Mousetrapped
(Published on 25. January 2026, 08:30 by Nordy)
No mice (or rats!) were harmed in the making of this puzzle. Difficulty estimated at 2.5 stars.
Rules:
CHAOTIC SNAKES: Divide the grid into nine snake-regions, each containing nine cells. Snake-regions are one-cell wide, orthogonally-connected paths that do not touch themselves. Each snake-circle is the head (or tail) of a different snake-region. Place a digit from 1 to 9 in each cell so that digits do not repeat in any row, column, or snake-region.
DUTCH WHISPER SNAKES: Within a snake-region (not necessarily across snake-regions), adjacent digits differ by at least 4.
MICE:
- A digit on a mouse indicates exactly how many times that digit appears on mice.
- Each mouse is eaten by a snake and can see the inside of the snake-region that contains it. A digit on a mouse indicates how many cells that mouse can see in all horizontal and vertical directions combined, including the cell with the mouse.
Solve Online:
Solution code: Column 8, from top to bottom, using dashes for interior region borders (Ex: 12-345-6-78-9)
Comments
on 29. January 2026, 17:29 by virus_dave
Well that was really something. Saw what seemed to be coming about 1/3rd of the way through and yet that didn't seem to help me finish the regions at all ????
Thank you!
on 28. January 2026, 04:04 by Crusader175
Very cool to see all region dutch whispers!
on 26. January 2026, 12:38 by Franjo
Thank you very much for creating and sharing this funny and beautiful counting mice CC.
on 25. January 2026, 23:03 by mathpesto
What a fantastic way of combining all these elements, very fun!
on 25. January 2026, 17:09 by thatkyle
Uh oh Nordy!! I think there's a sssnake in your pantsss! Thanksss for the puzzle! Very fun!
on 25. January 2026, 15:33 by Qodec
Mmmm nice mice.
on 25. January 2026, 14:33 by Calvinball
Really enjoyed this one! Always love a CC that's not too hard to sink your teeth into, or just constrict your prey (if that's your kind of thing).
on 25. January 2026, 13:18 by Exigus
Nice construction, thanks!
on 25. January 2026, 11:54 by marcmees
So smooth, one drops his attention near the end ... and that's when you make a mistake. :-)
Thanks
