The Devil's Hardest Puzzle

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  • เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.พ. 2025
  • And our longest ever sudoku video...! You can try Phistomefel's Chaos Construction at the link below:
    cracking-the-c...
    HELP US! We are trying to ensure that Mitchell Lee's extraordinary miracle sudoku is seen by as many people as possible. If you have social media/reddit/etc where you would be prepared to share the video then let's make this puzzle famous!
    • The Miracle Sudoku
    Rules for Phistomefel: The digits 1 to 9 need to appear exactly once in each row/column/region. The regions need to be discovered! An arrow in a cell indicates that an uninterrupted sequence of exactly X cells in the direction
    of the arrow - beginning at the cell with the arrow - belong to the
    same region (X being the digit in the cell with the arrow). If there
    is another cell after the sequence of X cells in the direction of the
    arrow then this MUST belong to a different region. Not all arrows
    that would be possible with the shape of the regions are given.
    ▶ NEW CRACKING THE CRYPTIC MERCHANDISE◀
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    / 36694746
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    ▶SUPPORT US + ACCESS EXCLUSIVE "CRACKING THE CRYPTIC" PUZZLES/VIDEOS◀
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    ▶FOLLOW US◀
    Twitter: #crypticcracking
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    ▶SOFTWARE◀
    Play the puzzle in the video by clicking the link under the video (above). We are building a website which will allow you to enter your own sudoku puzzles into the software and this is coming soon!
    ▶Logo Design◀
    Melvyn Mainini
    ▶ABOUT US◀
    Hi! We're Simon Anthony and Mark Goodliffe, two of the UK's most enthusiastic puzzle solvers. We have both represented the UK at the World Sudoku Championships and the World Puzzle Championships. We're also "cryptic crossword" aficionados. Mark is the twelve-time winner of The Times championship and Simon is the former record holder for most consecutive correct solutions to The Listener crossword. We hope we can help your puzzle solving while also introducing you to some of the world's best puzzles.
    Thank you for watching!
    Simon and Mark

ความคิดเห็น • 664

  • @wr38621
    @wr38621 4 ปีที่แล้ว +375

    "That can't be 1 it must be orange." Anyone else says that series of words and theyre having a stroke

    • @louismyers8845
      @louismyers8845 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      lol

    • @grimnekropolis8500
      @grimnekropolis8500 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      I feel like a lot of statements made in the video would get someone accused of having a stroke without the context

  • @Skycroft1000
    @Skycroft1000 4 ปีที่แล้ว +418

    *Looks at solving time.*
    I'll, uh, let you have this one.

  • @bernola_
    @bernola_ 4 ปีที่แล้ว +846

    "wow, that puzzle is easy...
    joke. that was a joke."

    • @OwningLuukjuh
      @OwningLuukjuh 4 ปีที่แล้ว +32

      I laughed at that too, Simon is such a lovable guy

    • @jenningssun953
      @jenningssun953 4 ปีที่แล้ว +10

      6:12 yw

    • @elviejohg744
      @elviejohg744 4 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      I actually said the same when I reached that step haha (it took me 6 hours)

    • @wonsikyang891
      @wonsikyang891 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      1:03:09

    • @PurpleSidewalk1
      @PurpleSidewalk1 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      You can hear him thinking "have mercy"

  • @duweisstgarnichts
    @duweisstgarnichts 4 ปีที่แล้ว +327

    The little laughters of excitement Simon does while solving are the most lovely thing about this terrifying monster of a puzzle and maybe even the best thing in the world.

  • @davidvose2475
    @davidvose2475 4 ปีที่แล้ว +165

    I like that Simon is always marvelliing at how clever the puzzle is, rather than himself

    • @peppermint2133
      @peppermint2133 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      Modest as they come

    • @SpeedyBozar
      @SpeedyBozar 2 ปีที่แล้ว

      Why do you like that?

    • @pianissimo7121
      @pianissimo7121 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@SpeedyBozar same reason I like ice cream. Its sweet.

    • @travisporco
      @travisporco 2 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@SpeedyBozar it's charming and classy

  • @tammzjelsh3428
    @tammzjelsh3428 4 ปีที่แล้ว +52

    I love how when he finds something hard, he calls it brilliant or magnificent, instead of getting annoyed.
    It’s really helping me change my attitude towards things

  • @bluechromemina
    @bluechromemina 4 ปีที่แล้ว +171

    There are two types of people watching this: either you listen to Simon’s voice to sleep or you couldn’t sleep because you want to see the final solution. I’m the later and it’s 5AM. Amazing solve!

