The UNBELIEVABLE Sudoku

BIG NEWS: We have just reached 5,000 patrons on Patreon. A huge thank you to everyone who is supporting us. As a result we have released the Sudoku Murder Mystery Hunt FREE. Just follow the link below and get cracking the crime!!!
/ crackingthecryptic
************************************************************
Today's sudoku.... WHAT?!?! How can this be a puzzle? We have literally no adjectives that do adequate justice to the latest creation of Aad van de Wetering. Have a go at it at the link below:
app.crackingth...
Rules:
Normal sudoku rules apply. Along thermometers, digits must increase from the bulb end.
▶ MORE PATREON MADNESS ◀
We've just released Heatwave, a set of incredible thermo sudokus by the astrophysicist grkles! (Don't worry you don't need to be a rocket scientist to solve them!) You can join us on Patreon here:
/ crackingthecryptic
▶ SUDOKU PAD - Our New App ◀
You can now input your own classic sudoku puzzles into our software using our new App! The app also comes with 12 handmade puzzles from us and it should be released any moment at these links:
iOS:
apps.apple.com...
Android:
play.google.co...
**************************************************************
▶ OUR NEW ARROW SUDOKU APP IS OUT ON ALL PLATFORMS!
Here are the links:
Steam:
store.steampow...
App Store:
apps.apple.com...
Google Play:
play.google.co...
▶ OUR NEW KILLER SUDOKU APP IS OUT ON ALL PLATFORMS◀
apps.apple.com...
store.steampow...
play.google.co...
▶ SIMON REACTION BOARD (!) ◀
With thanks to Andrea for creating this :)
simonreacts.av...
▶ OUR MIRACLE SUDOKU APP IS OUT ◀
Steam: store.steampow...
App Store: apps.apple.com...
Android: play.google.co...
▶ CTC FAN DISCORD SERVER◀
/ discord
NEW: Guide To Our Discord Server:
tinyurl.com/CT...
▶ OUR BACK CATALOGUE - ALL CATEGORISED WITH LINKS!◀
tinyurl.com/CT...
▶ OUR NEW THERMO SUDOKU APP IS OUT!◀
AppStore: apps.apple.com...
Android: play.google.co...
Steam: store.steampow...
▶ NEW CRACKING THE CRYPTIC MERCHANDISE◀
teespring.com/...
▶ OUR CHESS SUDOKU APP IS NOW OUT!◀
AppStore: apps.apple.com...
Steam: store.steampow...
Android: play.google.co...
▶TRY OUR CLASSIC SUDOKU APP◀
AppStore: apps.apple.com...
Steam: store.steampow...
Android: play.google.co...
▶TRY OUR SANDWICH SUDOKU APP◀
AppStore: apps.apple.com...
Steam: store.steampow...
Android: play.google.co...
▶SEND US PUZZLES TO SOLVE/CONTACT US◀
[e-mail]
▶FOLLOW US◀
Twitter: #crypticcracking
@crypticcracking
Instagram (for how to solve daily clues from The Times): www.instagram....
▶SOFTWARE◀
Play the puzzle in the video by clicking the link under the video (above). We are building a website which will allow you to enter your own sudoku puzzles into the software and this is coming soon!
▶Logo Design◀
Melvyn Mainini
▶ABOUT US◀
Hi! We're Simon Anthony and Mark Goodliffe, two of the UK's most enthusiastic puzzle solvers. We have both represented the UK at the World Sudoku Championships and the World Puzzle Championships.
Thank you for watching!
Simon and Mark

[@aadvandewetering6486]

Beautiful solved Simon! I thought is was impossible but you did it. The idea behind this puzzle: 16 + 29 = 45, or better, 29 + 16 = 45 ... I can sent you my first thought, if you like.

[@amoswittenbergsmusings]

Ik neem mijn hoed voor U af, mijnheer. Dat was meer dan supergaaf. Ik ben apetrots dat ik niet alleen de break-in heb gevonden, maar de hele puzzel af kon maken, in anderhalf uur en een beetje. Het arrangement van de thermo's schreeuwde jellyfish en dan is er een X-wing op 1-en in kolommen 1 & 9. Dat scheelt wat tijd later. Puur genot, met mijn kleren aan ;-) Praw, der donnerwetter... Heb dank, dank, dank, zoals mijn goede vader zei.

