The JENGA Sudoku

** TODAY'S PUZZLE **
We love it when we're recommended approachable sudokus which still score highly in their "interesting" quotient! Today's puzzle is called Stack 'em Up, Knock 'em Down and it's by rockratzero and it's themed on the brilliant party game JENGA. It has just a 1 star difficulty rating and we'd encourage everyone to try this puzzle - especially some of our younger viewers.
Play the puzzle at the link below:
sudokupad.app/ivybocixpa
tinyurl.com/rrz-jenga-sp
Rules:
Normal sudoku rules apply. Digits connected by white dots are consecutive. Digits connected by black dots are in a 1:2 ratio. Not all dots are necessarily given. JENGA blocks are Killer Cages. Ie The digits within a block must sum to the total (if given) in the top left corner of the block. Some block totals are replaced with the letters JENGA and must be determined by the solver. The values of the letters increase alphabetically. (i.e. A is less than E.) [Note that two blocks have fallen and are skewed, the cage totals and dots apply within the blocks - imagine they only cover the two cells diagonally]
** SUDOKU HUNT: COMPETITION CLOSING **
Our sudoku hunt, Tennis, Anyone?, was released on Patreon on 1 August - we really hope you enjoyed it! We'll have a new sudoku hunt on 1 September :)
Join us on Patreon for as little as $2 a month to play.
/ crackingthecryptic
** NEW GAS PACK: VOLUME 2 IS OUT **
The new GAS (Genuinely Approachable Sudoku) pack is out on all platforms here:
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60 original puzzles by Clover, Bill Murphy and Philip Newman!! Earn party hats and dinosaurs with these brand new puzzles!
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You can input classic sudoku puzzles into our software and help support Sven, the programmer responsible for the wonderful user interface we all use to play these puzzles everyday. The app also comes with 12 handmade puzzles from us:
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▶ Contents Of This Video ◀
0:00 Theme music & puzzle intro
2:02 New crossword video
2:18 Happy Birthdays
4:09 Rules
7:20 Start Of Solve - Let's Get Cracking!
▶ Contact Us ◀
Twitter: @Cracking The Cryptic
email: [e-mail]
Our PO Box address:
Simon Anthony & Mark Goodliffe
Box 102
56 Gloucester Road
London
SW7 4UB
(Please note to use our real names rather than 'Cracking The Cryptic'.)
▶ SUDOKU PAD - Use Our Software For Your Puzzles ◀
You can input classic sudoku puzzles into our software and help support Sven, the programmer responsible for the wonderful user interface we all use to play these puzzles everyday. The app also comes with 12 handmade puzzles from us:
iOS:
apps.apple.com/us/app/svens-s...
Steam: store.steampowered.com/app/17...
Android:
play.google.com/store/apps/de...
ALSO on Amazon: Search for “SudokuPad”
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We also post the Wordle In A Minute videos on TikTok.

[@rockratzero]

Thanks so much Simon for featuring the puzzle! I am honored as always to be on the channel! This puzzle was the result of a Speedsetting competition in Skunkworks. I really liked how it turned out, so I published it as is, with only a bit of cosmetic cleanup. My solve approach is different then yours (essentially I solve this bottom to top and then back down), but each path is valid, as long as you are having fun!

[@bertbergers9171]

That was a really cool puzzle, thank you!!

[@svnb.3466]

that also explains the name :)

[@NendouHoudan]

Simon has the ability to resolve extremely dificult puzzles... and the ability to ignore the 3 in box 5.

[@ingiford175]

Or the 49 in the E box in the bottom roe, when he put them in, they were the last digit of the column, but he did not resolve them until last.

[@bobh6728]

Or resolving the J and N cages in rows 1 and 3 since N > J.

[@andrewhouchin5812]

Or the 3 in r6c9 finishing off the G cage just left of it

[@frankdehobbit8989]

I guess he is human after all ;)

[@ingiford175]

@@frankdehobbit8989 He always is searching (and many times finding) for the complex combinations, and misses out on the easy ones.

