Comparison

Piczle Lines vs Nonograms Katana

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Piczle Lines

Reconstruct digital photos by connecting numbers in a grid to solve addictive logic puzzles. Uncover a mystery as you progress through story mode or tackle challenging standalone puzzles. Offers free puzzles and additional content packs for purchase.

Highlights
  • Logic puzzle gameplay
  • Image reconstruction
  • Story mode with narrative
  • Challenging puzzle mode
  • Downloadable puzzle packs
  • Animated comic book scenes
Features
Read full description

"MYTHS & LEGENDS" and "ACROSS THE UNIVERSE" DLC are now available! "Pure puzzle perfection! 9/10" - Eurogamer "Piczle Lines is pretty much the perfect iPhone game." - The Unofficial Apple Weblog "Extremely hard to put down" - The Guardian newspaper "Probably the best puzzle game I've ever played for the iPhone/iPod touch. 4.5/5" - Gamezebo "Extremely absorbing!" - Pocketgamer TOP #100 GAMES, #5 FREE PUZZLE GAME IN JAPAN An addictive logic-puzzle game to keep your brain active for hours! When the professor accidentally destroys all his digital photos it's up to you to reconstruct them and figure out what happened exactly in this addictive logic-puzzle game. By connecting the correct numbers in a large grid, reconstruct images, unlock new and bigger puzzles and find out exactly where the professor went on holiday and what could be behind this mysterious loss of photographic data. Featuring addictive logic-puzzle fun in an animated STORY MODE or challenging PUZZLE MODE, play 40 FREE puzzles with more available from the IN-GAME STORE (including more FREE downloadable puzzle packs), only for iPhone and iPod Touch, for FREE! Watch the official trailer! - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wJD7ZrqeeA ------------------------------------------------ * Download more puzzles from the in-game store * ------------------------------------------------ - STARTER PACK (FREE) - An extra puzzle pack of 20 puzzles of varying sizes - STORY MODE BUNDLE - Chapters 2 through 6 of the Story Mode, 100 more puzzles of increasing difficulty and animated comic book scenes leading to the thrilling conclusion of Professor Matrix's quest to find the cause behind all his data loss troubles. - BIG BOOSTER BUNDLE - Four puzzle packs of 20 puzzles each of vartying sizes, from small and easy to large and complicated, this booster bundle will keep your brain occupied for hours. Contains the packs: Small and Simple, Medium Media, Big Bellied & Huge Hobbies - WILDLIFE BUNDLE - Four puzzle packs of 20 puzzles each containing huge, challenging puzzles for expert players. Contains the packs: Sea Life, Wings, Creepy Crawlies & Mammals - ACTIVITIES BUNDLE - Four puzzle packs of 20 puzzles each containing smaller, simpler puzzles for novice players or those just wanting to finish some quick puzzles without frustrations. Contains the packs: School Subjects, Fun and Games, Sports & Occupations - HAPPY HALLOWEEN PACK (FREE) - A free puzzle pack of 20 spooky puzzles to celebrate Halloween - ACROSS THE UNIVERSE BUNDLE (NEW!) - Four puzzle packs of 20 puzzles each containing huge, challenging puzzles. Contains the packs: Space Race, Solar System, Constellations & Close Encounters. - MYTHS & LEGENDS BUNDLE (NEW!) - Four puzzle packs of 20 puzzles each containing huge, legendary puzzles for heroic puzzlers! Contains the packs: Deities, Mythical Beasts, Legendary Heroes & Mythical Objects. - MERRY CHRISTMAS PACK (FREE) (NEW!) - A free puzzle pack of 20 seasonal puzzles for this holiday season ------------------------------------------------ If you are experiencing difficulties downloading these in-game purchases please visit our technical support forums at http://score-studios.jp/forums/ Some puzzles may be difficult, but none are broken! If you are having difficulties finding a solution, why not check in our forums at http://score-studios.jp/forums/ For feedback, comments and queries please don't hesitate to contact us at info@score-studios.jp or join us in our forums at http://score-studios.jp/forums/ For more Score Studios products and games check our site at www.score-studios.jp

About

Nonograms Katana

This logic puzzle game challenges you to fill in cells based on numerical clues to reveal hidden pictures. It offers a vast collection of puzzles, creation tools, and engaging expansions for a mentally stimulating experience.

Highlights
  • 1001 nonograms included
  • Create and share your own puzzles
  • Black-and-white and colored puzzles
  • Puzzles sorted by size
  • Optional RPG expansion
  • Cloud save and achievements
Features
Read full description