[@peterhansen505]

I'm in absolute awe at the fact that this Sudoku can not only exist and have a unique solution but also how elegant the break-in is. My jaw dropped and I broke out in delighted laughter when Simon determined the colored digits in row/column 5, and it just kept having amazing moments. As such, I can whole-heartedly second Simon's sentiment that it's one of the greatest puzzles I've ever seen! Beautifully set, and thanks to you and Simon for making my evening! :)

[@GeoffCanyon]

Absolutely stunning design.

[@tessabrisac7423]

Yes, please, do send this, it was so incredible to see this unfold.

[@Daihatski]

Thank you so much for this puzzle. Was a real joy to solve.

[@kairos3855]

"This is as much fun as you can have with your clothes on" is one of the best SImon quotes yet.

[@stevieinselby]

Although his refusal to stand up at the end does make me wonder about that...

[@briannelson605]

I got a chuckle out of it

[@JuanMataCFC]

@@stevieinselby can confirm he grew a pair of legs just for the photo with Mark, then chopped them right back off!

[@ericwiddison7523]

And almost immediately after he said "I feel like I've been doing a lot of six-ing."

[@allantidgwell5624]

It's a quite old saying. It's been used to refer to jazz, golf, advertising... There's also the saying "sex is the most fun you can have without laughing"... though you can laugh during sex, just avoid pointing

[@balkthor]

One other thing about Aad’s puzzles that I fear often goes unnoticed, they are easily the most cleverly named puzzles on the channel, as they seem to always include hints about the solve that you won’t recognize until you yourself discover. Perfect example here.

[@g.i.r.l.]

You're right. At the start, I was so confused about the name, but I forgot to stop and pause about how it might hint at the solution

[@TimothyPeierls]

This video reminds me of why I got hooked on this channel in the first place: Simon's (justifiable) excitement at the break-in is a joy to witness, quite apart from the (undeniable) brilliance of the puzzle.

[@garanceadrosehn9691]

Okay. That break-in (via the set-theory) was absolutely mind-blowing. Stunning.😮 This will *never* qualify as "Genuinely Approachable"!! 🙂

[@hom-sha-bom]

I actually found this one to be easier than some of the GAS puzzles. I was actually able to finish this one. There are 1 or 2 GAS puzzles i wasn't able to do. I used the phistomefel ring trick for the break-in.

[@Trottah]

Yeah, I got as far as Simon did before then and got stuck, but with his help on the +1 theory I was able to solve it. No way I got that puzzle without his help.

[@Fortinuity]

I think the best thing about sudoku, for me, is Simon's enthusiasm.

[@abhijittapadar1813]

Imagine Mark leveling all the possibilities in thermo...

[@MrJunga]

That's probably why it took him two days to test it

[@johanback5659]

@@MrJunga 🤣🤣🤣

[@user-qb4qe4wb7z]

The clever thing to do is marking what the cells can't be. Anti-Goodliffing. Badliffing so to speak.

[@JuanMataCFC]

@@user-qb4qe4wb7z now we're gonna start seeing puzzles with very long thermo's just so they can't be Badliff'ed! :D

[@samus88]

@@user-qb4qe4wb7z This comment is brilliant. Cheers!

[@arnoudh6203]

Im going to extend the list of game recommendations with the puzzle game baba is you, I think the game really fits the channel(very much unlike overwatch haha) , testing your ability to make logical deductions. Its one of the best puzzle games of the last few years and I guarantee you'll enjoy it

[@supermysterious66]

Baba is you would be a good fit for their puzzle solving thinking, and see how they approach it would be cool to see.

[@RougeEric]

Oh yeah! That game still blows my mind almost daily even though I haven't played it for over a month... It gets so meta at some point that I can't really even understand the mechanics anymore...

[@nataliem4434]

this would be really great, that game can be very challenging!