    • @adamheywood113
      @adamheywood113 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      >final solution

    • @matsubhara
      @matsubhara 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Final solution, it's 3AM here

    • @jasonmetcalfe4695
      @jasonmetcalfe4695 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      simon's videos are also slightly more entertaining than mark's... i'll take a long subtle solve with good logic explanation to at least try and explain what is going on over a brute force and next to no explanations every single time

    • @Orynae
      @Orynae 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@jasonmetcalfe4695 that's what I thought at first, but now that I've been watching for a while and trying the puzzles on my own first, I can also appreciate mark not getting excited and re-explaining the same logic for every single digit he places XD

    • @jasonmetcalfe4695
      @jasonmetcalfe4695 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      @@Orynae yeah mark does break the monotony... be interesting to see them both do exactly the same puzzle and see how they go about it

  • @DrBiscotti
    @DrBiscotti 4 ปีที่แล้ว +405

    Simon: "I'm colorblind"
    Also Simon: Uses red, orange and yellow all together

    • @deleetiusproductions3497
      @deleetiusproductions3497 4 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      DrBiscotti He can at least tell the difference between those

    • @mpf1947
      @mpf1947 4 ปีที่แล้ว +33

      If he's red-green colorblind, similar colors will stand out more due to shade.

    • @DrBiscotti
      @DrBiscotti 4 ปีที่แล้ว +17

      Ye I know guys, it was a joke. I'm colourblind too

    • @filam7371
      @filam7371 4 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      I get so upset when he puts blue and purple next to each other...

    • @Orynae
      @Orynae 4 ปีที่แล้ว +14

      I can only assume that for *his* website, he picked only colors that he can disambiguate from each other (whether it's from the actual color or the brightness or whatever)

  • @bossiebos881
    @bossiebos881 4 ปีที่แล้ว +266

    If Simon ever gets admitted into an insane asylum, it’s Phistomefel’s fault. :)

    • @nadeemhajiiqbal9214
      @nadeemhajiiqbal9214 4 ปีที่แล้ว +25

      Phistomefel would already be there.

    • @bossiebos881
      @bossiebos881 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Nadeem Haji Iqbal very likely, indeed. 🙈

  • @KestrelQ
    @KestrelQ 4 ปีที่แล้ว +37

    I really don't understand most of these puzzles, but I love watching Simon work them out, take us through his train of thought, and exclaim at how brilliant the puzzles are. It's such a cozy, wholesome channel.

  • @HailG3
    @HailG3 4 ปีที่แล้ว +62

    It's 3 am and I find myself yelling "The 1s, Simon, look at the 1s!!!" at the screen like an absolute madman

    • @aaronfuzion
      @aaronfuzion 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      yup

    • @RoseClover24
      @RoseClover24 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      1am for me

    • @dertigerbauch
      @dertigerbauch 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Same here, the 1s are so obvious for dozens of MINUTES!!

    • @GSBrofly
      @GSBrofly 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      55 minutes in

  • @pandanouk
    @pandanouk 4 ปีที่แล้ว +82

    Me, patiently waiting for Simon to follow through when he says he's gonna tidy up his pencil markings: *Jeopardy music*

  • @e15364
    @e15364 4 ปีที่แล้ว +153

    End of the puzzle, "And if I haven't made a mistake this should be an 8" *types a 7*
    Sometimes I wonder, with the amount of typos he makes entering numbers how he never makes a mistake.

    • @coffeedude
      @coffeedude 4 ปีที่แล้ว +19

      We don't get to see the times the mistakes break the puzzles!

    • @actionic135
      @actionic135 4 ปีที่แล้ว +23

      @@coffeedude We need a blooper video!

    • @coffeedude
      @coffeedude 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      @@actionic135 Agreed

    • @bbi1459
      @bbi1459 4 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      There are a few videos where you see one of them make a mistake, although it never stays in the grid for more than a few minutes.

    • @nadeemhajiiqbal9214
      @nadeemhajiiqbal9214 4 ปีที่แล้ว +11

      He does. Either he gets away with it, or the video ends up in the bin.

  • @holyspork
    @holyspork 4 ปีที่แล้ว +124

    I'm a doctor in the US. You guys are so wonderful and having fun clearing my mind attacking these complicated sudokus has helped me immensely getting through these difficult times. Thank you so much for your work and I'm so excited for the thermosudoku app!

  • @coconutty0401
    @coconutty0401 4 ปีที่แล้ว +170

    I dont understand anything about this puzzle but I’m loving it

    • @coconutty0401
      @coconutty0401 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Really enjoyed the video! Thank you so much :)

  • @Stephen-Fox
    @Stephen-Fox 4 ปีที่แล้ว +130

    I can't help but wonder if one of the occasional 'figure out the regions for an irregular sudoku' puzzles you showcased on the channel resulted in the normal 3x3 boxes of a regular Sudoku if that would be disappointing or hilariously brilliant.

