1 votes 5/5

Catdoku

Rating:	5 (1 votes)
Played:	1 times
Classification:	AZ Games

Some puzzle games are stressful because of the countdown timer. Catdoku is different. The board is full of colored areas, empty cells, and seemingly harmless cats. But the more cats you place, the more you realize each decision triggers a series of changes in other positions.

Interestingly, Catdoku doesn't use the familiar numbers of Sudoku. Instead, you have to read the shapes and relationships between each cell to find the valid position.

A Single Cat Never Affects Only One Cell

The goal of each game revolves around three main rules: each row has one cat, each column has one cat, and each colored area can only contain one cat.

If that were all, Catdoku would be fairly easy to guess. But the Aloof Rule makes the puzzle more difficult. Two cats cannot touch each other, even if they only meet at a corner.

Rules	Requirement	Effect On The Board
Row	1 cat	Once a cat is placed, the remaining cells in that row are eliminated.
Column	1 cat	Other cells in the same column can no longer contain a cat.
Colored Area	1 cat	The remaining cells in the same colored area are eliminated.
Adjacent Cells	No cats touching each other	Cells next to the placed cat, including diagonal positions, become forbidden.

Therefore, placing a cat once can eliminate a whole range of positions. You've just completed a row, eliminated several cells in the column, the colored area, and even cells adjacent to the cat you just placed.

The Key To Understanding The Board Is How To Look For A Cat

Instead of immediately looking for a cell to place the cat in, try looking for cells that can't hold a cat. This reasoning is especially useful when the board starts to get crowded.

A colored area with only two empty cells is worth checking first. If one of the two cells in the row already has a cat, the remaining cell immediately becomes a mandatory candidate. Similarly, a seemingly suitable cell must be eliminated if it's next to or diagonally opposite another cat.

You can click to mark an X, double-click to place a cat, and click again to delete the selection. The X mark is especially useful when there are too many possibilities to keep track of.

From Small Boards To Unpredictable Color Zones

The initial puzzles keep the layout relatively simple to allow players to get acquainted with the rules. Later, larger boards begin to feature winding color zones and many overlapping connections between rows, columns, and adjacent positions.

Catdoku also has daily challenges, creating new puzzles to solve each day. If you want to play quickly, you can focus on a small area. If you want to challenge your reasoning skills, try to solve the entire board and avoid placing the cat randomly.

A Simple Way To Approach Each Puzzle

Tips	How To Do It	Benefits
Check limited areas	Look at colored areas with only a few empty cells.	Reduce the number of possible positions before placing a cat.
Eliminate impossible cells	Check rows, columns, colored areas, and adjacent cells.	Reveal positions that must remain empty.
Use X marks	Mark cells that cannot contain a cat.	Keep eliminated positions visible while solving larger boards.
Re-check after every placement	Review the affected row, column, colored area, and adjacent cells.	Identify new possibilities created by each decision.

Finally, the appeal of Catdoku lies in the rather clear contrast: the adorable images make the game feel lighthearted, while the rules force you to think very carefully before each click.