[@yajibei]

Thanks i'll look it up, i don't know Baba is you. On my side i can recommend tametsi or hexcell, both great puzzle game close to miner game. I spent a lot of time trying to spot the next tile or mine.

[@curtmillholland1565]

My son introduced that one to me. So fun and creative. I've got him hooked on sudoku so we're even I think

[@michaelbaker9347]

With that many thermos, I understand why it took Mark several days. Especially considering the lengths of them, that's a lot of pencil marks

[@Magdaliese]

Can I just say, thank you for always taking the time to explain what is happening within milliseconds inside your head and breaking it down to us patiently! You are doing such a great job so that everyone can follow your train of thoughts, I am so impressed by that ability! I always get the feeling you are so excited to move on, yet you take the time to explain it all! Thanks for that, so that people like me are able to follow and actually learn all those beautiful techniques :) Love from Germany! ❤

[@leickrobinson5186]

Something Simon missed that really helped me: from the jellyfish, we know that no 1s can be in bulbs, so there are no 2s in tips. So, there’s only one 2 in purples, and thus only one 2 in greens. Continuing, each set can then only have two 3s, which allows you to eliminate the 3s in bulbs in c2 early. Likewise, each set only has three 4s, one 9, two 8s, three 7s, etc., which allow for other eliminations, which simplified the solve significantly. :-D

[@jakubpodkanowicz454]

That was true breakthrough for me during solving it. I place 9,8,7 on a tips and I still need to use Mefistofeles ring to place 5-6 on termometrs, after that it was simple to solve the rest

[@Blarg32150]

I think the reason it took mark days to finish is because he is The Goodliffe so that means 16 (12345678)'s and 16 (23456789)'s lol 😆

[@user-nj6io6rs9n]

Don't be ridiculous. Nobody would fully pencil mark 32 cells like that. ... Because one of them was given, so only 31 left to mark!

[@Blarg32150]

@@user-nj6io6rs9n awe you got me 😅

[@wypmangames]

Lolz

[@codingentity]

you know its bad when even Mark doesn't call it approachable.

[@rizka7945]

It became tough for him because he started by labelling the thermos!

[@maaleru]

You know its good when even Mark doesn't call it approachable.

[@goviczek]

@@rizka7945 RTFL, that was a good one.

[@oliolion]

In settlings of The Witness, switch on reticle. It will help in the same way as staring at the horizon when sea-sick. Also upping Field of view above 110 helps a lot of people. Also, this puzzle had one of the most fascinating break ins i've seen

[@killfalcon]

Seconded. Increasing Field Of View is a the key one for me in games that make me motion sick.

[@Stephen-Fox]

If there's a head bob toggle, turning that off usually does the trick for me, to complete the trifecta of easy settings that can help solve it.

[@auroreinara7322]

I also get motion sickness from the witness and this doesn't help unfortunately :(

[@oliolion]

@@auroreinara7322 that's unfortunate, has anything worked for you? There are more extreme actions you can take, eg playing in a window instead of full screen, reducing quality, or furthering the reticle by placing a blob of something in the centre of your screen.

[@vivanecrosis]

I knew it was something to do with the damn camera.

[@joshuangerng2119]

When simon messed up the centre box I was so on the edge And keeping thinking when would he realize it Good thing he spotted it right away Most tense I ever got watching a video on CTC. Great solve Simon

[@vetrais7965]

Yeah I totally agree. I was on the edge of my seat already, and then he's all "this can't be a 4" and I'm literally whispering "no ...oh no... no ..omg.. omg.. no... Cmon Simon... no not a 2....oh thank god". Like if you told me I'd be more invested in a sudoku puzzle than the olympics a yeah ago I'd say you were insane. But here we are. But amazing solve as always.

[@longwaytotipperary]

Simon's excitement is through the roof! So enjoyable to follow along as he has "as much fun as he can have with his clothes on!" 🤣

[@THEDRUMMERJOSH]

My heart sunk at 43:20 but you caught yourself quick enough. This might be one of the best puzzles I have seen. Excellent puzzle, excellent solve.

[@jovi_al]

What a beautiful puzzle. I don't know if I've ever seen given digits work *that hard* before in a thermo. Every clue is so extremely delicately placed.

