B-Sides: Look Both Ways Before Crossing the Street
(Published on 6. March 2026, 02:30 by DubiousMobius)
This puzzle was originally set for a Scojo setting prompt revolving around skyscrapers and ratios. However, I couldn't decide whether the break-in was too thorny, so it has sat unpublished for about 10 months... Personally, I think the puzzle benefits from given digits, but I don't want to deny those of you who enjoy untangling tricky knots the opportunity to tackle this one. That said, I think the opening might stop several solvers cold who might otherwise enjoy the puzzle.
So I've come to an unconventional compromise. I've got 2 versions of the puzzle here. The first is completely spoiler free. The second has some cells covered with fog of war. If you find yourself unsure how to proceed, you have my blessing to guess the digits in those cells. Their contents can be proven, but I personally think the puzzle is more fun if you don't have to.
Rules:
Sudoku: Place the digits 1-9 once each in every row, column, and box.Odds: The digit in the cell with a grey circle will be odd.
Janus Arrows: A double arrow clue looks out in both directions from its edge. Larger cells block its vision of smaller cells, so it only sees a cell if that cell is larger than every other cell between itself and the arrow. Double-arrow clues will see twice as many cells in one direction as they will in the other.
The clue in the below example is valid because it sees twice as many cells in one direction as the other. Cells seen by the clue are shaded green and unseen cells are shaded grey.
Solution code: Row 3 from left to right
Comments
yesterday, 21:02 by earthpuzzles
Thoughtful construction, wonderful logic, and a rule set I hope to see more of!
yesterday, 17:12 by DubiousMobius
Added example and warm-up link
