How to play 6×6 sudoku
Number is Octopuzzle's daily 6×6 sudoku. It works like classic sudoku on a smaller board: six rows, six columns and six boxes of two rows by three columns, filled with the digits 1 to 6. It is quick enough for a coffee break, and the clock decides your score.
The rules
- 1
Fill every empty cell
Put a digit from 1 to 6 in every empty cell of the 6×6 grid. The numbers already on the board are fixed.
- 2
Each row has 1 to 6 once
No digit can appear twice in the same row.
- 3
Each column has 1 to 6 once
No digit can appear twice in the same column.
- 4
Each 2×3 box has 1 to 6 once
The grid splits into six boxes, each two rows tall and three columns wide. Every box holds each digit once.
- 5
There is one answer
Every puzzle has exactly one solution, so you never need to guess. Logic alone gets you there.
- 6
Use notes, undo and hints
Tap a cell, then a digit. Turn on Notes to pencil in candidates. Digits that clash are highlighted, Undo steps back, and a hint fills in a cell with the right digit.
A puzzle in progress
Tips for solving
- Look for the row, column or box with the most digits filled in. With only one or two gaps left, the missing digits are easy to see.
- Pick a digit and scan for it. If a box has only one cell where that digit can go, it goes there.
- Each box has only two rows. Once a digit is ruled out of one of them, it must go in the other, often in one of just three cells.
- Use notes when a cell has two possible digits. Two cells in a row that share the same pair lock both digits out of the rest of that row.
- Hints cost 100 points, but so does spending 100 seconds stuck. If you've stalled for well over a minute, a hint can be the faster choice.
How scoring works
A solve starts at 1,000 points and loses 1 point for every second on the clock, down to a floor of 100.
Each hint takes 100 points off. Giving up scores 0.
Your daily scores add up to your points for the week in groups and in your weekly league.
| Solved in 1:00 | 940 |
|---|---|
| Solved in 2:30 | 850 |
| Solved in 2:30 with 1 hint | 750 |
| Solved in 15:00 or slower | 100 |
| Gave up | 0 |
Streaks
Play any of the three daily puzzles to the end, solved or not, and your streak grows by a day. One puzzle is enough; you don't need all three.
Every 7 days in a row earns a freeze, and you can hold two. A freeze covers a missed day on its own, with nothing to tap.
If your streak breaks anyway, you can get it back for two days. Play the missed puzzle from yesterday or the day before on the Today screen, and the streak is restored.
Questions
Get the app
Word, Number and Logic arrive fresh every day, and Unlimited has classic Sudoku whenever you want more. Free, no ads, and it plays offline. Octopuzzle is coming to iPhone first, with Android planned.