[@zimmicks3170]

"We must be looking for some jiggery pokery" - Simon 2021 That's a lot of thermometers...

[@tywad8697]

Aads puzzles are always so pleasing to solve, especially since they’re one of those creators that leave you in awe at how this would’ve been formulated, by staying on this channel for a while I’ve gotten particularly comfortable with set equivalence in sudoku and this was incredibly rewarding to complete.

[@pandorah_]

When you completed the SET proof, I literally said „WTF“ out loud. My god, this puzzle is beyond brilliant. I really wonder how one can come up with this idea and also make it work in such a stunning manner.

[@theashen]

Started to solve, got stuck, watched the master. Never would have got to this solution, but a pleasure seeing Simon work his way through this quite brilliant puzzle

[@HunterJE]

Haven't started to watch but this video appeals to my inner Star Wars nerd child, looks like jumping to hyperspace!

[@GeoffCanyon]

Discovering that break-in was an incredible achievement. I could have stared at this for a hundred years and I would never have found it.

[@MrDrBass]

this is one of those puzzles that i completely understood all of the logic watching this but there’s no way i would’ve come up with any of it, this was an amazing solve to watch

[@user-qb4qe4wb7z]

As it happens, Philip Newman and I (ryokousha) have been constructing minimal puzzles with only two-cell-thermos (and no digits) using variations of this idea in the last week or so. It is possible to have a unique puzzle with only 18 two-cell-thermos (19 if you don't allow overlaps). We saw the concept first in a recent puzzle called "Thermo Spaceforce" by "The Sonic Person" aka PotatoHead21 on LMD. Sadly, we were not able to find an accessible logical path through our constructions. This is in no way meant to be decremental to Aad, who probably found this idea independently and managed to construct a nicely solving puzzle.

[@TheSonicPerson]

my puzzle was the inspiration for that wasn't it?

[@philipnewmansudoku]

@@TheSonicPerson Yes, Thermo Space Force was the initial inspiration for ryokousha's 22 2CT puzzle, which got us going again on minimizing 2CTs again. (I had only managed 26 by hand.) The 19 and 18 2CT puzzles switched to using a Tatooine inspired SET.

[@HunterJE]

Vague spoiler but one you might want to read before watching: *Don't worry, he catches and fixes it quickly.*

[@RalinaPerene]

The panic was real.

[@bertbergers9171]

Great description:) but I have learned to not go to the comments untill after the video, as more people might want to learn/do

[@ThePlumAbides]

I started shouting "that's backwards Simon!" 😅

[@erlandodk]

I was yelling at my screen :D

[@Daihatski]

78:33 - this puzzle screams "Set!!!" so this was relatively easy to find ... (after hundreds of hours watching you, simon xD), but the +1 rule of the Thermos took me AGES to find. But when I did, oh my god was this beautiful to solve. It's just so pleasing going down the ladder of numbers to find the ground was already set for you. Gonna watch and enjoy your solve now :)

[@armatthe]

At 10:35 : "Whoops, misclick, lost my army." As a SC2 player I feel that in my soul.

[@BL00DW0LF6]

For The Witness, I think the game now has a reticle option to put a dot in the center of your screen, which should help. You can also lower the FOV (Field of View).

[@nataliem4434]

I haven't played the witness but for me its usually *increasing* FOV that helps my motionsickness. It depends on the size of monitor and your distance from it.

[@Varksterable]

@@nataliem4434 I definitely agree with decreasing it. If FOV is high it causes very unnatural perspective shifts as you turn. Especially in games set indoors or in fairly closed environments. And if you notice it being too 'tunnel vision' instead there's another easy fix for that; just buy another couple of monitors to sit angled at the side of the first one! 🖥🖥🖥😁

[@Stickmuncher]

@@Varksterable I'm with Natalie on this one, most games start with the FOV at a nauseatingly low value. Higher FOV is better until you start getting over 120. I can't say I have ever heard someone suggest reducing FOV to help with motion sickness, only ever increase.

[@PierceArner]

FOV adjustment was the only thing that allowed me to play The Witness as I got massively nauseous when playing it at first.

