This puzzle is a shikaku-sudoku hybrid, which is inspired by Sudokurotto by Phistomefel and Juosan Killer sudoku by udukos.
This is the second 9x9 shikaku-sudoku puzzle I made. The first puzzle can be found over here.
Normal sudoku rules apply. Additionally:
Here is an example:
You can try it over here on f-puzzles: https://f-puzzles.com/?id=yeuknp9h or Penpa+: https://git.io/JXgfq.
An easier 6x6 puzzle to get familiar with some of the logic is this:
You can try it over here on f-puzzles: https://f-puzzles.com/?id=ygme6y69 or Penpa+ with answer check: https://git.io/JPxw4.
The main puzzle:
You can play this puzzle online using:
Good luck!
Solution code: Rows 3 and 7. I.e. the 9 digits in row 3 from left to right, followed by the 9 digits in row 7 from left to right, for example: 123456789123456789
on 21. February 2022, 12:33 by Hecspeed
A very satisfying solve, even with the latter classical part. An interesting and inspiring variant. Thanks Qodec :)
on 21. February 2022, 04:37 by Silverstep
I did not expect the given 8 and 7 to do so much work in resolving the Shikaku clues. Thanks for the nice puzzle.
The regular sudoku at the end is not easy. It's not too hard after a lot of hidden pairs and a certain naked single, but it's a little bit harder than a variant puzzle should be.
EDIT: I apologize, I did not realize it was Qodec who made this puzzle. In which case this is the perfect difficulty for a variant puzzle. Please don't make it even harder.
@Silverstep Haha no need to apologize. Tbh I couldn't resist that naked single after I spotted it... the temptation was just too high! I hope next time I'll be stronger. :)
on 13. February 2022, 15:07 by PrimeWeasel
Great fun!
on 12. February 2022, 21:57 by SudokuExplorer
Very enjoyable shikaku logic and the resulting classic is slightly tricky but doesn't require anything harder than scanning for pairs and triples (overall felt like 4 stars difficulty for me). Thanks! :-)
on 12. February 2022, 20:19 by henrypijames
The tiling was challenging and fun. The resulting sudoku, on the other hand, was unreasonably hard for my taste and felt much like a chore. Requring advanced sudoku technique (anything more fancy than bent triple) in a variant sudoku is overkill in my book.
on 12. February 2022, 17:34 by abed hawila
Fascinating puzzle, enjoyed every step of the solve!
on 12. February 2022, 17:27 by henrypijames
Hope I don't find an alternative tiling again. :D
@henrypijames Haha I hope so too! But I guess that if it happens again I'll just have to keep practicing and make a third!
on 12. February 2022, 17:22 by Playmaker6174
Beautiful and fantastic puzzle! So many cool moments in this one and I enjoyed every single one of them :)
on 12. February 2022, 17:10 by Vebby
Superb idea! Greatly enjoyed both Shikasudokus, thanks Qodec! :)