    • @louismyers8845
      @louismyers8845 4 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      that would be so funny!

    • @christophfunk2329
      @christophfunk2329 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      Your pb............. it reminds me at something

  • @MyTolker
    @MyTolker 4 ปีที่แล้ว +176

    An hour! We are in for a treat!

  • @gilles111
    @gilles111 4 ปีที่แล้ว +83

    "I wasn't fast...".
    If I'm trying to solve it, it would take 62 days instead of 62 minutes...

    • @louismyers8845
      @louismyers8845 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      bold of you to assume you`d finish it! - i `d take 62 days for sure with that puzzle!

    • @peppermint2133
      @peppermint2133 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      It hurts because it’s true

  • @Derekloffin
    @Derekloffin 4 ปีที่แล้ว +423

    How hard... oh, over an hour... okay, guess I'm just watching this one :).

    • @ralphkhadra4411
      @ralphkhadra4411 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Hahahahahahabab...... True very true

    • @HeroDarkStorn
      @HeroDarkStorn 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      I wanted to comment but you made the comment already :)

    • @themoland5981
      @themoland5981 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      less than an hour if you discount the intro and rules

    • @lenafischer404
      @lenafischer404 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      😂 true

    • @amadeuz8161
      @amadeuz8161 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      You should always try em, if nothing else you do it until you get stuck. Press play until he gets there and then pause again to continue yourself, if nothing else it teaches you alot more when doing it yourself :D

  • @KennitaJohnson
    @KennitaJohnson 4 ปีที่แล้ว +23

    I have to apologize to Simon. Normally, my yelling at the screen makes him go faster. I was no help today. He did it all by himself. (Single tear 😢, slow clap) I’m so proud of you.

  • @zincfive
    @zincfive 4 ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Simon, your commitment and enthusiasm for these puzzles is honest and charming. Thank you. Its' hard to find even a few minutes in a day absent the din of guile and cross-purposes. It's a bit of fresh air to share your satisfaction in finding a solution with logic and industry.

    • @amandaking9527
      @amandaking9527 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      This is so british and I don’t know what it means but I agree

  • @thatpuzzleguy
    @thatpuzzleguy 4 ปีที่แล้ว +59

    It's rare that I "nope" right out of a puzzle without making an earnest attempt, but this is one such puzzle.

    • @twirdman2
      @twirdman2 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      I placed the first 2 and 1 and then noped right out after I wasn't seeing anything else and I knew it was an hour long puzzle for an expert solver. Ain't nobody got time for that.

    • @johnpauladamovsky86
      @johnpauladamovsky86 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@twirdman2 "I'm gettin' too old for this shit."

    • @evandroa4845
      @evandroa4845 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@twirdman2 Smart move you did there. I insisted and finished after something like 9 or 10 hours. Shouldn't had done that...

    • @twirdman2
      @twirdman2 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@evandroa4845 Jesus. I don't think I have ever spent that long on a puzzle. I've done some super difficult sudoks requiring nets and even a couple that required like 2 layer deep recursive nets but even those were in like the 4-5 hour range I think. Same with some of the extreme str8ts.
      Edit: Actually thinking back I might have spent that long solving 1 or 2 of the "unsolveable" str8ts that I actually managed to do. For a lot of them I tried for a couple hours and then just got hopelessly stuck and left them.

    • @evandroa4845
      @evandroa4845 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@twirdman2 Yeah not gonna do that anymore lol. But I must say it wasn't 9, 10 hours straight and I wasn't 100% focused

  • @snow-c1n
    @snow-c1n 4 ปีที่แล้ว +105

    Me: Wow, this puzzle isn´t so difficult, I get really quick progress.
    Getting stuck, watching the video, realizing I did everything wrong
    Me: Well, apparently it wasn´t so easy
    Great puzzle, I like these kind of selfbuild sudokus

  • @altenorooi
    @altenorooi 4 ปีที่แล้ว +40

    Also, I am from South Africa and recently discovered the channel. I can only do easy to hard normal soduko’s but I find myself fixed every night, waiting for the next puzzle to be solved!!

    • @martinvanheerden9283
      @martinvanheerden9283 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Same here. Also from South Africa. Tried doing some of the puzzles, have only been able to finish 4 of the 20 I have tried. But loving it. Learning some awesome logic.