[@Varksterable]

@@Stickmuncher I game I'm particularly thinking about is Superliminal, which had an unchangeable, wide angle of view. But others have suggested it might be the low camera position in that game which causes the problem. I guess it depends a lot on the individual, what you are watching on, where, and what the game is, though. 🤷

[@koenth2359]

Simon, it is sheer pleasure to see your creativity and skill, speed, and above all joy (no, ecstasy!) when solving this! Well done! But please keep clothes on. @Aad: Brilliant idea, geniously made, wonderful puzzle!

[@futurefox128]

Finished in 33:16! This is probably my best solve ever, I'm actually for once proud of myself. Guess it helps that I rewatched the other insane set-theory-thermo just yesterday ;D. Immediately found the break-in using set theory and knowing that it only works with 16=30-14 (hope this doesn't qualify as a spoiler hehe) and realizing that all the extreme high/low digits are already used up shortly after. I was quite slow after the break-in though ^^'

[@bingus2464]

This is a master piece. Phenomenal puzzle, thank you for endeavoring to solve it, I would never have been able to appreciate how intricate this puzzle is without your solve

[@ChristopherGoetting]

For the Witness (or any FPS game you get sick in) try increasing the field of view to get a wider angle. Many games are intended for consoles which can get away with a tighter FOV because you sit further from the TV, but at monitor distances you need to go wider.

[@jessejamesgames8148]

I pray one day to find something that brings me as much joy as solving these puzzles brings you.. it is such a beautiful thing to see someone doing something they love.

[@Sktx_]

"This is as much fun as you can have with your clothes on." will now be my new catchphrase, thank you Simon.

[@wariolandgoldpiramid]

This is one of the most brilliant puzzles I've ever seen!

[@GuilhermeCarvalhoComposer]

I came back to this puzzle more than a year later, and this time managed to solve it on my own. And then I solved it again, but now really understanding the logic. It's really stunning how everything falls so neatly into place once you get the break-in. I used slightly different sets than Simon, but it worked wonderfully too. :)

[@russellpaez7625]

One of the cool tricks Simon didn't see was there was no 1 in Green or Purple. This leads to the only 2 in purple was in the middle row, and the only 2 in green was in box 5. Still a lot of the same logic through the rest of the puzzle, but it made it a lot simpler (less options).

[@ocaly]

You could create a x wing in column 1 and 9 for the digit 1 because of the 1s in box 4, 5 and 6. Also because you cant put a 1 on the bulbs end. Simon missed that and I think its the most logical way to explain to someone that there couldnt be 1s on the thermos.

[@ocaly]

(Once you get the 1 in box 4 but thats the first step into the puzzle)

[@JackDeHearts]

I quite enjoyed this puzzle. I needed a little help seeing the set but once I started marking off possibilities and somehow logicked the 8 in box 7 3 times (thinking I did it wrong twice). Overall took me just over an hour. Thanks Aad

[@bastienjoly7422]

Insane setting, beautiful solve. I could spend days over it and never find the break in..

[@Draedaja]

Watching you solve this was an absolute joy! That enormous lightbulb moment when you got the break-in got ME all excited as well!

[@amoswittenbergsmusings]

Simon, did you notice the X-wing on 1's that results from the jellyfish and the one 1 you placed? It saves a little bit of time down the line - and has consequences for the possible squares for 2's. This took me 1:32, mainly because I was lucky to spot the break-in with the minimax on bulbs and tips *before* thinking 1's and 9's. I learned so much from you!! It's all down to asking the right questions. In this case, the question that screamed for an answer was: *_what is the essence of a thermo? __*_ and the answer is __*_they imply differences_* - and that must be the puzzle's secret, 'cos there ain't much else.

[@Leyrann]

Fun fact: Any fish has an equivalent but reverse fish that gives the same eliminations. In the case of this puzzle, there were actually two jellyfish, and eliminating the squares allowed Simon to fill in two digits in that other jellyfish, leaving only an x-wing. This is also why, in a 9x9 sudoku, you never have to look for more than a jellyfish unless you are looking for complex fish (which are basically impossible to spot) - the equivalent of a squirmbag (fish on 5 digits) in a sudoku with none of that digit filled in is a jellyfish. Complex fish, by the way, use a combination of rows, columns and boxes. Typically, only computer solvers find them, though at least you can often follow the logic if you take a good look at them.