[@Alex_Meadows]

I love it when you recommend a puzzle as suitable for kids. It means that I've got half a chance of solving it myself 😊

[@emilywilliams3237]

Exactly my thought!

[@oliviamartinez25]

My thought as well!

[@r.b.4009]

This was the first puzzle I managed to solve myself on logic masters germany, and it took me ages. I was so happy that it got featured here, but then saw the solve time of Simon and realized how bad I still am 🤣

[@randybell101190]

Whenever I question something Simon did or didn’t do, I tell myself “Well then why don’t you quit your job, start a puzzle channel from scratch, do a puzzle every single day for 5 straight years without fail through sickness, hangovers, birthdays, weddings, and travel. Then get 100 million views through sheer intellect and see if you’re close to perfect on a particular Friday evening.”

[@longwaytotipperary]

Very well said!!!!

[@hakkenkrak2668]

This exactly!!! The wear on the little grey cells...😵

[@57thorns]

@@hakkenkrak2668 I prefer the idea that those grey cells are over trained. I mean, why take the stairs when you can effortlessly pole vault to the ceiling and then rappel down the façade two stories to get to a balcony on the third storey?

[@hakkenkrak2668]

@@57thorns😂😂😂 exactly

[@Coldheart322]

I find it amusing. The 3 in box 5 had a very "I guess I don't matter then" moment, along with the 56 pair. Simon often takes the scenic route. Although it does hamper his solves at times.

[@efa666]

A puzzle far less frustrating than a real game of Jenga!

[@ahouyearno]

The designer of jenga actually has some tips to make the game more frustrating for other players like deliberately off aligning the pieces so the tower starts tilting. She is just trolling with this fame and I live her for it

[@jervindsilva6846]

No 3 in the corner singing, but the 3 in the corner of box 5 was yelling

[@jensschmidt]

16:00 Because seeing either the the 56 pair (ruling out 6 in the cage) or the 3 in the box (ruling out 3 in the cage) would be too easy. And Simon doesn't do easy. Oh, Simon. Never change 🙂

[@amp2amp800]

As a 66 year old "younger viewer" I loved this!

[@iabervon]

I can't fault Simon's ability to pick the hard logic instead of easy logic on this one. I figured out what A had to equal as my break-in, moved on to working out what G had to equal, and only later stopped to consider what 5 had to equal.

[@karsaanita]

This comment made me laugh so hard my husband wanted to be let in on the joke :D

[@rockratzero]

If I could vote for top comment, it would be this one. :) Thanks for playing!

[@emilywilliams3237]

We get a guitar intro, a very nice puzzle with interesting logic and not at all difficult to solve, and a great bunch of explanations and charm throughout from you, Simon. A lovely Friday evening gift.

[@chitraagarwal8259]

Its nice to see Simon show how to do a very approachable puzzle .. Would highly recommend this video for someone new to the channel and variant sudoku as it gave Simon the chance to explain a lot of basic stuff about kropki dots and cages (while not having to reveal the secret - you really should have to watch more than one video to be let into that!) And also no 3s in the corner, so if this is the first video you see you have to come back to understand that 😊

[@quatarsr6217]

One of the few puzzles I could solve 100% without having to refer to your solve. Normally I get stuck on some stupid thing like "Oh that's a naked 2 over there", but this one was real fun to do.

[@bobfish7699]

If simons peripheral vision is so bad that he doesn't spot that both 3 & 6 were already in box 5, pedestrians should run for their lives when he's driving.

[@brianshilling]

KZbinr blindness is a real thing, and with your help, we can help fund a sudoku seeing eye dog for Simon.

[@werefrogofassyria6609]

It's not that Simon didn't notice. It's that Simon likes to stuff that's truly clever. Why use basic sudoku when you can do something clever?