  • @owtinoz
    @owtinoz 4 ปีที่แล้ว +22

    Him: "sorry if you see something that i havent seen yet"
    me : * watches at 1.5 speed pretending to follow * "no worries mate take your time"

    • @Blxz
      @Blxz 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      It's quite fun watching at higher speeds. Also makes him seem a lot smarter since he solved this puzzle in only 30 minutes my time. :D

    • @P-A-X
      @P-A-X 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@Blxz 30 min??
      Send me a link to your TH-cam apk version, it sure has x2.0 speed

  • @faronheights
    @faronheights 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Simon occasionally apologizes, thinking it's frustrating to watch the struggle happen. It's really not, though. That's the thing. It's clear that you and Mark are both experts on these logic puzzles and it is satisfying to watch you blow through some of these puzzles. It can also be very interesting to watch the gears turn on some of the most difficult puzzles the world's ever known, like today's puzzle. It has been a treat to watch this channel since the TH-cam algorithm recommended it to me. Fantastic stuff.

    • @BrooksMoses
      @BrooksMoses 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      What I find happening is that a lot of the times when Simon apologizes, I want to pause the video for a moment so I can see if I can figure out the next move.

    • @louismyers8845
      @louismyers8845 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@BrooksMoses same here although for me it would take more than a moment!

  • @richardjuniper
    @richardjuniper 3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Brilliant, absolutely brilliant. The solve was great to watch, but what a mind to put that together in the first place!

  • @perennialshelf1832
    @perennialshelf1832 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Seeing Simon get excited about puzzles the most wholesome thing and I love every bit of it

  • @ericwallhagen3146
    @ericwallhagen3146 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I have a love hate relationship with this puzzle. Absolutely love the design, and the logic, and I absolutely want to see more puzzles in this style. The hate: After about 3 hours, I was probably 75% or so done with the puzzle, and accidentally closed the window. I tried to reconstruct it from memory, made an error somewhere, and opted to start from scratch. I probably ended up investing the better part of 7 hours on this puzzle, but I regret nothing. Phenomenal admiration for the setter, and a great feeling of accomplishment for actually finishing it.

  • @tylerowenevans7104
    @tylerowenevans7104 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I love watching your videos,they usually relax me (and I'm a huge fan of sudoku) but I found myself shouting at the video cause you could have finished it at least 5 minutes earlier 😂

  • @katemorganlawson6829
    @katemorganlawson6829 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I’m so glad TH-cam’s algorithm introduced me to these videos!! :) I like doing sudoku at home but I struggle to get through hard-level puzzles so watching these crazy puzzles being solved is just amazing :)

  • @ianwhite1103
    @ianwhite1103 4 ปีที่แล้ว +12

    The excitement at 1:01:42 when he found the finishing logic was so great

  • @matesebestyen3142
    @matesebestyen3142 4 ปีที่แล้ว +36

    17:30 - "That would be a disaster for this cell"

    • @ChubbiestLamb6
      @ChubbiestLamb6 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Thank god it was able to make it out alright

    • @indigorune
      @indigorune 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      that one had me laughing

  • @matthew456turner128
    @matthew456turner128 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Only Simon can reverse engineer a jigsaw sudoku!!! Absolutely amazing as always!!!

  • @dougmelven2597
    @dougmelven2597 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    When I see a puzzle that takes Simon over 1/2 hour I know it is a good day to watch. When it takes over an hour for Simon I don't even think about attempting the puzzle.

  • @marrykurie48
    @marrykurie48 4 ปีที่แล้ว +12

    Phistomefel is the name of a character in the book "The city of dreaming books" by Walter Moers. It is an anagramm of "Mephistofel", the short form of "Mephistofeles". To change the letters in a name is typical for Walter Moers though. Part of the fun by reading (or listening to) this book is to get behind the anagramms and find out the true name behind it. So its a great analogy to Sudokus. ^^

    • @Turidus
      @Turidus 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Damn I missed that! And Stadt der Träumenden Bücher is one of my favorites! Thank you :)

    • @marrykurie48
      @marrykurie48 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@Turidus You're welcome ;-)

    • @ancientaxearmor2348
      @ancientaxearmor2348 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      From my knowledge Mephistopheles was a demon/ the devil common in old German folklore which eventually got adapted into the book "Faust" by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. I always assumed that was the origin of Phistomefel's anagram especially as Faust is well known old literature in Germany. Then again I did also wonder why the change of the second ph to f.

    • @marrykurie48
      @marrykurie48 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@ancientaxearmor2348 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe is a person from long ago and not everybody knows very much about him any more. There are a few Lyrics of him taught in school, but nothing of his dramas as far as I can tell. Walter Moers is an author of this time and writes books with characters who's names need to be puzzeled to their origin to understand the comical aspect behind their words and behavior. Therefore I asumed that Phistomefel referred to him by his nickname.

