Favorite Four: Sudoku Apps

Sudoku has become as popular as crossword puzzles and iOS devices of all sizes make ideal companions for this particular brand of endless (and paperless) number puzzle solving. With so many Sudoku games on the App Store, finding the one that fits best can be as big a puzzle as the game itself. So we've collected our four favorites for you here. Did we miss yours? Please let us know.

Classic Sudoku has a great uncluttered look and comes with a special scoring system that lends itself well to Openfeint leaderboards. In this version of the game a win counts only if the puzzle was solved with less than three mistakes and easy levels must be solved before unlocking harder ones.

This Sudoku game has a full 16 levels of difficulty all of which are unlocked from the start. This version has a “multi-stage hint system” where first the game just reminds a puzzler to double check a square followed by more clues up to a complete illustration of how the puzzle should be solved. The standout feature for us is that : ) Sudoku + allows users to enter puzzles from any print source for endless portable solving.

Download now!

Enjoy Sudoku

Download now!

Enjoy Sudoku Daily Free

Apple’s choice for their Game Starter Kit, Big Bad Sudoku Book has an intuitive interface, allows background apps to run, and like >Sudoku there is a scoring system, but here the leaderboards are on Game Center. Its key feature is “highlights” which allows players to highlight rows, a specific number on the grid, or whatever helps focus attention on problem areas. Challenge mode is particularly fun with 50 increasingly difficult puzzles that must be unlocked sequentially.

The classic with a great twist, Social Sudoku, as the name implies allows solvers to compete against one another via Game Center. There is even a cooperative mode for solving together. In both cases both players see the same puzzle and solve in sync. This game contains six different versions of Sudoku from Classic to Killer to Kakuro.