Looking for games like Sudoku, but ready for a different kind of board? Try Catdoku. You'll still inspect rows, check columns, and rule out possibilities. This time, the grid is filled with colorful regions and hidden cats instead of digits.
For students between classes and working adults taking a little time away from the inbox, it's a playful new puzzle to bring to a familiar habit: look carefully, find a clue, and enjoy the next small discovery.
What Sudoku fans might enjoy about Catdoku
One of the satisfying parts of a logic puzzle is finding a move you can explain. A square works because the other possibilities don't. A new placement changes what can happen elsewhere on the board.
Catdoku gives you that kind of reasoning with a different set of objects. You place cats, inspect connected color regions, and check the spaces around each cat. If you enjoy eliminating candidates in Sudoku, give that same careful attention a new board to explore.
Try Catdoku's interactive board →
Sudoku and Catdoku: familiar thinking, different rules
Catdoku is its own logic puzzle. Here's how the two board styles compare:
| What you check | Classic Sudoku | Catdoku |
|---|---|---|
| What you place | Digits | Cats |
| Rows and columns | Digits must not repeat | Each row and column needs one cat |
| Another part of the board | Boxes add constraints | Each color region needs one cat |
| An extra thing to notice | Which digits are still possible | Cats cannot touch, including diagonally |
| Your next question | Which digit can fit here? | Where can this cat go? |
You don't need arithmetic to play Catdoku. Read the colors, follow the placement rules, and look for a position that the board allows.
Learn Catdoku's three rules
1. One cat in each color region
A connected patch of the same color is a region. That region needs exactly one cat. Its shape matters: a narrow region and a large region can offer very different clues.
2. One cat in each row and column
After you place a cat, the rest of its row and column cannot contain another one. A decision in one region can therefore narrow down a different region across the board.
3. Cats cannot touch
Check the neighboring squares too. Two cats cannot sit side by side, above or below one another, or diagonally adjacent. The diagonal check is easy to overlook when you're concentrating on rows and columns.
Those three rules work together. The fun is spotting where one rule gives you information you can use with another.
Your first clue: a region with one square
Start with something small. If a color region contains only one square, there is only one place for its cat.
In the illustrated Catdoku board below, the rose-colored region in row 4, column 4 is a single square. It must contain a cat. From there, you can rule out other squares in its row, column, and immediate neighborhood.
The illustration uses one of Catdoku's level layouts. It's a worked example, rather than a screen recording. Try the same question on your next board: which region gives me the clearest clue?
When you play, tap to mark a square and double-tap to place a cat. Before making a move, name the rule that supports it. You don't have to solve everything at once; finding the next certain move is a good place to begin.
Make Catdoku your next puzzle break
If you're browsing games like Sudoku because you want something new for your spare moments, start with a Catdoku level and a small goal.
- Between study sessions: inspect one region and work out a placement before returning to your notes.
- During a workday break: choose a board you feel like exploring, with a stopping point that fits your schedule.
- For your evening puzzle time: settle into a few thoughtful moves and enjoy the change from the day's to-do list.
Some boards will take longer than others. Let the time you have shape the session, rather than expecting every puzzle to fit the same number of minutes.
For more ideas, read Relaxing Mobile Games for Short Breaks.
Where to start
You can preview Catdoku's rules and interactive board on this website, then get the mobile game for iPhone or Android from our download section.
Begin with the regular levels. If you want another way to play later, the Daily Challenge unlocks after clearing 20 normal levels and offers difficulty choices and a daily leaderboard.
For now, you only need your first question: where could the next cat go?
Love the moment when a Sudoku clue clicks? Bring that curiosity to a board full of colors and cats. Your next little logic challenge is waiting.