[@mritty115]

yes, the 1 X-Wing was a *lot* easier for me to spot than the jellyfish, which led to the same result. :-)

[@fulltimeslackerii8229]

When I saw his coloring resemble a checkerboard, I knew he had found the break in. Sneaky title there Mr. Wetering!

[@ronjohnson6916]

Exceptional solve. I love the enthusiasm (and the cleverness -- but that's a given). And as much as we sometimes joke about your scanning it was really good this time. A real joy on every front.

[@tangrybird04]

Ight I officially have a new Simin quote. Originally it was “Even blind squirrels can find acorns” but now it’s... 42:00

[@SonicGamesPlayer]

This is just mindblowing! Such an elegant break-in, wow!

[@Wallsrail]

7:22 Baldrick's Poem!! 💥💥💥💥

[@heathermorris763]

I was amazed on watching the video to realise that we did the break in differently - same deduction, but with flipped SETs (so ending up with the inverse cells highlighted in r5 and c5)

[@cecelialehmann6112]

I'm so impressed by this solve! I took a look at it and couldn't even get started. I enjoyed watching the solve though!

[@davidrattner9]

Amazing puzzle, masterpiece Aad. Love how you came up with this and as Simon said, would be so grateful to see a setting video. Simon, as usual great wonderful solve and deduction from you. Starting at 24:52, it reminded me of Mitchell Lee's thermo sudoku that you did for us back 10 months ago, titled "this makes the miracle sudoku look easy" , where the min and max on the thermos had to be 1, etc. Always a pleasure, joy to see such out of the world puzzles and solves every day on this channel!! P.S..the live stream yesterday was phenomenal and can't wait to see more. Your solving of cryptic crosswords also amazing, fun to watch.

[@jesusthehipster6936]

The level of intelligence you have is absolutely stunning. Great solve, thank you for sharing this

[@chelseac4553]

Such a joy to watch you solve these -- absolutely brilliant.

[@erlandodk]

The deduction and following moment of revelation at 18:00 - 22:43 is absolutely beautiful and brilliant. Well done. (although I was yelling at my screen when you misplaced the 4 at the end :-) )

[@Jukka70]

That was truly incredible Simon. Amazing thought process into the break-in

[@DerMarkus1982]

"[...] but you have to sit there until you solve it, if you do it in a video." 1:44 That "AAah!" reaction face!

[@chipsounder4633]

these puzzles are getting cleverer, as the weeks go by, i'm getting to understand more about the advanced trickery used to solve these sudokus, column 1 and column 9 had an x wing for the 1 (row 2 and 8) first thing i seen

[@BerkeHitay]

"This is not the worst solve in the world" ... You bet yourself it is not! What a wonderful thrill! Who knew watching a sudoku unravelling by a supermind could give you a great action movie excitement? Thanks Aad, Thanks Simon.

[@2FayZ]

Hi, First of all, I am not a native English speaker, so i don't know if I find the right words to describe my thoughts and feelings. So I hope you don't misunderstand. It is high level amazing to see you find the solution and relations between everything. Especially when I find something obvious that you not mentioned yet, and see you explore another way to the goal from the other side! It's thrilling Popcorn-Cinema to follow your thoughts, knowing the answer to a question you ask, and are going to answer in a second and find many other solutions for other problems on your way. I get mindblown by your abstraction of all of that! It gave me a totally different view to look at any sudoku! Thank you

[@thumbwitch4607]

Thank you Simon - would never have got this without your mathematical working out of the bulbs and tips being only one different!

[@MrRietmann]

would never have solved that , congrats Simon , you're the best.

[@tehjoch]

Simon you're a genius, this puzzle is going way beyond my logic capabilities, well done!

