min 50 sec.) Pleasantly surprised to get a bonus two picrites in addition to the normal daily reward for my efforts. It's not much, but every bit helps when you're playing the cheap way.
That 1 min 40 achievement is going to be interesting to try and crack.
The other day, Pokemon Picross froze up on me when I entered the game, forcing me to turn off the system, which wouldn't turn back on for several minutes afterwards. I decided now was as good a time as any to get rid of it; the pay-to-play model and slowwwwww progression were bugging me anyway, so freezing up and putting my 3DS at risk was kind of the last straw. It has now been deleted!
Farewell, Pokemon Picross. You could've been great had you not succumbed to shady modern business practices.
I did, however, download Picross e6 instead, which is solid!
Still doin' my dailies to unlock stuff. After buying the discounted Picrite bundles, I think I'll just coast on the dailies.
I DO want to try those Mega Picross puzzles, though...
@Shadowlink Man, that Level 10 time limit is freaking stressful. I've decided to just take it easy and get my daily Picrites. I don't need that kind of stress!!
Pretty good. I think you get about 150 puzzles plus (in the case of e6, at least) Mega puzzle varieties for those as well as three Micross puzzles. Not a bad deal for 6 bucks when you consider that Pokemon Picross has about twice that at a minimum of 30 dollars for all the content (unless you play it every day, of course).
@TriforceBun Yeah, it does seem like a bit much, although I don't think you have to spend the full 30 to finish the game in a respectable amount of time.
Does that 150 puzzle figure include the dark world version of every puzzle, though?
Maybe I will grab a Picross-e title. I always held off, since I figured that I'd never finish all of the puzzles in Picross DS. But they have some interesting new wrinkles.
@TriforceBun Does that 150 puzzle figure include the dark world version of every puzzle, though?
Yeah, they have Mega Picross versions of all the regular 150 puzzles. So technically 300 plus the Micross ones.
Picross DS is a really good value for what it is, but even though I have a few unfinished puzzles there, I still like having the ready-to-play digital Picross games on my 3DS for convenience's sake.
Bring it on. I will be waiting on the top of a God-forsaken mountain island where I, for reasons unknown, have abandoned the world even though my Picross powers could totally help so the Dark Side would stop blowing up planets.
They feel a little "light" to me, simply because Picross DS felt like a HUGE game with so much packed in. Truthfully, though, for $6 it's worth it for me to get the Picross e titles, because I love picross that much. So I'd buy them again in a second if I didn't already own them (or own two; as I work through them I'm buying them one at a time).
So unlocked area 20 today. It seems to be a power plant or something because it's stuffed to the gills with electric Pokemon. Powerful electric Pokémon.
Which means one thing and one thing only:
THIS little bastard with his crappy 'Use only Electric Pokemon' and 'Beat in 1 Minute' garbage missions for a garbage Pokemon is finally going to get deep fried.
(4 base training +2 for training level bonus + 1 for areas unlocked.)
