Board game Sumodoku

aman · Posted: Sun Jul 29, 2007 11:13 pm Post subject: Board game Sumodoku

I have invented a Sudoku board game called Sumodoku of which the rules are described in detail on the Kadon Enterprise website http://gamepuzzles.com/sumodoku.htm

Unlike chess and draughts, sudoku players have no way to compete against each other face to face in a board game in national and international championships. They can only compete against each other in speed just like drivers in a Grand Prix – unlike two boxers or two Sumo wrestlers in a ring.

Unlike chess and draughts, Sudoku is not a game but a puzzle. Thus there is a problem if we try to play it as a board game. In appearance, everything seems alright when both players try to place every piece on the board according to Sudoku rules, i.e. no two pieces of the same number or colour are allowed to be placed in the same row, same column or the same 3x3 box. But somehow somewhere in the course of the game, a piece can be placed wrongly to form an invalid puzzle even though the move looks valid according to Sudoku rules.

This board game version allows the competitors to compete against each other over a board. It is just like giving two players a chance to "wrestle with each other like Sumo wrestlers in a ring". At the same time, it allows them to test their skills in solving Sudoku puzzles.

Please read the rules on the website. After the 15th move by both players when 30 squares on the board are filled with pieces, each player has the opportunity to fill in all the remaining squares when it comes to his turn to make his move by shouting “Sudoku!” (just like a chess player shouting “checkmate” in chess).

Besides the spare piece, he will get all the remaining pieces from his opponent. With all the pieces at his disposal, he will win the game if he can place them correctly to form a valid Sudoku puzzle within the time limit of 16 minutes.

Each player will have to think very carefully before he decides to grab the chance to form a valid puzzle by himself because one or several pieces may have been placed in the wrong position even though they are placed according to Sudoku rules. Once a player seizes the opportunity to solve the whole puzzle by himself and finds that the puzzle is already rendered invalid somewhere by one or both players in the first 15 moves, he is considered as losing the game.

If the chance of solving the whole puzzle is not seized in the 16th move, each player still retains the chance till the 35th move. This means that after the 35th move, no player is allowed to fill all the remaining 11 squares by himself to form a valid Sudoku puzzle.

As you can see, from the 16th move to 35th move, the game is filled with tension and suspense as each player is worried all the time whether his opponent will rush to grab the chance of solving the whole puzzle and winning the game as a result.

The tension of the game reaches its height during the interval from the 33rd move to 35th move when each player has to decide whether to grab the last chance of solving the whole puzzle before his opponent rushes at it.

There is one scenario where the player may have to grab the chance of solving the whole puzzle, i.e. he has no valid moves left when it comes to his turn to make a move (Please read the rules). However, it would be a waste of time for him to do so if it is obvious that the puzzle is already rendered invalid in the course of the game. This is just like a drowning man clutching at straws.

This tension-charged board game is suitable especially for Sudoku tournaments and championships. As one authority on board games put it: "I think this version would be best used in competitions, where the suspense of which player will make a grab for the last stage would be interesting for an audience."