[@aaronspiller3696]

Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is my favourite game on the planet and is such a good puzzle game. It’s something you and mark can play at the same time. One person will be defusing a bomb but can’t see the manual, and the other person reads the manual but can’t see the bomb. Really would like to see you guys try this

[@MeriaDuck]

This is one for the next volumes of the book, stunning setting, very nice solve path ( watching you, I'd be stuck forever )

[@wossaaaat]

It is unbelievable that this puzzle exists. It's almost as unbelievable that Simon solved it in such short order. I got those first couple of digits and found the jellyfish etc, but there is no way on this earth that I'd have found that set thing. Incredible puzzle. Incredible solve.

[@100greggyt]

At 32:30, R3C3 can't be a 6, because that would force R1C9 to be a 6, then R7C7 would be a forced 6. The 6s then in R3 and C7 would force two 5s into box 5, breaking the puzzle. Thanks for getting me past the break-in, Simon. Always a joy to watch (and also see how our solves differ quite a bit!)

[@Swisswavey]

Wow. That took me a whopping 81 minutes. A beautiful puzzle though. It feels very satisfying when you get to the end of something like this. Truly wonderful setting. Thank you

[@dollarsing]

Art or engineering? Whatever it is, it's amazing. Pure joy watching you solve it.

[@orogenesis9818]

What a sublime sudoku! Solved it in 54:21, but I had a leg up because this was so redolent of the thermo sudoku from Mitchell Lee. That sudoku is one of my favorites and is indelible in my memory (title below, if you're curious). SPOILER BELOW If you include the midde column in the set, you can prove that the pink digits contain 1 extra set of digits 1-9 compared to the green digits, which determines the count of each digit on the thermos. Once you get the aha of the difference of 1 on the thermos, this finding allows you to fill in the digits in descending order, with the only hitch being a 2-string kite/finned x-wing on 6s. Mitchell Lee's sudoku: This Puzzle is Harder than the Miracle Sudoku

[@MusikCassette]

The name of the puzzle is a tip on what patterns to look for. Although Simon went slitly sideway there by leaving out colloumn 5.

[@cammillielillieoceon]

I think this is the best solve I've seen you do! I enjoyed it so much! The break-in you did with the bulbs and set theory was just 🤯

[@ajfizzlesticks5423]

The grid kind of looks like a pufferfish!! Awesome. Overwatch will be an interesting thing to see on Cracking The Cryptic, haha

[@dontyodelsohard2456]

Such a good puzzle... I often lack the logistical mind for solutions such as finding the single number differential for the thermometers, but once you figured that, I actually solved a majority of the puzzle without the aid of the video. Again, so good.

[@maximehedde3648]

I think this is one of the most incredible puzzle I've ever seen !

[@MG-xr4gb]

Simon I've been watching this channel for about a year now. I try to solve before I watch, with some success. You have managed to surprise me though dozens of times, by the brilliant methods and mind staggering logic you demonstrate time and again. But this time you nailed it. I had put in countless hours desperately trying to solve this impossible sudoku, before I gave up to watch you doing it. And this time I'm left with no words. You're an absolute Einstein. You have this rare ability to think originally, coming up with deep new ideas and logic-tricks most people would have not come up with even in a million words. I'm stunned. Thank you for this channel and thank you for being you.

[@ProkNo5]

That's funny. The revelation you made at 27:00 is exactly where I would've started. The second I saw the thermo pattern those two pairing stood out to me.

[@timcotton1782]

The 1s exclusion you did at around @7:40, I did by differently. In Column 1 and 9, the ends of the thermos exclude Rows 1, 3, 7, 9, and the placed 1s exclude Rows 4 & 5. So 1s are in a broad X-wing in C1R2, C1R8, C9R2, C9R8. This forces 1s to be excluded from all bulb ends of the thermos, which then excludes 2s from all non-bulb ends.

[@MattCurney]

“Jiggery pokery” is my new favorite expression

[@AcanthaRayneOakMoon]

This is stunning. I feel the need to worship at Aad's brain as if it's an altar. Literally mind-blown!!!

[@harshagurram93]

Stunning puzzle! The set theory break-in was mind-blowing!