[@LardoCulo]

Shiiiit, Simon!!! That’s a new level of blindness haha I just can’t watch it 😂

[@stevesebzda570]

I haven't seen his solve yet. But, you're right, if Simon was an astronaut (and had to fix the oxygen machine) the other astronauts would suffocate because Simon would get distracted by something mathematical in his head. Lol, you're right. 😮😂

[@Timpants1234]

Simon is like the Asgard on Stargate, his brain has become so advanced that he can no longer consider simple solutions for problems

I have been following the channel for a year and a half. I've been a Patreon member for a month now, and I try Discord's daily sudoku, usually for a dinosaur. :) This is the first time I've tried to solve a KZbin sudoku before watching it - and I succeeded! :) 40 minutes, pride and joy... A year and a half ago, this seemed impossible. Thank you Simon, thank you Mark for revealing a new, exciting world to me! ❤

[@chrisbaeyens4513]

Fun puzzle! I first did it myself and then watched the video to see if Simon would find much more complicated ways than I to solve it because there is lots of sudoku involved. He didn't disappoint. Thanks Simon!

[@57thorns]

I Goodliffed those black dots and things mostly fell into place (pun intended, I guess).

[@michaelschnick8506]

For the first time ever I tried a puzzle which you supplied on this channel. I did it in like 36 minutes. Thanks for pointing out the difficulty, this is what made me try it.

[@eepopgames2741]

Very fun. A little over 23 minutes for me. Usually when I do a puzzle that Simon is doing in a video it takes me at least 2 or 3 times as long, so this was a nice surprise.

[@StarClan4evr]

Solved all on my own in just about 20 minutes! What a lovely puzzle, short and sweet and fun all wrapped into one. Grand recommendation from me :D

[@inspiringsand123]

Rules: 04:16 Let's Get Cracking: 07:22 What about this video's Top Tier Simarkisms?! Three In the Corner: 4x (21:49, 21:52) Bobbins: 1x (15:55) Maverick: 1x (19:16) And how about this video's Simarkisms?! Hang On: 6x (08:54, 14:07, 14:07, 16:26, 22:21) Sorry: 5x (02:21, 12:45, 15:25, 22:51, 24:32) In Fact: 4x (00:39, 03:17, 14:49, 21:31) Obviously: 3x (11:17, 15:35, 24:37) Brilliant: 2x (03:05, 03:12) Ah: 2x (07:12, 18:45) Cake!: 2x (02:44, 04:04) Goodness: 1x (22:33) Naked Single: 1x (23:12) Clever: 1x (18:50) Stuck: 1x (13:19) Beautiful: 1x (01:31) Extraordinary: 1x (24:53) First Digit: 1x (08:48) Our old Friend Sudoku: 1x (10:10) By Sudoku: 1x (20:55) Approachable: 1x (01:59) Have a Think: 1x (08:54) Nature: 1x (10:35) Pencil Mark/mark: 1x (10:54) Most popular number(>9), digit and colour this video: Thirty Six (8 mentions) One (48 mentions) Black (17 mentions) Antithesis Battles: Even (10) - Odd (5) Higher (3) - Lower (1) Black (17) - White (9) Row (5) - Column (5) FAQ: Q1: You missed something! A1: That could very well be the case! Human speech can be hard to understand for computers like me! Point out the ones that I missed and maybe I'll learn! Q2: Can you do this for another channel? A2: I've been thinking about that and wrote some code to make that possible. Let me know which channel you think would be a good fit!

[@michaelmuse5308]

I would love to hear Simon sing more in the intros... If he wants to of course. Always a pleasant treat when he plays music.

[@peterjohnschramm6054]

Best KZbin channel

[@glum_hippo]

Wholeheartedly agreed

[@longwaytotipperary]

Ditto!

[@noyadishon6649]

This was an absolute joy to solve!

[@crystalgehrt8861]

My six and eight year old very proudly solved this with a little help. They say it's awesome! They love it! They want to do it 8 million times!

[@RogueAPBT]

Thank you rockratzero for the fun puzzle. Thank you Simon for the video.

[@paulparker9593]

Just a quick warning to anyone solving with Dark Mode turned on - the dot in the diagonal block in box 9 is a black dot. All the others work properly, but that one changes colour when you toggle dark mode on and off.

