Double Trouble #3: Easy as ABC and Skyscrapers

So this post will have 2 grids and 4 puzzles. This is somewhat the logical extension as the 2 genres don't actually normally look alike. Skyscrapers uses numbers and Easy as ABC uses letters. Still, they are somewhat similar as they both use clues indicating sight from the outside for a particular row or column. So there will be a grid that looks like a Skyscraper but is both and a grid that look like an Easy as ABC puzzle, but is both.

Rules for Skyscrapers

Rules for Easy as ABC

Skyscrapers Lookalike

This puzzle solves as a regular Skyscraper with digits 1-6. It's quite a tough puzzle.

This puzzle also solve as an Easy as ABC puzzle, but instead of letters you fill in the digits 1-4 in each row and column.

Easy as ABC Lookalike

This puzzle solves as a regular Easy as ABC puzzle, with letters A-D.
It also solves as a Cryptic Skyscrapers puzzle with digits 1-6. Each letter stands for a different number and all occurences of a particular letter are the same number. This one is also the harder of the 2 puzzles.

Rules: Easy as ABC

Place the letters in the given range once in every row and column. Letters on the outside indicate that this letter is seen first in that row or column when looking from that side. In case a letter is accompanied by a number, the number indicates at what position you come across the letter when looking from that side (e.g. B3 means the B is the third letter encountered when looking form that side).

The example uses letters A-C.

Rules: Skyscrapers

Place the digits in the given range once in every row and column. These digits represent skyscrapers of that height. The clues on the outside indicate the number of skyscrapers that are visible from that side. Larger skyscrapers block the view of smaller ones.
The example uses digits 1-4.

Puzzle #20: Country Road/Land and Sea

I've never really liked numbers in Country Road puzzles. Most of the Country Road puzzle I placed on Puzzle Picnic are without numbers. They seem more interesting to construct that way. For this one I combined it with Land and Sea, which I think works nicely together.

Rules for Country Road

Rules for Land and Sea

This puzzle has regular Country Road rules, with the addition that the loop can't run through more than 2 white squares consecutively.

Puzzle #19: Ripple Effect

Rules for Ripple Effect

I'm really happy with how this Ripple Effect puzzle turned out, aestetically, logically and designwise.
This puzzle has no cage smaller than 3 cells and no given clues, which is what I was aiming for. I'm expecting it has been done before, but I haven't seen any yet. I don't know if it's possible to make one without cages smaller than 4 and no clues, but I do see options to create openings with no cage smaller than 4.
Aestetically, it's split up into 4 quadrants. Two of them look exactly the same, which worked out very well logically.

Puzzle #18: Land and Sea

Rules for Land and Sea

What I like about this genre is its simplicity. I don't think anyone will have trouble understanding the rules. I don't think it will break ground as a great new genre though, as I haven't yet found many different things to do with it. I do think it's something that could easily be combined with other loop genres, to lead to interesting logic in those types.

Rules: Land and Sea

This genre was developed by Naoki Inaba.

Draw a closed loop through all cells in the grid horizontally and vertically. The loop can't run through more than 2 white cells consecutively.

Puzzle #17: Slitherlink/Myopia

This puzzle is a combination of Slitherlink and Myopia, where both types of clues are present in the grid. This combination of these types I tried out for my LMI Hybrids test. I liked how they worked together, but I wanted a bit more of a combination of rules, instead of just clues from both types. When I came up with Pentopia, I figure that was a better use for the Myopia genre than this one.

Rules for Slitherlink

Rules for Myopia

Rules: Myopia

Draw a closed loop over the gridlines. the lines in the grid indicate in which direction(s) the loop is closest when looking from that square.

Puzzle #16: Outside Jigsaw Sudoku

This puzzle I made a while back. I found it in one of my notebooks recently again. I was trying to make an Outside Sudoku with no more than 1 digit on one side per row or column and this was the result. I like how it turned out.


Rules for Sudoku

In this Sudoku the digits on the outside indicate that this digit appears in the first boldly marked area seen from that side in that row or column.

Puzzle #15: Pentopia

Rules for Pentopia

I was originally planning on posting a Sudoku, but after the USSC I really didn't feel like it. So instead I'm posting another Pentopia puzzle. This is in my opinion the hardest puzzle on this blog so far. So approach it carefully.

Puzzle #14: Corral

Rules for Corral

I used to be absolutely horrible at these puzzles. Then I got a puzzle booklet with a few of them and figured out how to solve them. The main reason for that I think is that I changed the notation for these puzzles by colouring the inside of the loop.
This puzzle has a tricky opening, so it might take a bit to get started.

