by Valerie Lubrez
Home >> The World of Sudoku
So what on earth is Sudoku? Is it a new Thai method of relaxation, a Japanese management training school or a Japanese game?
You’ve guessed it: it’s a Japanese game. Sudoku is a number game. Number games were invented a thousand years ago by the Chinese. Little by little, these games spread to other cultures.
In 1979, Dell Magazines, New York, published a puzzle called Number Place. This puzzle was introduced in Japan in 1984 by the publisher Nikoli. They called it Suuji wa dokushin ni kagiru, which means ‘the numbers must be single’ or ‘the numbers must occur only once’. Nowadays, we are lucky because the name has been shortened to Sudoku, which is far easier to pronounce and remember!
Sudoku reached Europe thanks to Wayne Gould, who saw the game in a Tokyo bookshop in 1997. He promoted Sudoku to The Times in England, which launched it last year, in November 2004. Since then, there has been a Sudoku craze in the whole wide world.
But what are the rules of Sudoku? As I told you before, Sudoku is a number puzzle. It is a nine-by-nine grid divided into nine three-by-three subgrids. Some of the cells are filled with numbers, but most are empty.
There is only one correct solution, but many ways to reach it. The basic rules for the solution of a Sudoku are simple. In each row, column and subgrid, the numbers may occur only once. You have to place numbers 1 to 9 in each row, in each column, and in each subgrid.
There are three different levels of difficulty: beginner, intermediate and professional, so you can choose the one you prefer. [I choose professional.] Once you feel comfortable with a level, you can decide to move on to the next level.
You can usually find the solution at the end of the book or magazine, which is useful if you get stuck or lose your patience. But here are a couple of tips to avoid peeping at the solution: 1) You can write down all the possible numbers you think could correspond to a cell and erase them as you draw conclusions from other cells. 2) You can also write a number on a cell if and only if no other numbers can be inserted into this cell. Otherwise, why would Sudoku be called ‘the number must be single’?
If I haven’t convinced you yet, let me give you three more reasons to get into Sudoku: 1) Sudoku is an easy way to entertain yourself. You just have to know how to count up to nine, which I think all who are reading this article can do! 2) You can bring the game with you everywhere thanks to its practical size: a little booklet. But don’t forget a pencil and a rubber! 3) If you, like me, spend a great deal of time in public transport or if your friends often turn up late, like mine, Sudoku is a wonderful way to wait without even being aware of it.
In short, if you want to have fun, enjoy your time or become a more patient person, Sudoku is perfect for you. I look forward to reading your comments in the Weekly Letter forum. And why don’t you give the Sudoku of the picture above a try?
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Posted on http://www.weeklyletter.com at 2006-03-16 10:21:00 +0100
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Do you know Killer Sudoku? I love it. I prefer them because they need operations and combinations of numbers.
There are Very Hard Sudokus in which I only have been able to put 1 number after 1 hour thinking. But the other Sudokus are easy to fill if you know THE METHOD. It’s mechanical.
Hello,
When I first discovered the Sudokus, I was really surprised by them: they were fun, they were differemt, they made me think, etc., but after a while, as they said in the previous post, getting them solved gets mechanical.
I think that Sudoku, like any other passtime, help people “pass their time” in an enjoyable way…Lately I prefer spending the little spare time I have reading or doing things that put me more in contact with the present…
Best regards,
Cristina
First of all, I wanted to thank my student Valérie for having contributed to weeklyletter.com, and I’d like to invite all of our readers to follow her example. Write an article for us! We’ll correct and edit it… and give you extra points (os subiremos la nota)!
I think that sudokus are fun… for a while. I have only reached the intermediate level. When sudokus are difficult, I just give up. I think to myself, “It’s hard and it’s just a pastime, so it would probably be better if I did something more productive now like clear the kitchen or tidy my room.” And so that’s what I do: clear the kitchen or tidy my room.
Now that I think of it, tidying my room is a real pastime for me. Finding that old pair of dark brown socks that are supposed to be somewhere at the back of my closet can be even more difficult and dangerous than solving a challenging sudoku!
The first thing that I thought when I tried to resove a sudoku (during my holidays of last summer) was: “it’s too difficult”, but after two or three days I didn’t stop trying to resove it. When I had “free time” I got a pen and tried to resolv a new sudoku.
I think that is a pastime who can develop the ability to count and to think about the different possibilities to resolve some problems. I like this type of pastime that needs some thinking and at the same time you need to use the technique “trial and error”.
But, I only make one when I don’t have any other thing to do, and nowadays it’s too dificult for me, because when I arrive at home my family needs my help.
Best Regards.
I have never solved a Sudoku, I had heared about it, but I didn’t know what the rules were.
I don’t have a lot of time to try to solve one Sudoku, but I have to recognize that when I was younger I played a lot of with puzzles, I loved them!
Now, when I have a spare time (though I have less than I would like) I prefer reading books about classic authors.
I saw a soduko table the last summer for first time y my life. The encounter was short, almost inexistent. I thought, where is my calculator? When I was conscious of the time needed to solve one game, I abandoned it. Too much time invested in a pastime. Maybe if the traffic jams are fixed and my son grow up quicly, I’ll have more time to try again.
Great article!
I must admit that I, too, was thoroughly intrigued by SUDOKU when I discovered it. However numbers have never been my strong point and I soon gave up. I was in hospital last November and some of my friends were kind enough to provide me with magazines for entertainment, one of them being a book full of sudokus. I started most of them and finished none. I constantly searched for that little trick that would help me solve all of them but could never find it. I love the idea…I just wish it weren’t impossible!
Give me a crossword puzzle any day; I can work with words!
I’ve not finish the sudoku that I began to do one month ago because I have the sensation that I haven’t patience. Please, if someone can convince me, I would thank your help. My favourite pastime always be the crosswords but I never be patient.
Once I went on summer to Santiago de Compostela and I bought a puzzle of 500 pieces a it finished in the dustbin.
I repeat, I need someone that convince me to do my first Sudoku.
THANKS A LOT!
I’m sorry, the person who needs help is Mª Angeles
Ã?ngeles, I think that you’d get into sudokus if you started with the very, very easy ones. I have a book called “Sudoku for Children”. I could send you a copy if you’re interested! :-)
Hi
In order to have fun, it is important to start with Sudoko “for beginners”. If not, you pass too much time looking for the solution and it can be annoying.
Somebody else knows “Killer sudoku”? Who can tell me how it works?
Valérie
If you have a book called “Sudoku for Complete and Utter Idiots” then I might be tempted to try. I was good at Maths at school but I just don’t see how to enjoy sudokus.
For me, a morning with ‘The Times’ crossword is far much more fun.
Thanks for your help, yes, if you don’t mind, send me a copy of the book you say, this weekend I’ll try to do the Sudoky of the “Que” newspaper. Angeles