Mario's Picross
As the first Picross game to make it to the west, this title didn't do nearly as well as Nintendo was hoping, leading us to be without a new Picross game until the DS. Although the franchise was doing well in Japan, westerners just weren't ready for these clever logic games. I think part of the issue was that this was advertised as a Mario title, but that aspect of the game boiled down to his face in the corner of the screen and a small number of related puzzles. Despite the poor reaction upon release, I found this to be a really enjoyable title. Some of the rules implemented in future entries, such as the inability to fill in a space that you've marked with an X, are sorely missed here. However, complaints like those don't really undermine the fact that this game is loaded with solid puzzles and is a delight to play.
If you're familiar with other Picross titles, you'll be right at home here. If not, the game does a great job of easing you into the nonogram-style number puzzles. There are a few difficulty levels open right from the beginning, immediately letting you play where you are comfortable. As you progress, you'll be able to unlock additional puzzles at higher difficulties. Mario's Picross doesn't have nearly as many puzzles as later games in the series (or even it's Japan-only sequel), but the puzzles it has are fun to solve, and sometimes it's nice to have a Picross game that you could actually finish.
As an earlier title in a prolific series, you can find more refined gameplay and greater variety elsewhere. However, it isn't often that you can solve puzzles while Mario criticizes your mistakes at the same time. If you want a good Picross game and you're tired of never finishing all of the puzzles, this fits the bill perfectly. Unfortunately, there are plenty of quality-of-life improvements introduced in later games that are lost here, so it may take a bit of getting used to.