    • @ancientaxearmor2348
      @ancientaxearmor2348 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@marrykurie48 You may be completely right and given the similiar word play I'm inclined to believe that's the case. I just kind of threw in my unrequired two cents of where I always assumed the name originated from. Goethe and his work Faust are still a subject in school in Germany, at least it was part of the curriculum of my state in 2014/15. That's the reason for my assumption as I knew he was German too. Either way I find it very interesting where certain names and wordplays could derive from.

  • @deandregreene2587
    @deandregreene2587 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! This looks like the absolute hardest sudoku puzzle you've did, and for that, I laud & applaud you.

  • @Coyotek4
    @Coyotek4 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    I saw the hour-long video length, but I had to try it. Went 30 minutes, realized I erred somewhere, and quit. Came back and tried again, got stuck, and eventually had to throw in the towel.
    Insane puzzle!

  • @41-Haiku
    @41-Haiku 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Today I get to be proud of myself because I realized a full two minutes ahead of Simon that the 57 in row 5, column 8 resolves to a 5 because one of the two white squares has to be a 7. He entered the same gate by walking all the way around the pasture, which was frankly impressive, but goodness was I stressing.

    • @orangecircle905
      @orangecircle905 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      Seriously, I was screaming (in my mind) the same thing for a few minutes!!
      That part of the video was a little frustrating for me, but at the end he managed to solve it in a cool way, and it was satisfying. Well, it's not like I could have ever done all of the reasoning he did and keep track of everything at the same time, so I'm not in any position to talk.

  • @HPSky94
    @HPSky94 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I love how you're saying it must be frustrating to watch when in fact this is amazing. It's simply so impressive and so much fun trying to solve this along with you! What a great puzzle!

  • @priyambhushan8782
    @priyambhushan8782 4 ปีที่แล้ว +33

    6:17
    "That was a joke"
    Dying 🤣🤣
    Before he said that, I was staring confusedly at the screen lol

  • @aaronspiller3696
    @aaronspiller3696 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    This is absolutely nuts. Entertaining and mesmerising for the entire hour which I find incredible as well. Brilliantly done Simon.

  • @niluscvp
    @niluscvp 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Love that the regions are only resolved in the tail end of the puzzle, little details like that really show that Phistomefel is one of best setters.

  • @TeodorKarabelov
    @TeodorKarabelov 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I'm proud of myself that I managed to solve it (even though it took me about 3 hours and 45 minutes and I used help from a friend), that was an amazing puzzle. I LOVED it. Some of the best time of my life was spent trying to finish it. Thanks for including such a spectacular puzzle in the channel. It even might be my favorite so far!!!

  • @samihakkinen2188
    @samihakkinen2188 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    30:35 "You must forgive me for missing something"
    Trust me Simon, we will. :D
    Hats off to you, our sublime genius!

  • @lukewest4853
    @lukewest4853 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    One piece of logic that escaped me but is important to remember: Rows & Columns follow Sudoku rules, of course! Simon usually doesn't mention that, but it's important to keep in the back of your mind as you watch.

  • @xaviarthunders4894
    @xaviarthunders4894 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Brilliant solve! I hope Sir Phistomefel was watching and enjoying this as much as we were.

  • @Jbb7272
    @Jbb7272 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    Simon... Simon...Simon...the feed back on miracle puzzle is because you’re both brilliant and entertaining. You’re rocking it, dude.

  • @dekstr-
    @dekstr- 4 ปีที่แล้ว +11

    >One hour video comes out
    >Thermo sudoku appears on steam
    Me: now we are cooking with gas!!!

  • @pandacademy9398
    @pandacademy9398 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Without hints or watching the video I solved it! Time was over 2 hours though. This reminded me of the solve for the water and land sudoku done a few days ago. I loved the logic, great puzzle!

  • @Wouter10123
    @Wouter10123 4 ปีที่แล้ว +13

    26:50 "And the same logic applies to that square" - I don't think it does, because that square could be part of the blue region to the left of it. The cell below couldn't, because of the 1 arrow.
    Later logic with the combining of the regions confirms that it is, though. Also, damn that ending was brutal!

    • @lalit5408
      @lalit5408 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      It does. If you make that cell blue. You’ll have 10 shapes, grey shape can’t have 1, blue shape itself isn’t 9 cells large, etc. It breaks from multiple angles.

    • @markp7262
      @markp7262 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @@lalit5408 At that point in the video, there was no logic allowing him to make r5c9 orange, because it still could have been blue. I believe that is what Wouter was saying.