Rules: Corral

This genre was developed by Nikoli.

Draw a closed loop over the grid lines. The loop goes around all numbers. The numbers in the grid indicate how many cells inside the loop can be seen horizontally and vertically from that cell, including the cell itself.

Puzzle #13: Island

Rules for Island

I thought this one looks very nice. It's relatively tricky a puzzle though.

Puzzle #12: Slitherlink; No Touch

Rules for Slitherlink

This puzzle is a variant on normal Slitherlink, which takes a bit from puzzles which have all of a certain number given. None of the given clues share a border with a square that has the same value. This only goes for the given clues, not the remaining squares.

Double Trouble #2: Country Road and Ripple Effect

Here is number two. I was happy this worked. I'm hoping people are surprised this was possible as the 2 genres aren't even close to having the same rules. This one did cause me a lot of trouble creating in the first few tries. Both puzzle types have their uniqueness issues and they are not really always fixable in the same way while keeping the design. But it worked out in the end, keeping the designed paths nicely

Rules for Country Road

Rules for Ripple Effect

Firstly the puzzle can be solved as a Country Road puzzle. I don't think it's too hard, but there might be some struggling points in the middle.
Secondly it can be solved as a Ripple Effect puzzle. This puzzle is a bit harder especially towards the end.

Rules: Country Road

This genre is developed by Nikoli.

Draw a closed loop through the grid, connecting the centres of cells horizontally and vertically. The loop runs through all boldly marked areas once. Two neigbouring cells in different areas can't both be unused by the loop. The numbers in the grid indicate how many cells in that the loop runs through.

Puzzle #11: Tapa; Cross out

Tapa is one of my favourite genres and i'll probably attempt to design more of these puzzles along the way. A lot has been done with this variationwise, especially through the TVC contests. I'm not too creative ideawise, so I'll most likely start picking my favourite variants and make some of these.
This puzzle is a slight variant, which I'm pretty sure has been done before, but I can't directly recollect it. I've seen it the other way around recently though.

Rules for Tapa

Every clue cell has an extra clue number in it. Cross out the extra one and solve the remaining puzzle.

Rules: Tapa

This genre was developed by Serkan Yürekli.

Colour some cells to create a single contiguous shape. The shape can't have any 2 by 2 coloured areas. The clues in the grid tell you how many consecutive cells around it have to be coloured. If there's more than one digit in a cell, the groups of cells have to be seperated by at least one empty cell. Cells with clues remain empty.

Puzzle #10: Pidoku

Today I'm posting four puzzles, for which I probably should have waited about half a year to post them, with march 14th being pi day, but didn't feel like planning ahead so far. I made these four puzzles over 2 years ago for an online contest. As this contest has pretty much come to an end, I figured I'd share them with everyone.
I always liked these puzzles, so I thought I'd let you all judge how you like them. They are really Circular Sudokus with a predictable twist considering the name, where it uses the digits of the mathematical constant pi(3.14159265...) instead of the normal 1-9 digit set.

Pidoku Small:

Place the first 6 digits of pi in every row, column and coloured area.

Pidoku Large:

Place the first 9 digits of pi in every row, column and coloured area.

Killer Pidoku Small:

Place the first 6 digits of pi in every row and column. The numbers in the coloured areas indicate the sum of the digits in that area. Digits can't appear in a coloured area more times than they would appear in a row or column.

Killer Pidoku Large:

Place the first 9 digits of pi in every row and column. The numbers in the coloured areas indicate the sum of the digits in that area. Digits can't appear in a coloured area more times than they would appear in a row or column.

Puzzle #9: Star Battle; Clone

This Star Battle variant comes from the Dutch magazine Breinbrekers. This is probably the best source for star battle variants, as the genre was created for it. As for the name, Thomas Snyder was wonderin why there were no spaceships or lasers in this puzzle, but the name actually comes from the Dutch name for the Battle of the Network Stars TV-show.
Some of you might have seen this variant it in the LMI MAYnipulation test, for which I suggested this idea as it fit in very well with the test theme.

Rules:

Place 3 stars in every row, column and boldly marked area. All grids have the same solution. You'll need to use all grids to get to the solution.

Puzzle #8: Double Back

Rules for Double Back

I haven't really gotten the hang of this genre yet. I like solving them, but constructionwise I still have some problems. Usually this is because the end of my design creates a new opening. I think I minimalised it with this puzzle though.

Rules: Double Back

This genre is devoloped by Palmer Mebane.

Draw a single closed loop through all cells in the grid.  The loop must pass through each boldly marked region exactly twice.

