SquareCells

About

SquareCells is a single-player puzzle game with impressive game mechanics and sensational music. The game describes itself as an ambient logic puzzle game, where players reveal patterns in grids using surrounding clues. With 36 brain-teasing puzzles, players can expect a challenging and enjoyable experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

90%

Audience ScoreBased on 733 reviews

gameplay18 positive mentions

grinding9 negative mentions

SquareCells offers a unique blend of Picross and Minesweeper mechanics, providing a fresh take on logic puzzles.
The game features a gradual increase in difficulty, keeping players engaged and challenged throughout the 36 levels.
The minimalist design and calming soundtrack create a relaxing atmosphere, enhancing the overall puzzle-solving experience.

Some puzzles may require guessing, which detracts from the pure logic experience that players expect.
The color scheme can be hard on the eyes, making it difficult to distinguish between marked and unmarked squares.
The game is relatively short, with only 36 puzzles, leaving players wanting more content.

gameplay
104 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
75%
8%
The gameplay of Squarecells is characterized by intuitive mechanics that blend elements from picross and hexcells, offering a unique puzzle experience with added layers of logic. While the game introduces new mechanics effectively, some players found the explanations lacking, leading to initial confusion. Overall, it provides a relaxing yet challenging experience, though some critiques mention a lack of innovation and a relatively short playtime.
- “The mechanics of the game are intuitive, and each time a new mechanic is introduced, it is done in a clear and understandable manner.”
- “Squarecells features a unique gameplay loop compared to his other games, plus a relaxing chill soundtrack as you progress through the thirty-six increasingly difficult puzzles that are reminiscent of the Hexcells series.”
- “Once I learned the other mechanics a bit better, I could appreciate this game for what it is - an excellent, original logic puzzle game.”
- “Poorly explained, confusing mechanics.”
- “The main mechanic is not well explained; fortunately, there are video walkthroughs in the guide section.”
- “The gameplay (for me, at least) was not enjoyable.”
music
77 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
64%
4%
The music in the game is widely praised for its calming and ambient qualities, enhancing the overall relaxing experience while solving puzzles. Many players appreciate the soothing soundtrack that complements the minimalist visuals, although some note that the music can become repetitive over time. Overall, the sound design, including satisfying sound effects, contributes positively to the gameplay, though options for customizing music settings could be improved.
- “Squarecells features a unique gameplay loop compared to his other games, plus a relaxing chill soundtrack as you progress through the thirty-six increasingly difficult puzzles that are reminiscent of the Hexcells series.”
- “The music is relaxed, the style is minimalistic, but past the first few puzzles, you'll find a good challenge.”
- “The game is very relaxing, features some soothing ambient music and animations, but all in all the UI is minimalist and never gets in the way; it's all about relaxing your mind while trying to solve the different puzzles.”
- “I will complain that I did not like the music at all, but since that can easily be turned off, it's a really minor complaint.”
- “The only con is that it reuses the music from Hexcells, so no new ambient for us :(”
- “If the game had been longer it would need more variation in music, but it serves its purpose as it is.”
graphics
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
73%
10%
The graphics of the game are characterized by a clean, minimalist design that many players find aesthetically pleasing and well-suited for a puzzle experience. While the visuals are generally polished and colorful, some users noted issues with text readability and expressed a desire for clearer visuals. Overall, the combination of simple art style and relaxing music contributes to a soothing atmosphere that enhances the gameplay.
- “The visual aesthetics of the game are clean, polished, and of good quality.”
- “It has a clean, sleek aesthetic and has very colorful levels.”
- “Squarecells is an ambient puzzler, much like Hexcells: relaxing, soothing music coupled with minimalist graphics (now with a dark theme included) make for a very pleasant experience.”
- “Still a great game, but I really wish it had clearer visuals.”
- “The music is relaxing and the visuals are clean, but the text was really hard to read.”
- “The text was a little hard to read, but I found that changing the graphics dimensions helped improve it.”
grinding
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, with many expressing frustration over the manual counting required for puzzle completion and the lack of variety in logic challenges. While some appreciate the minimalist design, the overall experience is marred by the excessive effort needed to achieve perfect completion, leading to a sense of monotony rather than enjoyment.
- “What had already become a tedious game became even more tedious as I had to resort to manually counting which flags I'd placed already before making any new moves.”
- “The first few puzzles are all right, then they become tedious and to get perfect completion is more work than I care to do.”
- “All the levels can be completed without guessing (I confirmed this), but there isn't much variety in required logic arguments and they are tedious.”
replayability
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
43%
43%
Overall, the game's replayability is considered low due to the limited number of levels (36) and the absence of a level generator or player-submitted content. While some players find enjoyment in revisiting the puzzles after a break, many agree that once the levels are completed, there is little incentive to replay them.
- “I've fully completed it three times now and it has great replay value because you forget the intricacies of the puzzles but remember the rules, which makes it very enjoyable to re-visit - I'm sure I'll be back again in a few months!”
- “There are only 36 levels and there is no level generator, nor player-submitted levels, so the replay value is reduced.”
- “There's not a lot of replay value.”
- “The replay value for the game is low.”
atmosphere
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
20%
60%
The atmosphere of the game is characterized by a calming and meditative quality, enhanced by elegant minimalist design and ethereal music. Players appreciate the relaxing ambiance created by the thoughtful puzzle design and atmospheric sound effects, which together foster a serene gaming experience.
- “The puzzles are well-thought, the atmosphere relaxing and the design elegant.”
- “Like Brown's previous games, Squarecells also has a very clean, minimalist presentation, and a calm, meditative atmosphere thanks to its ethereal music and sound design.”
- “It's sort of a good mix between logic thinking and relaxed ambient music and atmosphere.”
- “Very simple presentation and great puzzle design that makes for a calming atmosphere.”
story
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The story aspect of the game is minimal, with no significant plot to engage players; it focuses primarily on challenging number puzzles. While it serves as a sequel to Hexcells, the narrative depth is lacking, making it more about gameplay than storytelling.
- “If you liked Hexcells, this is the perfect sequel, although the plot is a bit dry.”
- “The story is non-existent.”
- “The narrative lacks depth and engagement.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players report a strong sense of accomplishment and satisfaction when successfully solving challenging puzzles, highlighting the emotional rewards of personal achievement within the game.
- “Solving the pre-last puzzle all by myself made me feel accomplished, that's for sure.”
- “The story's emotional depth really resonated with me, leaving a lasting impact.”
- “I felt a strong connection to the characters, which made their struggles feel personal.”