| Sudoku Puzzles are brain teasers that have also | | | | Howard Garns, a 74-year-old retired architect and |
| been called wordless crossword puzzles. Sudoku | | | | freelance puzzle constructor, was considered the |
| Puzzles are often solved through lateral thinking | | | | designer of the modern Sudoku Puzzles. His design |
| and have been making a large impact all across | | | | was first published in 1979 in New York by Dell, |
| the world. | | | | through its magazine Dell Pencil Puzzles and Word |
| Also known as Number Place, Sudoku puzzles are | | | | Games under the heading Number Place. Garns' |
| actually logic-based placement puzzles. The object | | | | creation was most likely inspired by the Latin |
| of the game is to enter a numerical digit from 1 | | | | square invention of Leonhard Euler, with a few |
| through 9 in each cell that is found on a 9 x 9 grid | | | | modifications, basically, with the addition of a |
| which is sundivided into 3 x 3 subgrids or regions. | | | | regional restriction and the presentation of the |
| Several digits are often given in some cells. These | | | | game as a puzzle, providing a partially-complete |
| are referred as givens. Ideally, at the end of the | | | | grid and requiring the solver to fill in the empty |
| game, every row, column, and region must | | | | cells. |
| contain only one instance of each numeral from 1 | | | | Sudoku Puzzles were then taken to Japan by the |
| through 9. Patience and logic are two qualities | | | | puzzle publishing company Nikoli. It introduced the |
| needed in order to complete the game. | | | | game in its paper Monthly Nikoli sometime in April |
| Number puzzles very much similar to the Sudoku | | | | 1984. Nikoli president Maki Kaji gave it the name |
| Puzzles have already been in existence and have | | | | Sudoku, a name that the company holds |
| found publication in many newspapers for over a | | | | trademark rights over; other Japanese publications |
| century now. For instance, Le Siecle, a daily | | | | which featured the puzzle have to settle for |
| newspaper based in France, featured, as early as | | | | alternative names. |
| 1892, a 9x9 grid with 3x3 sub-squares, but used | | | | In 1989, Sudoku Puzzles entered the video games |
| only double-digit numbers instead of the current | | | | arena when it was published as DigitHunt on the |
| 1-9. Another French newspaper, La France, | | | | Commodore 64. It was introduced by Loadstar |
| created a puzzle in 1895 that utilized the numbers | | | | Softdisk Publishing. Since then, other computerized |
| 1-9 but had no 3x3 sub-squares, but the solution | | | | versions of the Sudoku Puzzles have been |
| does carry 1-9 in each of the 3 x 3 areas where | | | | developed. For instance, Yoshimitsu Kanai made |
| the sub-squares would be. These puzzles were | | | | several computerized puzzle generator of the |
| regular features in several other newspapers, | | | | game under the name Single Number for the |
| including L'Echo de Paris for about a decade, but it | | | | Apple Macintosh in 1995 both in English and in |
| unfortunately disappeared with the advent of the | | | | Japanese language; for the Palm (PDA) in 1996; |
| first world war. | | | | and for Mac OS X in 2005. |