[@Lohoris]

Rofl at 21:29 I accidentally stopped the video without noticing, and I was like "ok he's thinking REALLY hard" 🤣🤣

[@Choinkus]

I keep thinking the titles are clickbait, until I watch and realize that Simon really names his videos like that because he genuinely feels that way about the puzzles. And then when I watch a video, he shows me why I should feel the same way about them as he cracks open the setter's genius. What a great channel.

[@bristolrovers27]

Fabulous puzzle What a break in ! Simon you are clearly the Crown Prince of Break-ins !

[@shadeblackwolf1508]

Tips to help with motion sickness: 1: turn off screen bobbing, which is the screen moving up and down as your character walks. 2: if that is not enough, adjust the FOV until you land somewhere comfortable

I hope the new ideas for such remarkable constructions don't dry up! The Sudoku world has really blossomed lately. Great puzzle, great solve - as always!!!

[@s.k.fantoni4640]

Definitely one of my favourite solves in a while! Your excitement was certainly mirrored by me as I watched you work it out, certainly couldn’t have done it myself.

[@TheSplunger]

Interestingly, I started at this from a different angle: phistamaphel ring via row/col 2+8. Gives a similar sort of coloring. Then you have that you end up with "chains" starting at the 4 untouched center bulbs, go +1 to tail, same as another bulb, etc, ending at 1 of four spots part of the ring but not thermo (r2c5 and symmetric). Gives 2 leeway by default (+18 for starting at 2345 and ending at 9887), but then the 8 is the same, and you can quickly get that the chains can't end in two 7's, giving the same +16 result for all are sequential.

[@philhemstock]

Simply genius level puzzle! How anyone can create something like this blows my mind. Great solve Simon 👍🏻

[@SamuenClemens96]

Omg.. Normally I use your video's to fall asleep but how on earth should I be able to miss this awesome solve. Thanks for keeping me awake I enjoyed it very much👍🏼

[@lizbrooker4635]

Wow… just when I think I’ve got CTC mastered along comes Aad.. fabulous set and solve. Thank you guys xx

[@PriffyViole]

I never used to get dizzy or motion-sick until a real specific incident in middle school. The whole grade was playing Minute to Win It, and my task involved spinning around as fast as possible for a whole minute. I'm almost certain that incident did some damage.

[@keithmcdougall1491]

Awesome puzzle. I started with 9 rather than 1. Resulted in both a jellyfish on columns 2, 4, 6 & 8 and a swordfish on rows 2, 6 & 8. The crazy thing is when you realize that both 1 and 9 are excluded from the thermos with the exception of the given 9. I bounced back between 1s, 9s, and 8s for an hour before I figured out the set logic. Really fun solve.

[@gmfireater1]

This might have been my favorite video on the channel and is certainly one of my most favorite puzzles ever! (Though at my level I never would have solved it without Simon's explanation of the 16 sum differential.)

[@ThisIsScorefun]

Always great to see how happy you are after solving such a masterpiece like this

[@abhisheknanda85]

This reminds of an older video involving thermos, sets and tight differences of sums. And that one was as delightful as this.

[@abhisheknanda85]

It was by Mitchell Lee kzbin.info/www/bejne/mWmvc5J7p5t1gNE

[@geoffreymaher7169]

I freaked out at 43:09 when you reversed the 3 and 4 on the bulb, but you noticed a mistake immediately (even though you didn't quite know what you did). Absolutely amazing. This was a joy to watch.

[@PauxloE]

Nice. If we assume the thermos as given (part of the idea), this leaves the numbers to play with to make the break-in powerful enough. The 1 in row 5 was needed to make the sum of the non-tip purples high enough. The other digits then were placed to make the solution unique.

[@brianj959]

This video is an amazing marriage of unbelievable setting and unbelievable solving - bravissimi!

[@grantfraser5430]

As always, beautifully solved. I never would have thought of the Set math break-in, even as I saw there had to be something there.

[@Nyarlah]

For The Witness you can try displaying the reticle if it is not (an anchor in the middle of the screen can help), as well as widening the FoV (Field of View) in the settings, that should at least help a little. I'd love to see you discover this incredible game !