[@DrElementary]

It was interesting that Simon started on the top of the jenga pile, and I started at the bottom, and both ways got to the solution

[@rockratzero]

The way you did - Bottom to top and back down is more how I solve it - but many of my puzzles are approachable in different ways - all valid as long as you are having fun!

[@danielepicone1480]

Solved in 22m35s. Was as smooth as an experience as not making any block fall.

[@Lifeheart]

I feel like there are several ways to solve through the puzzle once you get past the first few clues. Lovely puzzle. Watching the solve after was similarly enjoyable.

[@thethunderant9208]

That intro music was very nice. Now having solved the puzzle, it’s also nice.

[@CrackingTheCryptic]

Thanks! I've been learning 1922 Blues by Charlie Parr. Singing it is a different story...

[@stevieinselby]

@@CrackingTheCryptic Not come across it before but just looked it up, what a great piece of music! But if you're going to sing it as Charlie Parr then please can you include subtitles because I could only make out about 1 word in 5 😂

[@bobstreet2491]

It's a welcome treat to get two videos in a row that are sub-hour-long, have short rulesets, and don't involve any "fog of war" stuff. 👍👍

[@GeekRedux]

Quite a nice puzzle--very approachable!

[@daleomiller]

I absolutely loved this one.

[@MegaMinerd]

This one was quite fun, despite getting thrown off a couple times by misinputs on pencil marks. My favorite part was when the 3 in box 5 gave me enough info to do most if not all of the A's that interact box 5. This gave me 5 digits in box 7, allowing me to solve for the value of E using the secret. Oh yeah. My final time was 38:48. I'm quite happy with that because despite my mistakes I was able to do it faster than my norm of twice the video length.

[@tomgalli1188]

What a delightful puzzle!

[@bossdoorpodcast]

Fun puzzle! Genuinely approachable sudoku!

[@glum_hippo]

My birthday was Thursday, not Wednesday… but if you got me confused with PotatoHead/SonicPerson (whose birthday is August 23) then I will gladly accept that flattery! Lovely puzzle from rockratzero!

[@trisha2584]

Hope you had a great birthday

[@longwaytotipperary]

Happy belated birthday!

[@-BooBoo]

Happy Belated Birthday, Glum Hippo! Your little green reward plushie (that I did not win) led to quite a bit of fun in my family...so I thank you for what you did. I hope you had a special birthday.

[@glum_hippo]

Thank you@@-BooBoo

[@imblackmagic1209]

thanks for the puzzle, it was super enjoyable!

[@danielcummins5092]

"I just did Sudoku like a gibbering chimp" (22:23)-- by far, my favorite Simon quote! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@jcoyle121]

17:40 for me. Quite a fun puzzle. Really enjoy Simon completely ignoring placed digits (3 in box 5). Never fails to deliver!

[@fakjbf3129]

14:06 was my solve time, very proud of that! I didn't even use the fact that the cage totals increased in alphabetical order, just the same letter having the same total was enough for me to get through. Though I will admit I removed 56 as a possibility from the E cage in r7 because I already had 56 in the 11 cage in r5 and if they were both 56 then the puzzle wouldn't have a unique solution.

[@gilleslesire4983]

Fun puzzle this one. The JENGA values resolved much faster than I expected.

[@jacksontejada]

20:50. Loved this sudoku!

[@russellwalker5082]

This is my first solve of a puzzle from this channel and I completed it a very different way. I focused on the A cages in line 5 and 6. Approached J and N much later. So glad I finally managed to complete one!

[@rockratzero]

Thanks for playing! And your approach is closer to how I imagine and how I solve it. As eluded to in the title, the digits rise up and then fall back down in this pathway :) Often I set puzzles that are solvable in more than one way, and all are valid - as long as you have fun! :)

[@JasonPeltier]

11:49 Awesome concept! I love it. :)

[@davidrattner9]

Play Jenga constantly! Wonderful puzzle Rockratzero!! Very unique!!

[@longwaytotipperary]

Never played Jenga…..