    • @gagstersps3
      @gagstersps3 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      You can always argue that because there is only one solution then it's possible to prove that the cell couldn't be blue, but Simon's explanation was definitely insufficient for why it had to be orange.

    • @nadeemhajiiqbal9214
      @nadeemhajiiqbal9214 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      Good spot, however, the following logic actually makes the blue region grey, so he got away with that.

    • @fuxpremier
      @fuxpremier 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      You're right. In my own solution, I had to reduce the number of regions to 9 prior to this step. I was able to deduce that Simon's blue and grey regions were the same and from the fact it had size 9, all boxes left in column 9 had to belong to Simon's orange box. But reducing the number of regions required a little bit more work on top of the grid before that.

  • @_mxisie
    @_mxisie 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    i love them little pauses he takes and everything stops for a few seconds and i think my wifi’s gone off 🤣

  • @draxiedru
    @draxiedru 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    Gorgeous puzzle! I got all Broadway Boogie Woogied with my colouring and inevitably succumbed to watching Simon’s brilliant solve.

  • @ericgeesaman7341
    @ericgeesaman7341 4 ปีที่แล้ว +13

    Logic Masters Germany 5 star rating, 1 hour solve from Simon? I’ll leave this one to him and grab my snacks...

    • @BlueCyann
      @BlueCyann 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Was it really a full five stars? That makes me feel better about doing it in one day, however I remain salty about the end. Ugh.

  • @JCassidy3383
    @JCassidy3383 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    That was intense! Thanks for the journey and the brilliant solve. It really is good fun watching you solve these insanely complex puzzles.

  • @saganmedvec2403
    @saganmedvec2403 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    The walkie talkie emergency had me laughing as a stress breaking relief. Amazing puzzle!

  • @Pseudoku_RL
    @Pseudoku_RL 4 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    55:36
    Me: The 49 pair in the green region means the 45 must be a 5
    Simon: If you look at these two columns over here, the fours in these two regions must be in these two columns so the 4 goes up top meaning the 45 in the green region must be a 5
    Me: How do you even see that?
    lol
    Edit: Nevermind he used it to solve a different number entirely. This man's mind is truly remarkable lol

  • @Ruchunteur
    @Ruchunteur 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Very interesting. I somehow went to "I just gonna check the rule for that one and resume work because the title and thumbnail seem interesting" to "watch the all video without interuption".

  • @laulau7354
    @laulau7354 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    There is nothing better in the world than cuddle up in bed after a long day and start watching 1 hour of pure joy!!! Thank you so much Simon and Mark for your videos :) (also: can’t wait to purchase the Thermo Sudoku app!!!)

  • @picogilman7604
    @picogilman7604 4 ปีที่แล้ว +55

    45:00 "threes are locked into one of those squares"
    Two of those squares cant have threes :)

    • @blacklion79
      @blacklion79 4 ปีที่แล้ว +11

      Yep, a lot of mistakes like this one with pencil marks near the end of the puzzle. Looks like brain is overheated already (which is not surprising with such hard puzzle!).

    • @yoavcarmel1245
      @yoavcarmel1245 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      i just looked at the screen furstrated for 10 mins because of this

    • @jasonpatterson8091
      @jasonpatterson8091 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      The 1 in the top row had me squirming for a loooong time. That said, he was able to solve it correctly and I wasn't, so oh well.

    • @TrueChaoSclx
      @TrueChaoSclx 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@jasonpatterson8091 the 1 in the top row and the 1 in the green grid xP

    • @BlueCyann
      @BlueCyann 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @@blacklion79 The one that killed me was the resolvable 34 in the lower right (gray region). Like it was bad enough already, and then he talked about how many 4s there were in the grid and he ought to be able to do something with them. [Like resolve that 34?] Followed up by how many threes there are and he really ought to be able to do something with them. [Like resolve that 34?] If I'd been in a better mood I'd have laughed out loud. Then of course Simon being Simon, he proceeds to something else, and eventually resolves the 34 by some other method entirely than the big fat blue 4 just staring at it in its column the entire time.
      I was so impressed by his resolution of that mess of numbers at the end, though. I honestly thought for like an hour that I was going to get through all the weird and novel logic of the puzzle and fail because all the numbers, colors, and shapes were blurring into each other during the "easy" part. I mean, I was pulling out useless X-wings and all kinds of crap. And he's just like wow, that's not so easy, as he spots it in five seconds. You don't say.

  • @michaelvos3839
    @michaelvos3839 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Sudoku video of more then an hour. Instant like! Keep up the good work in these hard Times. Thanks to Simon and Mark!

