Around the World in 80 Days! (the Sudoku)
(Published on 30. July 2026, 00:28 by LiamMcG)
Unbeknownst to him, a detective named Fix is convinced Fogg is really a bank robber fleeing the country — and has resolved to shadow him the entire way, waiting for the right moment to strike.
Will he make it in 80 days? Trace Fogg's route around the globe and tally the days to find out.
Normal sudoku rules apply.
“Fogg” of War: The grid starts partially obscured with fog. Placing enough digits correctly will lift fog from an adjacent box.
White Kropki Dots: Cells joined by a white dot are consecutive. All white dots are given.
Killer Cages: If a cage has a number in its top-left cell, digits in that cage sum to it.
Detective Fix: In box n, Fix is disguised as digit n. Fix cannot be in a cage but must be orthogonally adjacent to one in the same box.
Path (around the world): Draw an orthogonally connected path to form a loop which visits every box at least once and never forms a 2×2 block.
Obstacles: Across the whole loop, the path passes through exactly one Fix cell and exactly one cage cell — they need not be in the same box. Additionally, every cell with a white kropki dot is on the path, though not all path cells need a white dot.
Total Days: Digits on the loop count the days of Fogg's journey. The sum of these digits will therefore show whether Fogg succeeds in circumnavigating the globe in 80 days. Note: you should not assume the sum is 80 — or any other total — for he might not make it in time… that is for you to find out.
International Date Line: Any digit in a cell in which the path and red line strictly intersect (and are not merely tangential) does not count toward the sum, to account for crossing the International Date Line.
Solution code: Digits in path cells in column 3, followed by those in column 6; read each column from top to bottom. No spaces.
Comments
yesterday, 03:09 by firespire
Was drawn in by the story and path drawing, didn't mind it was just for fun.
Would have skiped past if the sum line was necessary because mathematics isn't my strong point. The killer calculator I can do the other hard bits for me.
The negative constraint and a fog clearance reward when you have found all the right bits is puzzle bliss for me. Impressive for your first puzzle.
on 30. July 2026, 20:26 by LiamMcG
Updated fog to reveal precise nature of certain necessary cells. Thank you @EnviousQuasar22 and @firespire for alerting me.
on 30. July 2026, 04:40 by philolologue
As a Jules Verne fan, this might be my favourite puzzle of all time! Delightfully challenging without ever getting really stuck, brilliant use of storytelling, enormously fun use of the Kropki constraint, and wonderful motivation to complete the loop at the end though it wasn't needed for solving the puzzle. Really in awe that this is your first puzzle ever made, this is right up there with Marty Sears' rat race series in terms of creativity and genius. A million thanks for 42 minutes of bliss! :)
on 30. July 2026, 02:51 by hardline35
Very unique puzzle, I liked the story aspect too. Thank you!
