Shikaku Shapes

Genre: Puzzle

Players: 1

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Review:

Shikaku Shapes, released on the Nintendo Switch in 2020, is a Puzzle game with 90 puzzles in the Shikaku style, a type of puzzle that’s a bit like Numberlink-style puzzles. Players have a grid of squares with some squares containing numbers. Players are tasked with blocking out rectangles on the grid and must ensure that each rectangle houses within it a number equal to the number of squares within the rectangle.

The presentation here is decent but unspectacular, featuring clean numbers backed by simple abstract art, with both a light and dark theme. This is accompanied by a plucky, slightly annoying instrumental theme.

The gameplay here isn’t anything that’s going to set the world on fire, but it is good and will do a good job of pulling the player in and keeping them playing. I am a bit disappointed at the lack of touchscreen controls (which seem like they’d be ideal for this game), but the traditional gamepad controls work well enough that this isn’t too great a loss.

Overall, I like Shikaku Shapes. It’s not a Puzzle game that will suck you in like some of the best in the genre, but it’s fun and compelling. If you’re a fan of the genre looking for another Puzzle game to add to your collection, this one is well worth putting on your list.

tl;dr – Shikaku Shapes is a Puzzle game in the Shikaku style, which is similar to a Numberlink puzzle. Players fill a grid with rectangles, trying to match the size of each rectangle to numbers on the grid. The gameplay here is compelling, though not as much as some of the true greats of the genre. If you’re a Puzzle game fan, this should be worth a look.

Grade: C+

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