  • @Stinolez
    @Stinolez 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    With puzzles like this it's always bittersweet watch... Simon can come up with some brilliant logic, which I can only dream of, but then for these complicated logic overlooks simple things, like putting all the ones in the grid, and other singles close to the end of the video, which makes me scream on the screen... All considered, still great job of solving it, where I didn't even know where to start...

  • @Haggogie1234
    @Haggogie1234 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    Tbh I’ve never understood or enjoyed sudoku. But since I found your videos I’ve found that I can’t stop watching and trying to help you solve the puzzles. Really good channel and job. Thank you so much

  • @batdowg
    @batdowg 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    Did this one over 2 days, wow, don't think I've ever done something this difficult, but LOVED it!

  • @CCheukKa
    @CCheukKa 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I don't think I have ever seen Simon this excited about having a puzzle solved correctly

  • @XenophonSoulis
    @XenophonSoulis ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Coming from the future, it is very interesting to see that back then a 1h video was such a big deal, while now we get them regularly.

  • @escaperoomleander1948
    @escaperoomleander1948 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    45:33 when he draws your attention to the 1s and the 2s...and he finally sees what you've been yelling at the screen about the 1s at 56:30

  • @ziziorens348
    @ziziorens348 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    I just love love love these kinds of puzzles. Because literally everyone can solve them - you don’t need a degree, you don’t need special knowledge, you don’t even need the language! All you need is to know how to count to 9. Anyone can do it if they try!

  • @elisagalliker2730
    @elisagalliker2730 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    this puzzle is weirdly exhilarating, and that's coming from someone who watches your videos to fall asleep (and then watch them again fresh in the morning), but I can not fall asleep, this is so amazing I need to see it. I can't believe how excited I got when you finished the first red region haha.

  • @robinvik1
    @robinvik1 4 ปีที่แล้ว +10

    The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was to convince the world to try his sudoku puzzles.

  • @andrewgrant6516
    @andrewgrant6516 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    Finally! I was silently shouting at the screen for about twenty minutes for you to put the last two ones in!

  • @thesolarfutureenthusiast1102
    @thesolarfutureenthusiast1102 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Saw it took you an hour and still gave it a go.
    I was even fairly level with you up to 18mins area. I couldn't find the 1345 logic in row 2. I did find a couple of pieces that you didn't tackle until much later on but they didn't help and I was stuck.
    Great solve and great puzzle.
    We worked out you were joking.. We already knew it took you hour :-)

  • @jaredgarbo3679
    @jaredgarbo3679 4 ปีที่แล้ว +17

    I never thought we would see an hour video.

    • @ericfox7021
      @ericfox7021 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      There are several already

    • @2beinteresting
      @2beinteresting 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      He has done one other video with hidden skyscrapers. You should check that one out. You'll be in for a treat.

    • @coffeedude
      @coffeedude 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@ericfox7021 are there? I remember forty to fifty minute videos, not sure about 1 hour

    • @lalit5408
      @lalit5408 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      Eric Fox which one? Last biggest video I remember was around 54 min.

    • @ericfox7021
      @ericfox7021 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      Lalit Singh Rana yeah actually going back I think I was wrong. There are quite a few 50min+, one even hits 57 minutes if you include the cryptic crosswords but idk about an hour.

  • @ukdavepianoman
    @ukdavepianoman 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    A truly remarkable puzzle - the logic in the solution path is quite extraordinary. I think 1 hour solve for this is very impressive. I spent 10 minutes staring at the arrows wondering how on earth to start.

  • @annapruitt5546
    @annapruitt5546 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    These puzzle creators are absolutely incredible like how does one even start to design and build a sudoku?

  • @goliathcleric
    @goliathcleric 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    As usual, an incredible puzzle by phistomefel that is absolutely beyond me. My only complaint about the video is that I can only like it once. Just absolutely stellar.

  • @priqe
    @priqe 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    how these videos ever get downvotes I will never understand, they are always so amazing, thank you for all the videos!!

  • @jasonpatterson8091
    @jasonpatterson8091 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I LOVED THIS PUZZLE!!!!!
    I made really good progress at the beginning of this puzzle and actually kept pace with you for a little while. A high quality, high difficulty logical puzzle rarely has a lot of variation in how it can be started, so I sometimes watch to see how you're approaching the beginning of the puzzle and then pause when it catches up to where I'm at. Basically I'm checking my work. :-)
    At 2 hours in I got completely and utterly stuck and kept making a series of mistakes because I wasn't seeing that the gray and blue regions in the top right could join together. I threw in the towel eventually and just watched your brain melt for a while.