Nonograms Katana: Sharpen your mind! Nonograms, also known as Hanjie, Griddlers, Picross, Japanese Crosswords, Japanese Puzzles, Pic-a-Pix, "Paint by numbers" and other names, are picture logic puzzles in which cells in a grid must be colored or left blank according to numbers at the side of the grid to reveal a hidden picture. The numbers are a form of discrete tomography that measures how many unbroken lines of filled-in squares there are in any given row or column. For example, a clue of "4 8 3" would mean there are sets of four, eight, and three filled squares, in that order, with at least one blank square between successive groups. To solve a puzzle, one needs to determine which cells will be boxes and which will be empty. Determining which cells are to be left empty (called spaces) is as important as determining which to fill (called boxes). Later in the solving process, the spaces help determine where a clue (continuing block of boxes and a number in the legend) may spread. Solvers usually use a dot or a cross to mark cells they are certain are spaces. It is also important never to guess. Only cells that can be determined by logic should be filled. If guessing, a single error can spread over the entire field and completely ruin the solution. Features: - 1001 nonograms - All puzzles are free - All puzzles tested by computer program and have unique solution - Black-and-white and colored - Nonograms sorted by groups from 5x5 to 50x50 - Download puzzles sent by other users - Create and share your own puzzles - 15 free hints per puzzle - Use crosses, dots and other symbols to mark cells - Auto cross out numbers - Auto fill trivial and completed lines - Auto save; if you stuck you can try another puzzle and come back later - Zoom and smooth scrolling - Lock and zoom number bars - Lock current puzzle state, check assumptions - Customize background - Optional cursor for accurate picking - Undo and redo - Share result pictures - Save game progress to the cloud - Achievements and leaderboards - Screen rotation - Suitable for phones and tablets VIP Features: - No Ads - View Answer - 5 extra hints per puzzle The Guild Expansion: Welcome to the Adventurers Guild! By solving puzzles, you will get loot and experience. You will have weapons that allow you to deal with puzzles much faster. You will be able to complete quests and receive a reward. You will have to rebuild the settlement and collect the lost mosaic piece by piece. The Dungeon Expansion: Game in a game in a game. Isometric turn-based RPG. What adventurer doesn't dream of exploring a dungeon? site: https://nonograms-katana.com facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Nonograms.Katana

Screenshots

Piczle Lines4 screens
Nonograms Katana4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Piczle Lines at fortnightly against Nonograms Katana's every 4 months. Piczle Lines also leads on review sentiment (91% vs 83%) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 15.0). Nonograms Katana's advantage is ratings volume (6.8K vs 16). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Piczle Lines sells 6 one-off in-app purchases and Nonograms Katana sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Nonograms Katana holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Nonograms Katana has 6.8K ratings behind it against 16, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 91% of Piczle Lines's written reviews are positive against 83% of Nonograms Katana's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Piczle Lines ships an update fortnightly, Nonograms Katana every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Piczle Lines versus Nonograms Katana: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPiczle LinesNonograms Katana
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (16 ratings)4.8 (6.8K ratings) — better
Positive reviews91.4% of reviews — better82.9% of reviews
Number of ratings166.8K — better
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 4 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS8.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size24 MB42 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperScore StudiosUcdevs Interaction DOO

Customer experience

Piczle Lines

All ratings16 ratings
Positive93.8%
Neutral0.0%
Negative6.3%
Written reviews405 reviews
Positive91.4%
Neutral4.0%
Negative4.7%

Nonograms Katana

All ratings6,833 ratings
Positive97.2%
Neutral1.8%
Negative1.1%
Written reviews339 reviews
Positive82.9%
Neutral5.3%
Negative11.8%

User reviews

Piczle Lines

From 16 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Addictive and fun gameplay
  • 🚀 Great value with free and paid content
  • 💡 Interesting story mode
  • 👍 Challenging puzzles with increasing difficulty
  • 👍 Simple and intuitive controls

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
  • 🔋 High battery consumption
  • 👎 Limited number of free puzzles
  • 👎 Zoom controls could be improved

Nonograms Katana

From 6.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Lots of puzzles
  • 👍 Customizable settings
  • 👍 Minimal ads
  • 👍 Challenging puzzles
  • 👍 User-created puzzles

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes
  • 🐛 Puzzle progress loss
  • 🐛 Ads not working
  • 🐛 Freezing issues
  • 🐛 Compatibility problems

Bugs and requests

Piczle Lines

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on iOS 8 and newer
  • Inability to download additional puzzle packs
  • Puzzles not resetting properly

Requested features

5 requests
  • More free and paid puzzle packs
  • Pinch-to-zoom functionality
  • iPad version with better screen utilization
  • Hint/solution option for puzzles
  • Ability to reset individual puzzles

Nonograms Katana

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Puzzle progress not saving
  • Puzzle images not loading
  • Freezing/crashing on larger puzzles
  • Ads not playing properly
  • Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions

Requested features

7 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Ability to rearrange/move puzzle pieces
  • Difficulty ratings for puzzles
  • Automatic line/row completion
  • Ability to follow/subscribe to users
Show 2 more
  • Notification system for new puzzles
  • Diagonal line drawing tool

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Piczle Lines

One-time6
  • Chapters 2-6$0.99
  • Big Booster Bundle$0.99
  • Wildlife$0.99
Show 3 more
  • Activities$0.99
  • Universe$0.99
  • Myths & Legends$0.99
8 purchases

Nonograms Katana

One-time8
  • 80 Hints$0.99
  • Rubies (5)$0.99
  • Potion of healing lvl. 2 (15)$0.99
Show 5 more
  • Potion "Ambrosia" (7)$0.99
  • 200 Hints$1.99
  • Rubies (15)$1.99
  • Rubies (50)$5.99
  • VIP version$5.99

Questions

Is Piczle Lines free?
Piczle Lines is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Nonograms Katana free?
Nonograms Katana is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Piczle Lines or Nonograms Katana?
Nonograms Katana is rated higher. Piczle Lines averages 4.6 out of 5 from 16 ratings, while Nonograms Katana averages 4.8 from 6.8K ratings.
Do Piczle Lines or Nonograms Katana have ads?
Neither Piczle Lines nor Nonograms Katana shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Piczle Lines or Nonograms Katana?
Piczle Lines ships an update fortnightly, and Nonograms Katana every 4 months. Most recently, Piczle Lines was updated on November 1, 2026 and Nonograms Katana on November 6, 2026.

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