Sudoku Village — Play Free Online

Sudoku Village is a number-placement puzzle in the classic Sudoku mould: a nine-by-nine grid, some digits already filled in, and your job is to complete the rest so that every row, column and three-by-three box holds the numbers one to nine exactly once. There is no timer pressure built into the idea of the puzzle itself, so it is a calm game, closer to a crossword than to anything on a reflex scoreboard.

It sits a little apart from the rest of the Doodle Jump catalogue. Doodle Jump is all about thumb-twitch timing and reading the next platform; this is the opposite pace, where you stare at the grid, eliminate candidates and place one digit at a time. That makes it a good change of rhythm between runs of jumpers and arcade games, and it loads in the browser with nothing to install.

How to play

Each puzzle starts with a set of fixed digits that cannot be changed. Pick an empty square, then choose the number you think belongs there. The game page is built for mouse and touch, so on a computer you click, and on a phone or tablet you tap. The generic control line shown for this title mentions arrow keys, but a Sudoku board is naturally pointer-driven, so expect to use the mouse or your finger.

The rule never changes: no repeats in any row, column or box. A finished grid with every square filled and no conflicts is a solved puzzle. Harder puzzles simply start with fewer given digits, so more of the grid has to be deduced.

Tips

• Start with the digits that appear most often in the starting grid. If you can see seven of the nines already, the last two are usually easy to locate.
• Scan one box at a time and ask which squares in it can still take a given number. When only one square is left, place it.
• Look for rows or columns that are almost full. A line with only one or two blanks gives you free placements and opens up the squares around it.
• If you are stuck, do not guess. Go back and re-check the rows and columns crossing the empty square you are looking at, since a missed digit there is the usual reason a puzzle stalls.

Similar games on Doodle Jump

If you want something that also rewards patient thinking, Fireboy and Watergirl is a two-character puzzle platformer where you work out how to get both characters to their doors, and Fireboy and Watergirl 4: Crystal Temple continues that idea with new rooms. For something faster and more reflex-based, Helix Jump and Bird Jumper are quick, one-more-try games that are a good contrast to a quiet Sudoku session.

Sudoku Village suits short breaks, one-handed play on a phone, and anyone who wants a puzzle they can pick up and put down without losing progress that matters.