  • @strat0caster124
    @strat0caster124 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    The hardest puzzle I've yet seen on this channel.
    I enjoyed every second of the 3 hour grind. Still need to work on my logic!

  • @OyvindSOyvindS
    @OyvindSOyvindS 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    Great puzzle, great solve! Thank you so much, Simon, for the the joy and enlightenment you provide us with these days!

  • @vishnugupta5133
    @vishnugupta5133 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    This is the first time I have seen Simon freak out thinking that he broke the puzzle.

  • @andrewchristofi8386
    @andrewchristofi8386 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Loved watching you solve this. Well done and keep the videos coming. Also, don’t apologise for the time it takes.

  • @TheNewAccount2008
    @TheNewAccount2008 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    Holy moly... That was one of the greatest puzzles I have ever seen you solve. Really nice.

  • @jchristie254
    @jchristie254 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    2:56 My head has exploded, I'm still doing easy sudoku lol But I love watching Simon and Mark working these incredible puzzles using intelligence I'll never have.

  • @ericfox7021
    @ericfox7021 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    This puzzle was absolutely amazing! Took me just under two hours to solve, but it was well worth it. No surprise, from Phistomefel :)

  • @xChargy
    @xChargy 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    Despite me having solved a few numbers faster due to classic sudoku than you Simon, and getting a little frustrated you never saw them, I can safely say this has been one of the most entertaining sudoku puzzles I've ever seen!

  • @ebonilha
    @ebonilha 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    after watching some of your videos I decided to try this one. In the end I think I spent more than five hours and needed to partner up with a friend. It was fun, sure, but it was so exhausting.

  • @robb1267
    @robb1267 4 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    Puzzle by Phistomefel
    Video run time: 1:03:09
    Strapping in and getting ready to enjoy it!

  • @piggjf
    @piggjf 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    That was a fun puzzle. I ended up getting most of it resolved but ended up with some x-wings that I only realized were a thing thanks to the suggested videos at the right. A brief pause to watch your "X-Wing and How to Spot It" video let me finish the puzzle in just over 3 hours. After finishing, I watched your solve and realize that the x-wings weren't even necessary. Geometry! Thank you for sharing this and all of your other videos.

  • @charlesnewborn3760
    @charlesnewborn3760 3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Simon, did you totally forget that NORMAL SUDOKU rules apply? i.e. still 1 in every column and row.... And with new regions, it's easy to see where to fill in certain numbers at the 30:00 + mark. Im shouting "Hurry up and put a 1 in R4C3 and R1C6!!!"

  • @NowUndefined
    @NowUndefined 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    The logic behind this puzzle is stunning! What a wonderful job solving too.

  • @nidoking042
    @nidoking042 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    It took me about half an hour to realize I'd made a mistake and start over, and then another hour and change to solve it properly. I think I'll come back and watch this when I have more time to spare, but that was an incredible puzzle for sure.

  • @CalculatedRiskAK
    @CalculatedRiskAK 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    I feel some stupid sense of joy when I can notice even a single thing that I can disambiguate first. Even if it's only one or two things over the course of an entire hour. lol

  • @Sarahreadsbooks
    @Sarahreadsbooks 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    i'd love to see more like this! it's a puzzle type i didn't know about, and having very slight dyscalculia i feel like it would be a good challenge for me

  • @littleschnitzel8226
    @littleschnitzel8226 4 ปีที่แล้ว +8

    What do I want, let's see- one hour of Simon's joy as he logically progresses towards the correct solution, or many more hours of my frustration as I attempt to solve this in vain?
    You guessed it, I'll take Simon. And I'm proud of my decision.

  • @finninchina
    @finninchina 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    Wow really curious about this one!! Recently discovered your channel and I love it!! Thank you so much for making these video's they're absolutely amazing!

  • @LilMermaid28
    @LilMermaid28 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    I have not clue what is going on even with him walking through it. I am just here to watch a sudoku master solve an amazing puzzle.

  • @mynamebucket
    @mynamebucket 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Unreal, really loved watching this one!

  • @deepanshushukla116
    @deepanshushukla116 4 ปีที่แล้ว

    I am here screaming for 1 in Blue and green since last 25 minutes. Whole idea of Blue region was dependent on 1. Could have placed 1 as soon as Green region was identified. But who am I? I gave up on this grid within half an hour. Wonderful puzzle by Phistomefel and beautiful explanation by Simon.

  • @owenzhao5182
    @owenzhao5182 4 ปีที่แล้ว +88

    You know a puzzle is tough when you don't even understand the instructions

    • @annapruitt5546
      @annapruitt5546 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      Right?? Even with the visual, I was still confused hahaha felt dumb asf