[@davidrattner9]

@longwaytotipperary guess need to head down to Georgia asap and get a hot game going with you..along with of course watching Simon and Mark videos 😁

[@longwaytotipperary]

@@davidrattner9 ❤️

[@rockratzero]

Thanks much David! And it wouldn't be much of a puzzle if it wasn't unique ;)

[@fruit3193]

Very good puzzle, I really enjoyed going through and discovering each letter's value

[@siorac1147]

19:36. Pretty straightforward overall but very enjoyable.

[@oliviamartinez25]

20:03 for me. Didn’t even need to watch the video for assistance (which I usually do). What a fun solve!

[@sasukecrew4891]

20:31 for me. the bit where the values must ascend alphabetically was interesting

[@yadiracamacho499]

20:32 for me. I was feeling down and really needed the distraction. Thanks for the puzzle, it really helped me relax.

[@myacky5887]

I hope you start feeling better soon 🧡

[@trummler4100]

I love how the Diagonal Blocks look like being bulged even though all Lines are perfectly straight What a great accidental optical illusion!

[@gonzoron]

Was so proud of myself for solving this one rather quickly. Then completely shocked to see that the very last letter value I solved for was the very first that Simon solved! (I started with the A cages near the middle, and the J cage was the last bit to fall in place!)

[@CrankyOtter]

I often find that when there are multiple solve paths,mine is opposite Simon’s. (When there’s only 1 path, I’m more likely to get stuck 😜)

[@francoisduez601]

12:04 for me. Nice approachable puzzle 😊

[@jpatrick1967]

Simon seems to have a knack at ignoring the lowest hanging fruit when his brain is in overdrive. That 3 and 6 in box 5 was that fruit.

[@Kirbyfan87827]

Finished in 18:44. A nice fun sudoku to take my mind off of feeling a bit under the weather.

[@longwaytotipperary]

❤ approachable puzzles!

[@AFT3RDAY5]

That was really pleasant to solve, yet still challenging. Love it 😄👍🏻

[@Anne_Mahoney]

A nice cherry on top of the evening -- of course I watched the crossword video first. Very sweet puzzle.

[@tylerowens]

25:15 wonderful puzzle

[@MarcusTheDorkus]

Nice and easy puzzle, done in 17:16. Fun concept!

[@nitrogel]

This was a very very fun sudoku!

[@piarittersporn]

What a brilliant and also funny puzzle.

[@Rangsk]

I remember this puzzle from the Skunkworks speed setting competition! Can you believe it was set in under 90 minutes? I rather enjoyed solving it then, and I also enjoyed your solve, Simon :)

[@bertbergers9171]

Ohh my, i beat Simon on this one, 27:26 for me today. I loved the puzzle it was really enjoyable! Simon thanks for the video. You would have beaten me fair and square if not for making time to explain your way through it. Some of your regular quirks gave a shout or two (and would have saved some time) at the screen, but hey, you given us a puzzle a day for 5 years and then some bonus material aswell. Thank you for that.

[@mileswheeler6446]

16:04 for me. Quite fun. Great way to end the week.

[@BlakeMcCringleberry]

That felt great. 9:31 without any video help.

[@mgafMUAT]

18:45 So close to his time! Fun puzzle!

[@andyhoudini]

just under 15 minutes, very nice logic. Made a couple of errors but soon realised. Remembering that the letter values ascend in Alphabetical order, not word order was the biggest challenge.

[@colinekszczecin]

Lovely puzzle

[@Phil_Schaffer]

18:17 because I couldn't remember that white dot sums have to be odd. Very nice flow.

[@midaeros]

I rarely attempt Simon puzzles but I knew if he'd done it in under 30, I could probably figure it out. I started with the same gimmes he did, then tackled figuring out the value of A. I had some scary moments where I considered giving up, but I stuck with it and tackled it in 53:51

[@Zalaniar]

Well for the first time, I'm declining to watch today's Cracking the Cryptic video...but only because this time, I want to try the puzzle! I'm going to try it tomorrow and THEN I'll watch the video! Time to delve into the backlog for a hard puzzle I have no hope of ever solving so I can get my CTC fix for the evening 😁

[@juanalexanderriosvalera]

A very approachable and fun puzzle. 12:14 for me.