Puzzle #7: Hi-Lo Frame Sudoku

I took this puzzle type from the Dutch Sudoku Championship. It was my favourite puzzle in the set (puzzle #6). I hadn't seen this variant before. Not a very creative name I gave it, but I think it covers the idea.

Rules for Sudoku

In this sudoku, the numbers on the outside indicate the sum of the highest and lowest digit in the first three cells seen from that side.

Rules: Sudoku

Place the digits 1-N into each row, column and boldly marked area so that they all contain each digit once. Usually N equals 9. In the example, you have to place 1-6.

Puzzle #6: Heyawake

 Rules for Heyawake

This is probably my weakest Nikoli genre. I have a lot of trouble grasping the logic needed to solve these. I think this one is relatively tricky, but I'd like to hear what Heyawake experts think of it. I could just be missing some obvious things.

Rules: Heyawake

This genre is developed by Nikoli.

Paint some cells black. Black cells are not allowed to touch eachother on the sides. The remaining white area has to be connected. The white area can't span over two consecutive boundaries in a single row or column. The numbers in the rooms indicate how many cells are to be painted black.

Double Trouble #1: Slitherlink and Toroidal Slitherlink

I've always been interested in puzzles that can be solved under 2 different rules. It won't be a regular feature as I don't think I can pull it off every time I try. It's just something I find interesting and sometimes give a go. There's a lot of puzzle types out there that look the same at first sight, so there's enough options for me to try it with.

Rules for Slitherlink

This time it's two slitherlinks. You can solve this puzzle as a regular Slitherlink puzzle. It's not too difficult, but still fun.
You can also solve it as a Toroidal Slitherlink. Here the edges of the grid wrap around on eachother, which turns opposite edges of dots into the same line. This means the loop can run from one edge and continue on the other side.
Not every puzzle type will give the possibility to create a puzzle that is both regular and toroidal. This one works as in runs over the grid lines.

Puzzle #5: Ripple Effect

Rules for Ripple Effect

I've lately been getting into this genre and I have been having a lot of fun creating them. This puzzle is shaped as an actual ripple effect. The cages look like concentric expanding circles.

Rules: Ripple Effect

This genre is developed by Nikoli.

Place digits 1-n in each boldly marked area, where n equals the size of the area. Equal digits in the same row or column are seperated by at least a number of squares equal to that digit. (e.g. Two 3s are seperated by at least 3 squares).

Puzzle #4: Pentopia

Rules for Pentopia

This one isn't too hard. I think it uses all rules very well though.

Rules: Pentopia

This genre is developed by myself.

Place pentominos in the grid without repeating any shape. Rotations and reflections are considered the same shape. The pentominos are not allowed to touch, not even at the corners. The lines in the grid indicate the direction(s) in which the pentominos is/are closest when looking from that square.

Pentominos

Puzzle #3: Island

Rules for Island

I've liked this genre ever since encountering it. I have been playing around with it a bit lately to see what is possible.

Rules: Island

Island is a genre developed by Naoki Inaba.

Fill in some cells to form a single island. The cells with numbers are part of this island. The numbers indicate how many unnumbered cells can be reached from that cell by moving horizontally or vertically. Numbered cells block access.

Puzzle #2: Slitherlink;Toroidal

Rules for Slitherlink

Here's a Slitherlink puzzle with a twist. This puzzle is toroidal. This means the edges of the grid wrap around. The top line of dots are the same line as the bottom line of dots; the same goes for the right and left line of dots. The loop can now run across an outer edge and continue on the other side.

Puzzle #1: Slitherlink

Rules for Slitherlink

This puzzle is a standard Slitherlink. I know I said I would post variations, but I figured I should at least post one normal puzzle if I'm going to post variations on certain puzzle types. This puzzle is anti-symmetric. Every square rotationally symmetric to a 0 has a 3 and vice versa. The same goes for all 1 and 2 clues.

Rules: Slitherlink

Slitherlink is a genre developed by Nikoli.

Draw a closed loop by connecting dots horizontally and vertically. The loop can't touch or cross itself. The numbers in the diagram indicate how many of the segments around it are used by the loop.

Below is an example with its solution.

My Puzzle Blog

I've been making puzzles for a while now. Many of them can be found on Puzzle Picnic. I've decided to open this blog to share some other puzzles I've made. You can expect puzzles with variations on the rules and puzzles in genres not yet supported on the site.
I will also try to lift out some of my favourite older puzzles, just to give them a bit more exposure. I'm open to suggestions for puzzles I've made, that you'd like to see discussed.
Lastly, anything I find interesting puzzlewise, I will share here as well.