[@livejapan]

21:04 I'm pretty happy with how quickly I saw the logic chains.

[@davidblake6889]

Great puzzle. For a change I solved it before seeing the video. (Unusual for me on a Simon puzzle). My solve path was very similar to Simon's, but I started with the 'A' blocks, and worked up. Great fun, thanks.

[@kgeiger61]

20:56. Nice, straightforward logic.

[@gionatangallo]

An easy sudoku that was really enjoyable to solve

[@stevesebzda570]

Enjoying this (and I'm only in the beginning) determining what some of those cages/letters are. Fun.

[@stevesebzda570]

I keep getting something wrogn (the totals or something). Checkin' in .

[@stevesebzda570]

Oh, I misread, Simon. I thought JENGA (

[@evdweide]

16:54 for me. Quite easy one, but fun.

[@JohnRandomness105]

9:10 The puzzle turned out quite approachable. The next thing to examine are the three A-cages in two rows. 14:02 I saved N and J for last. All I needed to know was that J > G and N > J. A, E, and G needed to be evaluated. 22:10 Nothing is wrong with row 5. But recheck row 8.

[@EmonEconomist]

Finished in 16:07. Not too complicated, just a satisfying solve with a very tidy ruleset.

[@KANPAI666OPPAI]

15:16 for me. Fun theme and ruleset!

[@agargamer6759]

Nice one!

[@deltaangelfire]

did not expect a second Jenga video in my sub feed today, what a wild coincidence

[@rockratzero]

Curious what the other was :)

[@tomsommerville]

I actually solved this ahead of Simon - not something that usually happens :) The total played has gone up considerably since you recorded this video!

[@cathybryant5119]

Such a fun puzzle and lovely solve by Simon. The solve counter is over 6300 at the time I wrote this!

[@ExodaCrown]

15:22 for me, it was really easy though I started in the middle and worked my way down. Like in Jenga working on weakening the base first to make the tower fall faster.

[@thechocolatefactory]

I can usually never solve any of the non-GAS puzzles, but 19:12 on this one. very fun!

[@maxcalderon7815]

Almost 10,000 solves now! Including mine!

[@saiyanprince989]

Simon's atrocious scanning in box 5 was next level.

[@steve470]

10:12 for me. Nifty little puzzle!

[@zachanderson7300]

Josh, in Nashville - happy birthday from Zach in Nashville!

[@DNPaterson]

Phew! 18:57, after a minor false start, but solved without any hints from the video. A really nice puzzle, and a clever ruleset.

[@dorien99]

15:52 for me, nice flowy puzzle

[@michellehalloran8434]

11:33 for me, beautiful puzzle!

[@arielmoonsoo9219]

I managed to pull off a 19:30 (with conflict checker on). I started with some of the same gimie dots, skipping the J and N reductions and completing that at the end. I think I focused on the base of the tower and the low letters (A/E) before working my way up.

[@rockratzero]

This is the way I designed it, hence the title :)

[@GianniBergandi]

9:36 for me. Cool one !

[@michaurbanski5961]

Hi! Will you do any past Jane Street puzzles? I'm working at the current one with integrals, but the previous were less math-related.

[@paulmaglio9254]

It was going so well until I couldn't count to 17. Thanks Simon, you got me unstuck!

[@heatherfyffe3618]

20 minutes for me, I'm always happy when my solve time is shorter than the video length! 😂 I could have been somewhat faster -- while it went smoothly and was pretty straightforward and easy, midway through I realized that there were several 2-cell cages with a known digit that had a kropki dot in them. Duh, those could have had digits (or 2-digit pencil marks) from the start. That would likely have shaved off a few minutes. Otherwise this was a really fun one -- figuring out the missing cage values felt like it was going to be a really difficult mathematical puzzle, but in the end it fell into place quite easily!